Frequently Asked Questions

How are Help-U-Sell REALTORS trained and licensed?
We are experienced, top REALTORS and all of our Rochester Help-U-Sell agents are licensed members of the Southeast Minnesota Association of REALTORS (SEMAR), Minnesota Association of REALTORS (MAR) and the National Association Of REALTORS (NAR).  Tom Lemish, the president of Help-U-Sell in Rochester has industry-wide marketing and management experience  in recruiting, selecting, training and managing top professional sales people.  He carries a Marketing Degree from the University Of Florida while studying economics as  a primary research area. With over two decades of sale management experience, he is the one of the only brokers in Rochester that offers to pay qualified, highly motivated REALTORS a salary.  Rochester traditional agents want a 6% or 7% commission from you (while their companies get half or more of the commission in most cases) so they have to charge at least 6% to pay the companies they represent..  Our business model is geared to support the consumer, not the agent.  This is HELP-U-SELL...  You Have A Choice!

At HELP-U-SELL,  and like BEST BUY, HERBERGERS, AUTO NATION, HOME DEPOT, CRATE & BARREL, POTTERY BARN and many more companies, we have REALTORS that are not independent and on commission.  Our whole company works for you, not an agent selling their own listings.  . 

So why do so many people still list with 6% charging agents?
Around the country, and much unlike Rochester Minnesota, sellers are paying less, much less!   It is not a puzzling question for us why  Rochester consumers pay more. First, we know many sellers don't realize that we sell homes faster because we charge a lot less. We offer more consumer education and seller advantages in Southeast Minnesota.

The traditional real estate companies spend a lot of effort training their agents (and agents must pay for their own training) to push the service-side perception of large commissions which in-turn attract more agents while avoiding the new trend and issue of lower fees. To defend their traditional pricing structure, many agents will argue that “if you pay less, you will get less.” Not true... and It's all a smokescreen for larger commissions, of course.

There is no shortage of unhappy sellers who paid 6%, 7% or more.  Loyalty is another reason why Rochester consumers pay more. When sellers prepare to sell their homes, they first think of the agent that sold them their home, or a friend, family or church member that is an agent. This is the worst pitfall that sellers experience. Because of their past relationships, sellers often find it difficult to “arm wrestle” commissions and negotiate favorable terms when  "it's a friend" and they think "I have to list with them".  These are more common mistakes.  You pay much more with "friends" who send you pre-written letters every three months to let you know they are in the real estate business. 

At Help-U-Sell we definitely cherish the same long-term relationship with our past clients; however, we still work towards having sellers take a closer look at choices that can save them thousands of dollars and we keep our business relationships only to serve consumers.  SMART!

Why does Help-U-Sell work?
Help-U-Sell works because most buyers are using the Internet to search for a home before they ever consider speaking with a seller or real estate agent. In fact, tens of thousands of buyers visit our websites (http://www.help-u-sell.com/ , http://www.rochesterhomesellers.com/ and more) each month. Buyers see Help-U-Sell homes as attractive investments because they recognize that they have the option of dealing direct with Seller without being separated by real estate agents. Most importantly, our licensed MLS REALTORS and consulting team will supply professional expertise for you and the buyer. In addition, they will guide you with all offers and supply any information that the lenders, home inspectors, insurance requirement, appraisal, title and escrow/settlement companies will need. As a seller, it is important to know that you have the best professional, real estate knowledge and expertise throughout the entire process. 

What advantages does Help-U-Sell offer as compared to traditional REALTORS® and their companies?
Help-U-Sell offers two advantages over traditional real estate agent companies:

1) Choices! We let you choose exactly how much you want to participate in showing your home and exactly what services you want. Your fee is based upon how many services your Help-U-Sell Real Estate Consultant provides. You save substantially with our full service too, and you get more guaranteed services like advertising, marketing, optional staging advice, home inspections, comparative market analysis, virtual tours and much more.  Your Choice.

2) Higher Technology...  Help-U-Sell’s proprietary technology allows you to obtain up-to-date information about your home sale quicker and more efficiently than a traditional listing agent. In fact, with our technology, you can be anywhere in the world and learn about the latest activity on your home. We have the advantages and we use them well.  And...  You'll get an e-mail automatically when a potential buyer inquires about your home.  You can even print more flyers and feature sheets when needed and right form your computer.  Check our website and log in to see even more information regarding the sale of your home!

3)  Our Guarantee...   We guarantee in writing that we will advertise your home every week.  Ask any other real estate agent to do this!!  They may want even more commission or negotiate with you on spending marketing dollars.

What is Help-U-Sell’s success rate as compared to a traditional Realtor®?
Help-U-Sell’s sellers enjoy a nearly 72% success rate. How many Companies or agents will tell you this information? But in fact, this is compared to an average of 63% for the traditional system (National Association of Realtor® statistics). Help-U-Sell has a better success rate due to our sellers having more flexibility to help and to save money by showing their homes if they want.  It is their choice!  Do you realize how many clients I have had ask me, "why can't I show my home and talk with buyers about the features and benefits of my home?"  Traditional companies and outrageous listing commissions are part of the equation for them not wanting you involved.

