Southern Indiana
Your property.
Your negotiator.
Full service with a clear 1% listing fee. I bring experience negotiating major contracts and labor disputes for a Fortune 500 company, along with a contractor's perspective on the details of a home.
Negotiating experience
Major contracts, grievances and labor disputes for Cummins, a global company with about 67,000 employees, headquartered right up the road in Columbus.
Inspection responses
I'm still a working contractor, and I've priced and answered hundreds of buyer inspection repair requests. I know which ones are real.
Full service
Pricing, photos, MLS, showings, negotiation and closing. All of it, for 1% of the sale price.
I'm selling
Keep more of your equity
A personal market analysis, a condition walk before you list and a clear estimate of your net, before you sign anything.
See how selling works →I'm buying
Know the house before you offer
Someone who reads a house on the showing and negotiates the inspection with real repair numbers.
See how I represent buyers →The 1 Percent Lists network
Local agent. National brand behind me.
1 Percent Lists has been listing homes for 1% since 2015, with franchise offices across the country. Here's what the brand has done nationwide.
Figures are companywide, published by 1 Percent Lists. They are not my personal results. Accessed November 4, 2026.
How a sale works
Four steps from first call to closing
Walk and price
I walk your home, note condition issues and build a pricing brief from recent sales near you.
Prepare and launch
Photos, the MLS listing, showings and marketing, on a dated launch plan you can see.
Negotiate
Offers, counters, the inspection response and the appraisal. This is where your money is won.
Close
I track every deadline in your contract and keep the lender, title company and buyer's agent moving.
Sell your home
Full service for a 1% listing fee
My listing fee is 1% of the sale price, with no minimum. You still get full service: pricing, marketing, showings, negotiation and closing.
Listing expired? See how a relaunch works.
The math, plainly
At a $220,000 sale, a 1% listing fee is $2,200.
Buyer agent compensation is a separate choice you make in your listing agreement. Before you sign, I show you your estimated net both ways.
What's included
Everything a full service listing should have
- Pricing brief from recent sales near you
- A condition walk before you list
- Listing photos
- MLS listing through MIBOR BLC
- Lockbox and showing scheduling
- Weekly seller reports with showing feedback
- Offer review and negotiation
- Inspection and appraisal response
- Estimated net sheet before you sign
- Deadline tracking through closing day
How your home gets seen
Full marketing, not a bare MLS listing
A 1% fee doesn't mean less exposure. Your home goes everywhere buyers are looking.
The MLS
Listed on MIBOR BLC, where every agent in the area searches for their buyers.
Zillow, Realtor.com and more
Sent automatically to the major home search sites and hundreds of others.
Targeted social ads
Video and photo ads on Facebook and Instagram aimed at people actively shopping for homes.
Your own property page
A web page just for your home, easy to share by text and social media.
Text and email to buyers
New listing alerts to buyers and agents already looking in your area.
Listing photos
Bright, well composed photos of every room and the outside.
Yard sign
A 1 Percent Lists sign so neighbors and anyone driving by know it's for sale.
Lockbox and scheduling
Secure electronic lockbox and online showing requests, with feedback after each visit.
Savings calculator
See the difference on your home
Enter your expected sale price and compare my 1% listing fee with another listing fee.
The 3% starting value is an editable illustration, not a typical or market average fee. Fees vary. Buyer agent compensation, title fees and closing costs are separate and aren't part of this comparison. Your net sheet covers them.
An estimate for comparison only, not a promise of savings or sale price.
Put the difference to work
Savings you can use to sell
The money you don't spend on a listing fee is yours. Many sellers keep it. Others use part of it to make their home the easiest one for a buyer to say yes to:
- Price a little sharper than the competition
- Offer help with the buyer's closing costs
- Pay for a rate buydown that lowers the buyer's payment
- Handle inspection repairs without giving up your bottom line
We decide together what makes sense for your home and your market.
The condition walk
Find it before the buyer's inspector does
Before your home goes on the market, I walk it the way a buyer's inspector will: roof, foundation, electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, the water heater, and on rural homes the well and septic.
I'm still a working contractor and I've answered hundreds of inspection repair requests, so I know what inspectors write up and what it really costs to fix. For each item we decide together whether to repair it, offer a credit, adjust the price or disclose it.
If you need repairs, I'll give you names of contractors. I own Wardmark Property Operations, and you are always free to use any contractor you choose.
Seller timeline
List to close
- 1
Consultation and condition walk
We meet at your home, walk it and talk through your goals and timeline.
