ABC's of Home Selling
This is second of a 3 part series on selling your home. In our first article we discussed A= Appearance.
Today we discuss : B = Brokerage (agent) Selection :
Selling your property in today's market requires much more skill and marketing expertise by the realtor you choose to represent you. Several years ago, it was much easier as all your realtor really needed to do was list the property on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and wait for a deal in a few weeks, or days !
Back then, every realtor looked like an expert no matter their level of expertise. Now it is much more critical to have expert representation to navigate through the maze of getting a house sold.
The following guidelines assume that you do not have a favorable history with a realtor in the past. If a realtor performed well for you in the past and they still are producing today, they would & should be your most logical choice.
So where do you start?
"My friend (or family member) sells real estate." 
Friendship alone isn't enough to establish a professional's credentials. Use tough standards when selecting an agent, just as you would when hiring an attorney, a doctor, or an accountant to handle your taxes. A true friend will understand and appreciate that this is a business decision and will offer their credentials and expect to compete for the listing.
Old joke that applies here: What do you call a medical student who graduated dead last in their class ? DOCTOR !! Think about that.
- Referral - Ask around your friends, family and colleagues for a referral of someone they have had success with and that specializes in your area. This is a good starting point for who to interview.
- Check neighborhood signs - Drive your area to look for agents whose signs seem to be displayed frequently.
- Google : Agents & Company by name or listing address - Search the Internet to see if the agents you have in mind,has a strong Internet presence. Do they have a website or sites, Blog. Search a listing address to see if any marketing comes up. What you find here is what you can expect for your home. 70 % of all buyers start their looking process on the Internet.
Agents who work for large well-established companies with lots of agents do have some advantages. Large companies generally have longer office hours, so someone is always available to answer an ad call on your home. Large offices often have larger budgets and can spend more on advertising. The ad space for your particular home might not be huge, but because the total ad is so large it gets lots more attention.
Large real estate companies often have lots of agents. This is important because when your house is newly on the market, the company may stage an "office preview" where every agent in the office comes through and tours your home. Every agent who views your home and is impressed is another agent on your sales team.
This is not to imply that there are not some fantastic independent Broker out there. There are many.
- Interview at minimum two, licensed, local and national trade-group affiliated real estate agents. Full-time status means more time to spend on your listing. Licensing and trade group affiliation gives you layers of legal, ethical and standards-of-practice protection, as well as a commitment to the job. None of the designations guarantees success, but make for a solid foundation in professionalism.
- While full-time status is generally accepted as a better than part-time status, especially in todays market that calls for extra effort, there is some disagreement over the level of experience or accomplishments your agent should have. Just because someone has been in Real estate for 15 years.They may be semi- retired, are not aggressive at pursuing business might,they may not be your best choice. Also a agent who has just 3 or 4 years experience, is knowledgeable, aggressive, understands marketing,has strong and growing production and is affiliated with a strong company, shouldn't be quickly dismissed.
- Top Producers - While having numerous closed transactions is important information to know. Would you rather hire an agent who last year had 50 listings and only sold 25 of them or an agent who only had 20 listings but sold 18 ? Ask every agent, what are your percentages of : Listings to sold? List price to sale price? average days on market?
- Look for agents who offer comparative market analysis (CMA) - a financial breakdown of recently sold and currently listed properties similar to yours in location, floor plan, square footage and other details. That assures you you'll get a competitive price tag placed on your home rather than a pie-in-the-sky price or a low-baller looking to lure multiple offers.
It's vital in a slowing market that you home is properly priced when you first put it on the market. Homes that are ideally priced right from the start sell more quickly, often with multiple offers. Homes that are overpriced sit on the market much longer and end up having price reductions.
Last but least is the commission you will pay. The old adage You get what you pay for, couldn't be more true than here. Agents and their companies pay for all the marketing of your home upfront ( no sale- no return) and this costs money. Go with the lowest commission agent and you will probably get the 3 P marketing. Place in the MLS, Plant a yard sign & Pray. If a good Realtor can get you 3 or 4 % more for your house because they are good negotiators, isn't that worth an extra 1%? Also if you own your home an extra six months, what will it cost you ?
Next time we will discuss the C in our ABC series :
Considerations for Pricing
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