Monday, August 17, 2009

How to Choose a Realtor

Your real estate agent gets paid the same commission upon sale of your home whether they are good or not. So don’t settle for a ho-hum agent, go for the best.

You don’t find the best realtor by going with the one that everyone in your neighborhood uses. And don’t use a realtor just because they are your friend’s neighbor or because your friend used him/her three years ago. Finding that go-getter realtor isn’t hard because they’ll be easy to spot—everywhere.


Pick your realtor as you would an employee. They will be working for you. If one realtor dominates in your area call them first. Notice how quick or slow their houses in your area sell. Ask to see a listing history which shows number of days on market, asking price and selling price.


Once you’ve selected a few realtors, check up on them. Look them up on Google, Facebook and Twitter. A good realtor will be active, on a professional level. Their postings on Facebook and Twitter should have minimal personal information. Look at the number dates of their postings. Their presence on these types should be professional and current. This tells you that they stay on top of the industry.


Next, look at their company and personal websites, which again should be focused on their business. Take a look at their listings. Are the listings detailed enough to help buyers narrow their choices, too detailed, or too sparse? Look at the listings from a buyer’s perspective.


Then take a few of the listing addresses and type them into Trulia, Zillow, and Craigslist. If there aren’t there it is a big sign that this realtor won’t use all available resources. If they are listed, do they use lots of pictures? Pictures do sell. Also check for a listing on 123mainstreet.com. The more online listings and pictures the more likely that this realtor will get your house sold quickly for the best price.


If the realtor has a huge list of homes for sale find out if they have assistants. You don’t want to pick a realtor who is too busy to give you the attention that you deserve.


It takes a more than a lawn sign to sell a house. And these days the competition on the housing market is abundant. So if you really want to sell your house you need a savvy agent.



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