- 2
Pricing and net sheet
You see the pricing brief and your estimated net before you sign the listing agreement.
- 3
Prep and photos
We handle the repairs you chose, then photograph the home.
- 4
Live on the MLS
Showings start. You get a report every week.
- 5
Offers and negotiation
I lay out each offer by net and by how likely it is to close.
- 6
Under contract
Inspection, appraisal, loan approval and title, each with a deadline I track.
- 7
Closing
You sign, the title company pays out, and the buyer gets the keys.
Seller questions
Straight answers
Do I have to pay the buyer's agent?
That's your choice, and it's written into your listing agreement. We'll go over what each option means for your net and for buyer interest before you decide.
How long is the listing agreement?
Indiana requires a written listing agreement with an expiration date. We set the term together, and you get a copy of everything you sign.
What if my home doesn't sell?
We review showing feedback and the market every week, and I'll tell you plainly if the price or the plan needs to change. I don't promise a price or a sale date, and nobody honest can.
How can you offer full service for 1%?
1 Percent Lists runs on technology and volume. Contracts, signatures, showings and marketing are handled through efficient systems, so more of the money stays with you instead of going to overhead.
Is there a minimum fee or transaction fee?
My office has no minimum listing fee. Some 1 Percent Lists offices in other areas do, so always ask before you sign with anyone.
Do you put a lockbox and sign on my home?
Yes. Every listing gets a secure electronic lockbox, online showing scheduling and a yard sign.
Can I sign paperwork from my phone?
Yes. Listing paperwork and offers can be reviewed and signed electronically, so you don't have to come to an office.
Is a 1% listing really full service?
Yes. Pricing, photos, the MLS, showings, negotiation and closing are all included. The list above is what you get.
Buy a home
Buy with a negotiator who reads houses
On every showing I look past the staging: roof age, foundation, systems, water and drainage. Then I help you decide what to offer and what to ask for after the inspection.
On a showing
What I look at in every house
- Roof, gutters and flashing
- Foundation, grading and drainage
- Electrical panel and wiring
- Plumbing and the water heater
- Furnace and air conditioning
- Windows, moisture and signs of past leaks
- Well and septic on rural homes
- Items that can hold up an FHA, VA or USDA appraisal
Inspection response
Ask for what's worth asking for
An inspection report can run forty pages. I sort it into three piles: safety and loan issues, real costs, and normal wear.
I'm still a working contractor, and I've been on the contractor side of hundreds of these requests, so every ask we make has a real repair cost behind it. Sellers take a request seriously when the numbers are real.
Selling and buying?
List for 1%, put the difference into your next home
If you own a home now, list it with me for 1% and use what you save toward the next one: a bigger down payment, your closing costs, or a rate buydown that lowers your monthly payment.
I'll line up both sides so your sale and your purchase close on a schedule that works, and you only move once.
How buyer agent pay works now
Agreed in writing, before we tour
Since August 2024, buyers sign a written agreement with their agent before touring homes, and the agent's fee is set in that agreement. No surprises.
That fee can be paid by you, requested from the seller as part of your offer, or split. We'll talk through which approach makes your offer strongest on each house.
You'll also get a home search app with listings straight from the MLS, so you see new homes as soon as they hit the market.
Buyer timeline
Preapproval to keys
- 1
Preapproval
Talk to a lender first so you know your price range and loan type.
- 2
Consultation and buyer agreement
Indiana requires a written buyer agreement before we tour. We go over every line of it together.
- 3
Showings
You get my read on each house's condition, not just its looks.
- 4
Offer
Price, terms and contingencies built on recent sales and the home's condition.
- 5
Inspection and response
We decide what to ask for and why.
- 6
Appraisal and loan approval
I keep the deadlines in front of everyone.
- 7
Closing and keys
Final walk through, signing, then the house is yours.
The negotiation edge
I've negotiated for a Fortune 500 company. Now I negotiate for you.
Most of the money in a home sale is won or lost after the offer: counters, inspection requests, appraisal gaps. I come to those moments from two directions most agents never have.
At the big table
Big companies. High stakes.
As a Labor Relations Manager for Cummins, I negotiated major contracts and worked grievances and labor disputes for a global Fortune 500 company with about $34 billion in yearly revenue and roughly 67,000 employees.
Those negotiations carried real stakes for the company and the people who worked there. You learn to prepare harder than the other side, read what they actually need, and never lose your temper.
