4 Things Home Sellers Need from their REALTOR®

Louisiana REALTORS® • October 25, 2023

You wouldn’t want a doctor that does the bare minimum to treat your symptoms. You wouldn’t want a mechanic to do the smallest repair possible to get your car running. Keeping with this theme you also wouldn’t want a REALTOR® that did the minimum amount of work to sell your home. Just like a minimal treatment could lead to a returning ailment, and a minor repair can’t fix a major problem; simply sticking a sign in the yard and posting on the MLS isn’t going to provide the best results for a seller. Here are four things that REALTORS® should do for their clients that are selling a home.


Promote and Market the Property


This is a key practice that every REALTOR® should embrace and excel at. Marketing is to real estate as bait is to a fisherman. Today there are more avenues to attract buyers than ever before. One of the most essential elements is photography. High-quality photographs of a property will be any potential buyer’s first impression of your client’s home. Social media and a strong web presence are also critical to create the best opportunity for a successful sale.


Find the Best Price


Having an effective pricing strategy stems from a number of skills. Using the experience and expertise of a REALTOR® will help you arrive at the best possible price. Without this vital step, it can end up costing a lot of time and money. Understanding the market and researching comparable sales are important factors for determining the best price. There is a fine line to walk between what is a correctly priced property and the price that your client wants. While it can be difficult not to give in to an optimistic figure, your REALTOR® is obligated by the code of ethics to do what is best, not to offer what you want to hear. Pricing too high can lead to an extended time on the market, which is not favorable. Pricing too low can leave a lot of money on the table. This is why arriving at the correct price for your market and timeframe is essential.


Attend the Inspection


When a home is inspected it can often lead to a secondary round of negotiations. Cost concessions and repair agreements all affect your motivation and final price. Having an available REALTOR® to observe and listen makes for a valuable resource and gives you the opportunity to understand the evolving landscape of the transaction.


Prepare for the Closing


A REALTOR’S® value comes from their experience and expertise in guiding their clients through a complex and complicated process. This is never truer than during a home closing. The more your REALTOR® can do for you in this final stage only adds to the value of a REALTOR®.

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2026 Legislative Session Scoop - Week 4 Recap

By Louisiana REALTORS® • April 3, 2026
This week, the Legislature remained in high gear, and several items relevant to Louisiana’s real estate market moved into focus. The biggest headline for our industry this week was HB 468 by Rep. Troy Hebert , our wholesaling/consumer-protection bill, was slated to be heard on the House floor, however was bumped due to floor congestion and out-of-order bills. It is now expected to be reset for next Tuesday. This bill remains one of the clearest “market integrity” efforts on the board with clearer rules for non-traditional transactions, stronger transparency and better consumer protections. We also continued substantive policy work behind the scenes. We are actively engaging with Rep. Carver on a vacant land disclosure bill he has authored, and we appreciate that he is welcoming our input and guidance as the language is refined. Our goal is straightforward: ensure any vacant land disclosure framework is practical, reduces confusion and avoids unintentionally shifting liability or enforcement burdens onto real estate professionals. In addition, we were pleased to deepen our relationships at the Capitol this week. We had the privilege of hosting a lunch for the Governor’s Office, enjoyed meeting Governor Landry’s team, and look forward to working with them in a constructive, solutions-oriented manner as the session continues. Finally, Rep. Hebert also filed an additional measure that aligns with our legislative agenda and speaks directly to transaction risk management: HB 1027 , which would limit liability for licensed real estate appraisers in situations involving smoke and carbon monoxide detector compliance. The current law already provides that real estate agents are not liable for a seller’s failure to comply with Louisiana’s detector requirements in one- or two-family dwellings. HB 1027 would extend that same liability protection to licensed appraisers by amending R.S. 40:1581(F). This is a clean, common-sense clarification that helps prevent appraisers from being pulled into compliance disputes that properly belong with the seller’s statutory obligations. Next week, committees are scheduled to hear multiple bills relevant to real estate, including measures involving construction and roofing standards (often tied to insurance and mitigation), property rights/expropriation, and property tax and adjudicated property issues that can influence housing supply and neighborhood reinvestment. We will stay closely engaged and will flag any bills or amendments that materially affect transactions, homeownership costs or private property rights. Please view the weekly bill tracking report provided by our lobbying team over at Harris, DeVille and Associates.

Cookbook for the REALTORS® Relief Foundation!

By Louisiana REALTORS® • April 2, 2026
Louisiana REALTORS® is compiling a cookbook of Louisiana flavor with a REALTOR® heart in support of the REALTORS® Relief Foundation . And we have two ways for you to get involved:  Join us in contributing your favorite recipe using this online form. If you want to include a picture with your recipe, send to info@larealtors.org and reference recipe title in email subject. Or share your creativity by designing the cover artwork for the cookbook. A small committee will review all entries and choose one to print on the cover. Stay tuned for more details on when you can grab your own copy of the cookbook! Cover artwork and recipes are due by April 17th.

2026 Legislative Session Scoop - Week 3 Recap

By Louisiana REALTORS® • March 27, 2026
Week three of the Regular Session kept real estate issues in the conversation, even as lawmakers continued to focus heavily on workforce, tax and insurance policy. On the property tax front, measures to reshape assessments and exemptions, including proposals for a new blight rehabilitation exemption and additional relief for seniors, remain parked in the House Ways and Means Committee as stakeholders work through fiscal and local government concerns. These bills matter because they will influence long-term carrying costs, redevelopment incentives and how tax burdens are shared across residential and commercial property. Homestead related legislation, including parish level authority to increase the exemption amount, is also in the queue, signaling that the broader structure of Louisiana’s homestead system is officially on the table, not just the dollar figure. For homeowners and buyers, this debate goes directly to affordability. For local governments, it raises revenue stability and service delivery questions. There also has been movement on several identical pieces of legislation that would instruct parish assessors to develop a process for homeowners to permanently register for the homestead exemption for the duration that they own and live on the property. We are actively tracking legislation that will directly shape how investor activity and non-traditional transactions are recognized and regulated in Louisiana’s real estate market. This includes HB 468 by Troy Hebert , a key component of the Louisiana REALTORS® legislative package that targets the wholesale of residential real estate, which was heard in the House Commerce Committee on Monday. The bill is currently positioned for a floor vote early next week. As drafted, HB 468 represents a major step in the right direction for consumer protection in Louisiana, advancing needed guardrails through potential disclosure, registration, and practice standards that could redefine how assignment contracts and “off-market” transactions intersect with licensed brokerage activity. In parallel, HB 292 by Delisha Boyd passed the House on final reading, 86-3, and is on its way to the Senate. Together, these measures represent a coordinated policy effort to bring greater structure and transparency to emerging transaction models, while preserving the integrity of the traditional brokerage framework. Finally, the broader policy backdrop remains important: the Governor continues to push income tax changes and cost of living relief, while business and industry groups are prioritizing insurance, workforce and energy — each a key driver of long run housing demand and investment. As these debates evolve, we’ll keep you updated on what moves, what stalls and what it all means for your clients, your pipeline and private property rights across Louisiana. Please view the weekly bill tracking report provided by our lobbying team over at Harris, DeVille and Associates.
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