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One of the most common things we hear as top-producing real estate agents is about how homeowners had neglected to properly interview the agent they had for their home. To help avoid that from happening, here are some factors to consider before you hire a real estate agent to sell your home.
Amount of Time Devoted to
Profession
The real
estate industry is one that can be very flexible for some yet completely
encompassing for others. Your challenge will be to look for an agent that has
made the profession their full-time career. The difference will be in the
amount of time you can expect them to give you and the expertise level you can
expect in return.
Level of Demonstrated Expertise
Experience
comes from working with multiple clients in many different situations. As you
interview prospective agents, take the time to inquire about past and current
clients. Find out about the types of deals the agent specializes in. Are they
specifically geared toward buyers or do they have experience with listing
transactions? Don’t be afraid to check whether they are good at their job
through references.
Length of Time Other Listings Remain on Market
Look
into the length of time other listings they have taken have remained on the
market. If you see a predominantly long number of days their properties sit on
the market then it might indicate a lax marketing strategy – or worse, none at
all. Marketing is a key component that you should be looking for and if a
prospective agent lacks a viable marketing plan, you may want to think twice
about that agent.
List to Sale Ratios
A lot of
agents use less than scrupulous tactics to gain sellers’ business. One example
is promising their clients higher selling prices only to disappoint their
clients when the market dictates their home is worth less. Look for an agent’s
list-to-sale ratios on other listings they have had. Are they being sold at or
at least very close to the listing price? If not, it could be an indication of
bad pricing advice or worse, evidence of those sneaky tactics to reel in
business.
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Keep in
mind that these are just a few of the things that impact the success rate of a
strong real estate agent. What you need also to be looking for is a winning
combination of character, values, tech-savvy and market-smart techniques. No
two attributes will be enough – rather it is essential that you feel
comfortable with your agent, can trust them and are fairly certain that they
deliver on their promises.