- Major contract negotiations
- Grievance resolution
- Labor dispute negotiations
Inside the house
Hundreds of inspection responses
I still run a contracting business today, and I've priced and answered hundreds of buyer inspection repair requests. I've seen what inspectors write up, what the work really costs, and which requests are serious and which are padding.
That means when a repair list lands on your deal, you aren't guessing. You know what each item costs, whether it's worth fighting over, and what a fair credit looks like.
- Repair requests priced from real work
- Repair, credit or price: the right call for each item
- Answers within days, not weeks
How I negotiate
Prepare more than the other side
At the corporate table, the side with better facts usually wins. I come into every negotiation with recent sales, repair costs and your walk away number already written down.
Price is one lever of many
Closing date, repairs, credits and possession all have value to someone. Trading the right ones keeps more money in your pocket than fighting over price alone.
Stay calm when others don't
As a police detective and law enforcement instructor, I taught officers how to calm tense situations. Deals fall apart when people get angry, and I keep the conversation moving toward closing day.
Put real numbers on repairs
When a buyer's repair list arrives, I price it the way a contractor would, because I still am that contractor. You answer with facts instead of guesses.
Where it pays off
The four moments that decide your net
The counter offer
Knowing what to give, what to hold and when to walk.
The inspection response
Pricing every request and choosing repair, credit or price for each.
The appraisal gap
Defending value with comps and options when the number comes in low.
Multiple offers
Comparing offers on true net and how likely each is to close.
How I work
The questions other agents avoid
What selling really costs, how your options compare, and when I'm not the right fit. Plain answers first, details after.
What does it cost to sell a home in Southern Indiana?
Your costs usually come from five places: the listing fee, buyer agent compensation if you choose to offer it, title and closing fees, any repairs or credits agreed after the inspection, and prorated property taxes. Your mortgage payoff comes out of the proceeds too.
With me, the listing fee is 1% of the sale price. Before you sign anything, I prepare a net sheet that estimates each of these costs for your home.
How do my options compare?
| 1% listing | Traditional listing | Sell it yourself | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listing fee | 1% of the sale price | Set by the agent you hire | None |
| MLS exposure | Yes | Yes | Usually not, unless you pay for a listing service |
| Pricing help | Pricing brief from local sales | Varies by agent | You research it |
| Who negotiates | Your agent | Your agent | You, often against the buyer's agent |
| Paperwork and deadlines | Your agent tracks them | Your agent tracks them | You and a title company or attorney |
This compares business models, not people. Many agents in our area do excellent work.
When am I not the right fit?
If you need cash in hand this week, an investor offer may suit you better than a listing. If your home is outside Southern Indiana, an agent who works that market every day will serve you better. And if you'd rather sell it yourself, call me anyway. I'll answer your questions.
What happens after the first call?
I ask a few questions about the home and your timeline, then schedule a visit. At the visit we walk the house together. Within a few days you get a pricing brief and an estimated net sheet. You decide from there, with no pressure to sign.
Do you send work to your own contracting company?
I own Wardmark Property Operations, and you are always free to use any contractor you choose. If Wardmark ever bids on work for you, you get a written disclosure of my ownership first, and my work as your agent never depends on who you hire.
Which inspection repairs are worth doing before I list?
Usually worth it: safety items, active leaks, and anything that would stop an FHA, VA or USDA appraisal.
Often not: cosmetic updates and normal wear. Older systems that still work are usually better handled by pricing or disclosure than by replacement.
Free home value
What's my home worth?
You get a personal market analysis prepared by me, not an automated estimate. I look at recent sales near you, your home's condition and what buyers are paying for right now.
What happens next
1. I reply the same day to confirm a few details.
2. I prepare your analysis from recent sales near you.
3. If you'd like, I walk the home in person for a sharper number.
Why pick John
You only sell a house a few times in your life. Bring a negotiator.
I'm John Long, a REALTOR® with 1 Percent Lists Indiana Real Estate, serving Southern Indiana from Seymour. Here's what you get when you hire me, and why it matters for your sale.
Six reasons
What you get with me
A trained negotiator
I negotiated major contracts, grievances and labor disputes for Cummins, a global Fortune 500 company with about 67,000 employees. Your counter offer gets that same preparation.
A contractor's eye
I'm a REALTOR® and a working contractor. I've priced and answered hundreds of inspection repair requests, so I spot problems on the walk through and know what they cost.
