One of the most difficult, and important, steps in selling your home is finding a realtor who will place your needs above their own. Meet personally with those you have decided to consider, and choose the one who listened to you, showed a desire to work hard for you, and established a strong rapport with you. How do you know which one this is? Hopefully, the following thoughts and those on the Warning Signs and the Questions To Ask pages will help.
What should a good Realtor do?
Following, is a brief description of how a realtor should work for you. Unfortunately, until you are actually working with the person, you will not be certain these will be performed at an appropriate level, but, at the very least, the realtor should claim that these attributes are important to them.
First, a comment about the relationship between yourself and your realtor. As mentioned above, it is important that you have feel personally comfortable with your realtor. It is also important that you approach the process as a partnership, however, the partnership is not 50/50. You are the boss. The realtor works for you, and their needs and time should be secondary to your own.
Communication is key. Your realtor should be available to you. If you have a question, or if something comes up that you wish to discuss with him/her, they should return your call by the end of the day, at the latest. However, the realtor should not be waiting to hear from you before making contact. They should initiate regular conversations to keep you updated on the status of your listing.
Your realtor should spend time and attention to detail. For example, he/she should go through the disclosure forms with you line-by-line. Leaving the forms with you to complete on your own should not be acceptable to you.
Your realtor should be honest with you in regards to the things you should do to your home to make it as appealing as possible.
Your realtor should actively market your property. Local newspaper ads, broker's tours, open houses, Internet marketing, and materials left at the property for potential buyers to take with them should be the minimum. Your realtor's marketing plan should go beyond marketing the features of your home. If appropriate, your community, and school district should be a part of the marketing strategy.
Your realtor should follow-up with every realtor who has come through your home to get feedback about appearance and pricing.
Your realtor should understand a contract. We know this sounds obvious, but unfortunately it needs to be said.
Your realtor needs to put more time into selling your home than they did in trying to get your business.
Once you have agreed to a contract with a buyer, your realtor should spend just as much time ensuring that the escrow process moves forward smoothly, as they did in getting your business and marketing your property. For example, your realtor should be at all inspections ordered by the buyer and not just depend upon the written report. Your realtor should attend the escrow signing, monitor any repairs on your property, and keep in constant communication with the realtor representing the buyer.
Keep in mind the following specific points, while interviewing your Realtor.
You want a Realtor who truly cares about you. During the interview process, did the Realtor show genuine concern for your needs? If you have special circumstances which restrict the hours your home can be shown, did the Realtor have alternative suggestions that fit your time constraints? It is important that you feel personally comfortable with the Realtor you choose. You will be working together closely during a very complex and personal transaction. The process is enhanced immeasurably if you like the person you are working with.
If a Realtor makes a promise he/she should keep it. If you are told that something will happen, it should happen. If you decide to list your home with someone because they have said your home will sell for an unbelievably high price in one weekend: don't be afraid to tell them 'great; you can have the listing for one weekend, and I will only sell at that price.' When they react in panic, move on to someone else.
The Realtor should have done their homework in regards to pricing. They should present house by house the comparable homes in your neighborhood. Get a feeling that they really do understand the market and have seen many of the homes they are talking about, and are not just reciting data from the computer.
Should you choose a Realtor who works primarily with sellers, and/or, who works primarily in your neighborhood? This is a tough one. As a general rule, it is our opinion that it is a mistake choosing a Realtor who specializes in listings (i.e. works primarily with sellers), or who concentrates on selling property in just one neighborhood (these Realtors also work primarily with sellers). You want the Realtor who represents you to understand the psychology of the person buying your home. If the Realtor works primarily with sellers, they may not have a good feel for the buying side of the business.
Now, having said the above, there are Realtors who work primarily with listings, or in a specific neighborhood, who will do a good job for you. If you have worked with someone in the past who was responsive to your needs, worked hard for you, and communicated on a regular basis, there is no reason not to stick with them. On the other hand, if you are not sure, it is probably best to find one who works with buyers and sellers and who understands the overall market, not just one neighborhood.
One final note: if you are looking to purchase in the same market as you are selling, you will probably want to use the same Realtor to buy and sell; in this case, you definitely want someone who understands the buying side of the business and the overall market.
Should you ask for references. Asking for references is okay, just be aware that any Realtor can produce positive references. If you feel that references are important, have the Realtor show you a list of the last seven transactions they completed (have them state in writing that these were the last seven: you can always check it with their broker) and ask for references from those seven, and only from those seven. That way the Realtor is not selectively choosing the references they give you.
Commission. In most industries the maxim, 'you get what you pay for' is accurate. Unfortunately, in our business it is not always true. There are Realtors who demand full commission and are worth it, and there are those who demand full commission and are not. However, one fact is invariably true: by choosing a Realtor who steeply discounts his/her commission, you are almost guaranteeing that your home selling experience will not be a pleasant one, and, in fact, will probably cost you money in the long run.
Commissions are negotiable. The standard rate in our market is 6%. Your Realtor offers a percentage of this to any broker (the selling broker, or Realtor) who finds a buyer for your property. Typically the fee is split 50/50 (i.e. the selling and listing brokers each receive 3%). If you are able to negotiate a lower rate, your home will have a better chance of selling at the maximum price if the selling broker is offered the full 3%, and the listing broker takes the discount out of their portion of the commission. It is just common sense that offering less than full commission to the selling broker gives that broker less of an incentive to show your home to their client. Most broker/Realtors will split the total commission in half when listing a property. If the listing agreement calls for less than 6%, the selling broker is offered less than 3%. If you negotiate less than full commission you need to understand how your Realtor will be splitting the commission.