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The Art of the Possible - What Your Listing Agent Can (and Cannot) Do

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Madeline Island Realty 50317-90

The Art of the Possible - What Your Listing Agent Can (and Can't) Do

I'm often surprised by the consumer's lack of understanding about what we do in the course of a real estate transaction.

This isn't the consumer's fault.  "Reality" television has played a role in misleading the public about the role of real estate agents. The reality tv format has compressed the process into a glitzy, hugely abbreviated and compressed version of the process.  What the public sees is the fun and interesting part, with showings and discussions about decor and price negotiations.  Missing from the process is about ninety per cent of the work that goes into guiding a transaction through to a successful closing.

In addition to the myopic and glamorized perspective on the work of real estate agents, there seems to be little comprehension of the role of the listing agent, versus the duties of a buyer's agent.  Most consumers just plain don't know the difference.

Wisconsin Residential Listing Contract WB-1 excerpt p1

 

The listing agent's primary responsibility is to market your property.  Listing a property for sale means ensuring that a property is photographed and described in such a way as to maximize buyer interest and to accurately portray the property and its features/benefits.  We make a home look good (to the best of our ability) in photos and videos, and we describe it to the seller's advantage, while remaining accurate in that description.  Ethically, we can't exaggerate or misrepresent your property.

The listing agent can give you advice, but we cannot force you to listen to that advice.  It's frustrating for us at times, but we give advice to clients that is often ignored.  It gives us no pleasure to say "I told you so" later on, and it won't get your home sold.  We're not responsible for a client who refuses to allow their home to be priced appropriately.  Pricing is one of those pieces of advice that is often disregarded.

Your listing agent is not responsible for the condition of your property.  That is the seller's job.  We can point out items that need to be replaced or repaired, but making that happen is beyond our control.  The same is true of remodeling and updating a home.  The listing agent can make suggestions, but the buck stops with the owner when it comes to decor and functionality updates.

The listing agent relies upon the seller to make sure the property is available to be shown to prospective buyers.  A prospective buyer probably won't buy your home if they can't get access to it. 

Your listing agent isn't responsible for the following: mortgage lending rates and availability, the U.S. (or global) economy, unemployment, the health of the real estate market in your area or state, the capricious or arbitrary actions of credit reporting agencies, banks, mortage lenders and secondary mortgage market entities, and the implications of various government regulations designed to protect buyers.  We can't turn a buyer's market into a seller's market (or vice versa).  And we can't make someone buy your home.  We didn't cause the mortgage meltdown and we had nothing to do with the bundling of mortgages as securities.  Talk with the folks on Wall Street about those issues.

We have no power to influence the results from your home's appraisal.  The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Veterans Administration (VA) and HUD all pretty much refuse to take orders from us.  We can't do anything to remove problem items reported in an inspection of your property (you'll have to address those) and we have no control over the results of your home's radon test.

My point is this.  Sellers share responsibility with their listing agent in the course of the listing and sale of their home.  And one of the most importatnt (and often neglected) duties of a listing agent is to educate sellers about what is, and is not, possible during that process.

 

 

 

 

 

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