Robert Shumake || How to Find a Real Estate Agent

It's easy to find a realtor. Just put a for sale sign and wait for the phone to ring. The question is, how can you find a realtor that is GOOD? You can begin with newspaper.

Pick up the Saturday or Sunday newspaper - whichever day they have all of the homes for sale locally. You may collect a real estate guides to check through. Browse the listings to find properties like yours. You need to search for cabins for sale, if you are currently selling a cabin. If you are selling a mansion, start looking for those.

When you find similar properties, notice the names and numbers of the agents that are selling them. The idea here is to find a real estate agent that has experience with your type of property. Might not be the best to sell your home, for instance. You need or are selling several properties like yours. 

What to Ask a Real Estate Agent 

1.     When the agents are called by you - and it is ideal to call a few - you want to confirm that they do have experience selling properties like yours. Ask for examples.

2.     Ask what they do to market a property. Any broker can place an ad and put your home in the listings. Do they have existing leads - people? Can they let other agents know about your property?

3.     Do they reveal their listings? Many agents just list property for sale and let others sell it for them. It is more profitable for them, but not for you. You need them to be going through the house with potential buyers, if they are a good salesperson.

4.     Can they do their closings? It may be better for them to delegate this part of the procedure, but it isn't better for you. You want the individual to be there through the entire procedure. You need one person to call. So don't complicate it further by having more people involved things go wrong all the time in real estate.

Most real estate agents will probably argue these points. That's okay, but be aware that there are things you won't be told by them also. By way of instance, did you know that open houses are primarily a prospecting tool for realtors? In fact, new agents (not the listing broker) are often given the task of hosting your open house, so they can find buyers to work with. It isn't anticipated that your house will be sold by them. 

Also understand that when you see advertisements for homes for sale, and they don't have prices, it's a prospecting technique. When that buyer looking for a house that is $ 100,000 calls in your $ 300,000 house, the broker isn't going to make him able to afford your residence. The entire purpose was to get him to call so he could sell him ANY home. Meanwhile, other potential buyers for your home skipped over the ad - there are enough homes WITH costs to look at (insist that ads for your property have the price listed). 

Trust your intuition when selecting an agent. It is possible potential buyers won't either if you don't feel comfortable with an agent. And ask the correct questions. You don't only want to discover a realtor you like. You want to discover the right broker for your property.