The Do’s and Don’ts of How to Choose the Right REALTOR(r) to Sell Your Home
Choosing the right REALTOR® to sell your home is the most important key to success. In most communities there are many REALTORS(r) to choose from. You’ve heard the joke about REALTORS(r) who “post and pray”… they post the listing to MLS and pray someone buys the house without doing any work. So how do you decide which REALTOR(r) to represent you when you are selling your home? Choosing the wrong REALTOR(r) can cost you time and energy. Here are a few do’s and don’t’s to help you find the right REALTOR(r).
Do Interview REALTORS(r):
For some reason this step seems to be missed all the time by Sellers. Yes, you can interview as many REALTORS(r) as you want! Not all REALTORS(r) are the same and the companies they work for are also different. Each REALTOR(r) and their company offer different tools for their Sellers, advertise their homes differently and also have different styles of selling homes. Write down questions that you want to ask each REALTOR(r) and allow them to present their Listing Presentation.
Don’t Choose a Part Time REALTOR(r):
One of the top myths that is heard over and over again in real estate is that real estate doesn’t take lots of time and effort and leads to lots of money. Many REALTOR(r) get into the business part-time because they believe it can be done part-time. This is furthest from the truth.
When choosing a REALTOR(r), the first question you should ask is if they are full-time or part-time REALTORS(r). Realistically, how available is a part-time REALTOR(r) going to be to answer inquires on your home if they are busy with a 9-5 job? A part-time agent will also struggle to make time to promote your listing. One of the biggest jobs of a listing agent is to expose their Client’s homes to as many Buyers as possible. A REALTOR(r) who can provide maximum exposure for their Clients should have a website that ranks well in the search engine results pages, which takes a lot of time and effort to create and develop.
Don’t Choose a REALTOR(r) Without Asking to See the Testimonials:
Past Client testimonials is one of the best ways to find out about how a REALTOR(r) works and performs. Top REALTOR(s) should be able to provide you with plenty of past Client testimonials and even better, already have them posted to their website. Alternatively, you can ask for references to past Clients to call. In a small town like Southampton, word of mouth is incredibly important.
Do Choose a REALTOR(r) Who Will Give Honest Advice:
Some REALTORS(r) will tell you what you want to hear. “Yes, your home is perfectly ready to be listed” – even if it isn’t. Choose a REALTOR(r) who can give you honest advice about staging, de-cluttering or even de-smelling of your home. A REALTOR(r) should also be honest about the current market conditions. Every market has highs and lows. The best way to test a REALTOR’S(r) honesty is to pull the market information from your local real estate association before you meet with them. The information on market conditions can be found on RAGBOS website for Grey/Bruce.
Don’t Choose a REALTOR(r) Who Suggests the Highest Price:
Pricing a home correctly is critical. The price of a home that enters the market will determine if it sells or not. Before you choose a REALTOR(r) who suggests the highest price, you need to know how they have determined their price recommendation. Your REALTOR(r) should provide a comparative market analysis (CMA) – (free of charge) during the interview and listing presentation (in most cases a REALTOR(r) will need to view your home before the interview to provide you a proper CMA) . A CMA provides you with the comparables in the neighbourhood that have sold and are for sale. A CMA is an important document to pricing your home so it will sell.
Don’t Choose a REALTOR(r) Based on Commission:
Commission is negotiable, however most REALTORS(r) have the same commission percentage. A REALTOR(r) who offers to cut their commission is likely doing this out of desperation to obtain your listing. If a REALTOR(r) agrees to lower commission with little or no resistance, how strong will their negotiations be on your behalf and how strong of an advertising campaign will they invest in for your home? Be wary of REALTORS(r) who offer automatic commission cuts. Remember: “you get what you pay for”.
Do Choose a REALTOR(r) with Dominant Internet Presence:
The majority of Buyer’s in any market look for homes on the internet before they seek out a REALTOR(r). Make sure you choose a REALTOR(r) that has a dominant internet presence. Make sure the REALTORS(r) website is ranked high on major search engines and they have good social media skills. A REALTOR(r) should present to you their online marketing plan as part of their Listing Presentation. A REALTORS(r) current listings should be easy to find on numerous websites (not just realtor.ca and their own website). It takes a lot of time and energy to build up internet presence. If your REALTOR(r) is investing time into building their internet presence, they will invest the time and energy to promote your home too. Be wary of REALTORS(r) who “buy” Facebook likes and Twitter followers. Yes, you can pay people to follow you on Twitter and like your Facebook page so you look more popular. It is difficult to see if an agent has bought Facebook likes, but you can look at who an agent “follows” on Twitter. If they “follow” numerous “We guarantee 5000 followers for only $5” type people – then they’ve bought their followers.
Do Choose a REALTOR(r) that you “Like”:
You need to find a REALTOR(r) that you get along with. Personality clashes can make the selling process even more stressful than it needs to be. You will be in contact with your REALTOR(r) constantly via phone, text, email and in person. Don’t undervalue how important “liking” someone is.
We hope these tips on How to Choose the Right REALTOR helped! We would love to be considered for an interview for the job of selling your home. Contact The Saugeen Team so we can show you what makes us different!