What To Look For in a Real Estate Agent
Last week, we talked a little bit about how For Sale By Owner properties work but let’s say you’re not quite that bold and, after coming to the conclusion that you’re ready to move, are gearing up to sell your home and looking for a real estate agent to assist you. A qualified, competent agent is often the difference between a timely sale and a drawn-out process, and usually has an enormous effect on whether or not you’re going to get a reasonable offer on your property. The latter is especially true because a good agent will help you manage your expectations with regard to pricing (more on that in a minute) since they’ll be well aware of the state of the real estate market in your area as well as property values in your zip code, so they’ll shoot you straight on what your asking price should be and help you avoid disappointment in the long run. On the flip side, they’re also probably going to know enough to prevent you from undervaluing your property.
There are several qualities that make a good agent, and when looking for one, here’s what you need to keep in mind:
Does the agent have experience selling homes in your neighborhood?
It should go without saying that you should be hyper-focused on finding an agent who’s local to your area, but even better is one who has experience selling homes on your street or in your neighborhood. While not all properties in the same neighborhood are going to sell for the exact price, an adjacent property is a better benchmark for what yours should sell for than any other. You want to try to find an agent who has successfully sold homes in your neighborhood, and absent that, at least one who’s recently sold properties in your zip code. How will you know? Well, you might ask your neighbors, which brings us to our next point:
Do they come with referrals or success stories?
Referrals are a great thing in real estate. Review by one’s peers and clients is a tradition that holds the profession together, and this is especially true for investors like us, as reviews inform our decisions to either agree or decline to work with contractors, lenders, and wholesalers. As a homeowner, you’re also putting your own investment on the line, and you want to make sure it’s in good hands. To that end, check the history or reviews of the agent(s) you’re considering. Obvious red flags are any complaints (but it’s important to distinguish between whiny, inexperienced sellers and those who had legitimate issues with their agent), properties sold for prices that are lower than average values in your neighborhood or zip code, or a bunch of poor reviews.
Are they experienced with new and current media?
This one is especially important in the Digital Age, and doubly so in an era where most people have at least two social media accounts. A surprising amount of marketing and commerce is conducted via social media these days, and a competent agent will be aware of and on top of this. At the turn of the millennium, consumers were quickly figuring out that they could shop for homes online without the hassle of flipping through ads and calling up agents/sellers while saving the expense of driving around looking for homes or seeing their interiors (yay virtual tours!). With the advent of social media, advertising in general and listing homes on social platforms has become just as important if not more so than traditional forms of marketing, and the agent who implements these practices is going to have a leg up on those who do not. For a little more about real estate and social media, you can check out this article here.
Are they licensed, and have they won any awards in the area?
The importance of whether or not an agent is licensed needs no further explanation, and it’s fairly easy to determine with a few minutes of searching on Google. You can also look up any awards they may have won, and it’s especially important to prioritize awards won for work in your area; in other words, if you live in Missouri, a bunch of awards won in Los Angeles by your agent may not necessarily translate to success in your area. Looking up accolades is similar to checking out reviews, and take care to make sure that the entity distributing those awards is both legitimate and not owned by or affiliated with the agent. It does you no good to hire an agent who gave themselves an award from an organization they happen to own or fund.
Can you find a list of homes they’ve recently sold in the area?
Again, this should be as easy as a few minutes of web searching, but it’s about a little more than just finding a list of properties sold. You’ll want to make sure the prices at which said properties sold are congruous with prices for similar homes in the area. If there’s a pattern of properties looking like they’re undervalued or sold for prices which are out of step with others in the area, you’ll want to consider going with another agent.
Finding a good agent is not an easy process, but with a little diligence, you as a homeowner can make sure your investment is in good hands. For more advice on real estate, be sure to sign up for our Priority Access List for market updates and advance access to listings, and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
– Get It Right Solutions