How does Help-U-Sell work?
Help-U-Sell offers consumers choices! You choose how involved you want to be in the sales process. We deliver marketing for you. If you decide to show your home, you SAVE! You only pay a low Help-U-Sell set fee, saving you thousands. don't have time to show your home? If WE show your home, you only pay the low Help-U-Sell set fee plus a low showing fee to the Help-U-Sell real estate professional that sells your home. Want maximum exposure? List your home in the realtor Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for your area and let other real estate professionals show your home. If they sell your home, you pay a low Help-U-Sell set fee and you pay the real estate professional that brings the buyer the fee you agreed to and quoted in the MLS listing.

Don't call the name on the sign, call Tom Lemish or the Help-U-Sell office staff.

Why do I need Help-U-Sell instead?
The #1 reason sellers use Help-U-Sell is for our Expertise. We have strategic pricing strategies for your home, we have superior marketing tools and expertise to sell your home, and most important, we professionally manage your transaction from marketing through closing to make sure that you are provided with the highest levels of customer service and dedication.
In addition:

• We guarantee in writing to advertise your property every week. (Ask a traditional agent or company to do this. Good luck!)
• We use our exclusive marketing system to get you buyers. 
• We send an ad on your property to potential buyers now looking for property.
• We list your home on the Internet at HelpUSell.com and other websites (http://www.rochesterhomesellers.com/, http://www.realtor.com/ and many more..
• We discuss and advise the strategies for the "Bad" and the "Good" in all offers and negotiate to get you the best possible price and the best terms.
• We pre-qualify your buyer and help them obtain financing (Many times there are 7 or 8 methods).  We go through your closing costs and supply you with an estimate of your net proceeds so you can plan.
• We help you avoid problems, assist you should any arise and work to save you money in all the hidden parts of the transaction.
• We coordinate for you with the engineers, appraisers, inspectors and other professionals.
• We handle all negotiations, paperwork, contracts, any counterproposals, manage your transaction through the closing.. .

May a buyer contact me directly after a Realtor shows my home to them?
Yes. You need to call us to initiate that buyer to the negotiating table.  That's why we are REALTORS At Work.  We are there when you need us.

How does Help-U-Sell help me with the paperwork and legal steps?
Help-U-Sell’s licensed consulting team will help you execute your transaction through closing and without hassles to you. Once we find a buyer (either directly or through a buyer’s agent), one of our licensed real estate consultants will execute the creation of the purchase agreement and make steps to closing easier.

How much commission do I have to pay?
Unlike most real estate professionals, Help-U-Sell does not charge a commission to list your home – we are leading the trend within the real estate industry to charge a ‘Fee for Services” provided at reasonable costs;  not extravagant, excessively high commissions charged by traditional companies. You decide how much you want to participate in the sale of your home and what services you would like your Help-U-Sell real estate professional to provide and your fee – due at closing – it is set. 

Are you a “discount” broker?
No WAY.. There are some in town though. They charge a discounted commission and provide even less. On the other hand, we are better than full service, traditional real estate companies. What makes Help-U-Sell different is that we are a “fee for service” company. We have determined a very competitive fee for each component of a real estate transaction and we offer that to the public in a “no haggle” environment. Unlike traditional real estate, you don't have to argue and bicker with us to get a super competitive rate! We don't attempt to make a fortune from each family we deal with; we just deal with LOTS of families.

What is “fee for service” or “a la carte services?”
Most real estate professionals refer to their service as “full service.” This means that they do everything it takes to sell your home – place it in the MLS, maybe advertise it in the local paper and home magazines, provide a flyer, and do open houses. Our "Fee for service” is where the full service package is separated into any number of component parts and combinations. In this arrangement, different services cost different fees, and these fees are usually not contingent upon an actual close of escrow. This arrangement is suited for today’s more “e-savvy” sellers and “For Sale With Owners” who want assistance with select parts of the process of selling their home, without having to pay traditional real estate’s higher full-cost fee.

For instance, for the real estate professional, the two most costly and time consuming services in a sale of your home are the open houses and showings.  The standard Help-U-Sell fee does not include these services. You can show your own home and SAVE! Should you need occasional help showing your home, we are still available for a low fee should we write a contract for the buyers. But the key is now you have the option to decide whether you need this service.

If you are moving to another city and cannot participate in the process, no problem! We have a fee structure that will provide you “full service” to meet your needs.

What is “full service?”
Most real estate professionals refer to their service as “full service.” This means that the do everything it takes to you're your home – place it in the MLS, advertise it in the local paper and home magazines, provider a flyer, do open houses, show your home to potential buyers, handle the negotiations when you receive an offer, and handle everything through closing.

The question really should be, “What is full cost service?” Sadly, some brokers (regardless of company) list homes and then just put them in the MLS and wait for a contract to come in with no service provided beyond that. Many times after these listings expire, we end up interviewing with these unhappy sellers. We explain carefully to them what we do and what we don't do -- the most common response – “Yeah, so?– I was paying 6 to 7% and didn't get that much! We offer you a menu of services that lets you choose as much or as little service as you desire! AND we back it up in writing by making the specifics of the service and the marketing we are obligated to provide part of the listing agreement!

