Is Your Real Estate Agent Pulling Weight?
Trusting your transaction to a real estate agent is tantamount to trusting one of your most valued possessions to a relative stranger. Before handing over your transaction to a real estate agent, there are some important questions you need to ask about how your property will be marketed.
The simple fact is that the real estate industry has changed rapidly over the past 15 years. While brand names, yard signs, and newspaper ads are used to make up a complete marketing effort for a property, that same approach is simply not enough now. To get the best result for your home sale, you need to make sure that a real estate agent is exploring all avenues in working to sell your property.
Is Your Agent Getting the Job Done?
As more prospective home buyers use the Internet and other non-traditional means to research new homes, those that better adapt to those changes will be better suited to pursue every avenue available to sell their home. This scope of service should be one of the first things you ask about when interviewing a real estate agent as it will have a direct impact on the quality of your home sale.
One thing to keep in mind as you go through the process of selecting a real estate agent is that every real estate agent is in competition with every other real estate agent in your area. If the one you interview does not offer virtual tours or a full web-based marketing effort, there will of course be one that does.
The Internet is a prime resource for marketing and making sure that your realtor has at least some amount of web presence to put leverage on your transaction. Having your property online and available for web-savvy home buyers can generate additional interest in your home and potentially reach farther than newspaper ads in your local publication and an MLS listing.
Pulling the Weight for You
Of course, any real estate agent can make the claim that all of the bells and whistles will be pulled out for your property, so doing a bit of homework on the realtor and his or her real estate agency can help you decide if they are truthful in what they promise. If your potential real estate agent has a large agency that has numerous well-publicized listings, that might suggest that you are in for the same if you hire that real estate agent.
Communication Is Key
Finally, the key to any real estate transaction is communication, and having your real estate agent available when you need to discuss your property is crucial to feeling comfortable with that agent. Be sure to ask what the policy is on communication and how often you can expect to hear from your agent.
Uncertainty during your transaction will only foster worry and unease. Cut that off at the pass by pursuing a real estate agent that makes a commitment to communication. An experienced agent that has a strong track record with clients in regard to communication will help you immensely throughout any real estate transaction.
Meticulous, Not Choosy
As you go through the process of selecting a realtor, don’t be afraid to be thorough in your search. After all, the real estate agent you choose will be aiding you in some very important financial decisions over the course of your transaction, and having a solid, experienced agent at your side will help immensely every step of the way.
The Realtors that are experienced, good communicators, and open to non-traditional marketing methods will help you sell your home quicker and for your target sale price. While there will never be a perfect formula for selecting a realtor, fulfilling those requirements will give you an excellent chance of picking the perfect real estate agent for your property.