Calm when it counts
Leader of the Jackson County Juvenile Detention Center, then police detective and law enforcement instructor. Pressure doesn't rattle me.
Full service for 1%
Pricing, photos, MLS, showings, negotiation and closing, for 1% of the sale price. You keep more of your equity.
Local
I'm based in Seymour and work across Southern Indiana, from the county seats to the rural roads in between.
Straight answers
I'll tell you what your home is worth, what it needs and when I'm not the right fit. No pressure, no surprises.
The road here
Service, leadership, investigation, negotiation, building
U.S. Coast Guard
Where it started: discipline, teamwork and service.
Juvenile Detention Center
Led the Jackson County Juvenile Detention Center.
Police detective
Investigations, interviews and law enforcement instruction.
Cummins Inc.
Labor Relations Manager: contracts, grievances and disputes.
Contractor and REALTOR®
Doing both today: hundreds of inspection responses, working for you.
Credentials
On paper
- REALTOR®, Crossroads Association of REALTORS®
- Indiana real estate license RB26001706, with 1 Percent Lists Indiana Real Estate
- MBA in Management and Strategy, Western Governors University
- Bachelor's in Intelligence Studies, American Military University
- U.S. Coast Guard veteran
Expired or withdrawn listings
Your listing expired. Your plan doesn't have to.
Most homes don't fail to sell because of marketing. They stall on price, condition or how the negotiation was handled. A relaunch fixes those three things, for a 1% listing fee.
What a relaunch includes
A fresh start, built on what went wrong
Honest price review
I look at what sold nearby, what didn't, and the showing feedback from your last listing.
Condition walk
I walk your home the way an inspector would and find what may have scared buyers off.
New photos and description
Your home goes back out looking new, not like a listing buyers already passed on.
Full relaunch
MLS, the major home search sites, social ads and a property page of its own.
A negotiator on your side
Offers, counters and the inspection response handled by someone trained to negotiate.
1% listing fee
The difference can fund a price adjustment, closing cost help or a rate buydown for your buyer.
Before we talk
One thing first
If your home is still listed with another brokerage, I can't discuss listing it until that agreement has ended or you've been released from it. Once it has, call or text me and we'll start with your price review.
Veterans, law enforcement and public servants
I served too. Now I'll serve you.
I'm a U.S. Coast Guard veteran. I led the Jackson County Juvenile Detention Center, then worked as a police detective and law enforcement instructor. If you've worn a uniform, worked the night shift or answered the call for your community, you'll get an agent who understands your world and gives it to you straight.
Who this is for
If you serve, I've got your back
Veterans and military
Veterans, active duty, Guard and Reserve, and military families.
Law enforcement and corrections
Police, sheriff's deputies, corrections and detention officers, and dispatchers.
Fire and EMS
Firefighters, paramedics and EMTs, career and volunteer.
Public servants
Teachers, nurses, and the public employees who keep our towns running.
Schedules that don't stop
Rotating shifts, drill weekends and call outs. We plan showings and meetings around your schedule.
Straight talk
No sales pitch. Clear facts, a clear plan and updates you don't have to chase.
Buying with a VA loan
Your benefit, used well
A VA home loan is one of the best benefits you earned. Eligible veterans, service members and some surviving spouses can often buy with no down payment and no monthly mortgage insurance.
The appraisal is where VA deals get stuck. A VA appraiser checks the home against the VA's minimum property requirements: a sound roof, working heat, safe water, and no obvious safety hazards.
That's where my contractor background helps you. I look for those items on the showing, before you're under contract, so you aren't surprised three weeks into the deal.
I'll also connect you with lenders who close VA loans regularly, so your offer is as strong as anyone's.
Selling
Moving on orders or a new assignment?
When your report date is set, your home sale has a deadline. We build the plan backward from that date, price the home to sell in time, and keep you updated wherever you are.
If you're selling, my condition walk flags the items a VA or FHA appraiser will check, so a buyer using their benefit doesn't stall your sale.
1 Percent Lists was co founded by Kelly Clayton, a U.S. Navy veteran. Service runs through this brand from the top.
Everyone is welcome to work with me. This page speaks to people who serve because that's where I come from.
Contact
Let's talk about your move
Call or text: (812) 525-5489
Email: john@yourpropertynegotiator.com
Serving: Southern Indiana, including Jackson, Bartholomew, Scott, Lawrence and Jennings counties
Brokerage: 1 Percent Lists Indiana Real Estate, 223 Washington St, Columbus, Indiana