How can Help-U-Sell charge such low fees for its services?
Years of experience have allowed us to streamline the process of selling a home and has allowed us to identify how much time each service within the sale takes. This has allowed us to create low fees based upon the amount of time our real estate professionals will have to dedicate to the sale of your home. For instance, in most areas, higher priced homes take longer to sell. Therefore our fee will be higher for a higher priced home to compensate for the additional time we will have to invest and additional marketing we will have to provide.

If your business model is so beneficial to clients and you alike, why aren't other brokers doing it?
The Internet has really shaken things up, and changes are starting to appear. Large national chains are even starting to tinker with the traditional model (Coldwell Banker is test marketing a limited “fee-for-service” program in one city and Century 21 in another), Plus there have been several Internet start-ups taking a stab at simple discount brokerage. We expect that the rate of change within the industry will increase, bringing new choices to consumers. But where the traditional industry is seeking to “jump on the bandwagon,” Help-U-Sell is proud of doing “fee for service” BEFORE it was fashionable, since 1976!  We are the leader, join us and be a consumer advocate.  Stop traditional companies and agents from taking much more of your money and in the form of extravagant commissions..

Will my listing look the same as those who have agreed to pay a full listing commission to a traditional agent?
Yes and better! Remember that one of Rochester's most valued and professional marketing BROKER/REALTOR is obligated to you. Your listing is a “Full Service” listing from the viewpoint of the MLS service because you are getting full service for the services you have selected.

What happens if a buyer calls Help-U-Sell directly to request to see my home?
That's why we market your home better for you. The Help-U-Sell office staff will first check their showing instructions to see if you have given them permission to show your home. They will then make every effort to contact you and let you show your home. In the event that the buyer is impatient and you cannot be reached within a reasonable amount of time, a Help-U-Sell real estate professional will make arrangements to show your home.  

What happens when I receive an offer?
Help-U-Sell will write the contract and handle the transaction thru to Closing. .  .

What are open houses? Are they necessary?
Open Houses are typically conducted on Saturdays and/or Sundays. The idea is to let the buyers preview your home in a no pressure, non-scheduled manner. Many Help-U-Sell sellers have great success with open houses. As to whether they are necessary or not, the answer is yes. Just like location, location, location is important, so is exposure, exposure, exposure. The best sales reps for your home are your neighbors and others visiting you home. The more people that see your home, the more you increase the odds of finding a buyer.

What is MLS?
MLS® (Multiple Listing Service) is the most comprehensive computerized database of homes for sale with over 1.5 million listings nationwide. This database is used by Realtors to market and promote their own listings and to cooperate with other Realtors. Realtors, in turn, are compensated with part of the commission. A large portion of real estate transactions are a result of direct MLS exposure. By having your home in MLS, it will be exposed to thousands of local real estate agents who otherwise would not have known that your property was for sale and would not have shown it. This is the same MLS used by a traditional broker who would charge you a full cost listing commission.

Do I have to list my home in the MLS and thereby offer a coop commission?
No. That is totally up to you and often dependent upon your marketplace. If homes in your area are moving fast, then you will probably want to at least start without the MLS so you have an opportunity to sell your home yourself and save. However, if you are in an area taking 45 or more days to sell the average home, then you will probably want to list your home in the MLS to increase your exposure. As they say, time is money and exposure is critical.

What is REALTOR .com?
REALTOR.COM is a leading Internet site where buyers can search for homes. Technically, it is the official Internet site for the National Association of Realtors. REALTOR.com's 1.4 million home listings are provided by participating REALTOR Multiple Listing Services. This is one of the advantages of listing your home on the MLS - your home will then be copied to the REALTOR.com web site and will be accessible to individuals and Realtors via the Internet. This includes color pictures, tours and all pertinent information (price, location, square footage, contact information, etc.)

Can I start out trying to sell my home as a Help-U-Sell Exclusive Listing first, then add the MLS later?
Yes.  Our exclusive marketing system is like a local Rochester MLS program.  Plus we advertise your listing every week in

Will a yard sign be provided?
Yes, a distinctive Help-U-Sell yard sign will be installed if unrestricted by Community Association rules.

How do other Realtors show my home?
Other Realtors will schedule a showing using the instructions in the MLS. Nothing will be different for them.

How long before my home will be on the MLS and REALTOR .com?
Your home will be on the MLS and HelpUSell.com within 24 hours of receipt and acceptance of the listing agreement and the other forms provided to you. They will be transferred to REALTOR.com when the local MLS service sends them data, which in many cases is once a week around Wednesday.

How do I list my Home with Help-U-Sell?
"Don't call the name on the sign, call Tom Lemish" and the Help-U-Sell specialists, strategically located on REAL ESTATE ROW at the corner of Elton Hills Drive, NW and West River Parkway. Or contact your local Help-U-Sell office via phone (507) 250-2063 or this web site.

How should I price my home?
We will provide you with a Comparative Market Analysis (much better than a home appraisal) that will provide you with information regarding the price range of similar home sales in your area so that you can choose a price you feel is appropriate for your home.