Choosing a good real estate can make the difference between a frustrating experience and a pleasant one. Here’s a few tips I would recommend for making sure a listing agent is good for you.
Tip #1 – Make sure your agent actually listens to you.
This should be obvious, but I need to stress the importance of communication. With poor listening comes unwanted actions or no action when you need something to happen.
For example, if you tell your agent you need an extra 15 days to move after the 45 day escrow period and he or she doesn’t make sure the buyer understands that before going into contract, you could be pressured to move faster than you expected, because your agent wasn’t really listening and just chasing a quick contract and sale and commission. If you say the refrigerator and washer/dryer aren’t included in the sale, and they offer it to the buyers online, you could have confusion there as well.
Make sure what you’re saying is getting through to the agent. Watch for signs of inconsistency and don’t be afraid to call them out on it or find another agent if they’re not really listening to your needs.
Tip #2 – Make sure your agent is willing to teach you.
I dislike when someone is trying to get my business or sell me something without explaining to me what’s going on when I ask.
If you ask what something on a contract is and he or she says, “Don’t worry about it. Just sign here. Everything will be fine,” that’s a bad sign.
An agent is not just a transaction coordinator. Good ones are teachers and guides. They should want you to feel comfortable and informed before, during, and after the sale process. With that mindset, they should be willing to teach you what they know and their mental processing and not hide their knowledge. If they’re hiding knowledge you should be aware of, it’s usually for a malicious reason.
Tip #3 – Make sure your agent has experience, or is being guided by someone experienced, and is willing to learn
If your agent has not sold a home before, make sure he/she is at least guided by someone who has sold a home. When I sold my first home, I had to ask my broker and office manager everything. Nowadays, I rarely need to ask for any advice from them. But back then, it was better for me to admit to my client that I haven’t sold a home, but my broker who has been selling for 20+ years will be guiding us through the process. That’s best for everyone, and makes us all feel safe.
Similarly, make sure your agent has either sold a home before, or is guided by someone who does. You want someone who doesn’t have so much pride that they won’t ask for help or guidance when they’re not sure what’s going on. Making sure the client feels safe and in good hands throughout the process must be a top priority.
Tip #4 Make sure your agent is willing to admit when he’s wrong or doesn’t know something.
Humility is important. To me, it’s more important than acting knowledgeable. No one really knows everything off the top of their head. Or if they do, they should at least be able to explain why something is that way.
If your agent pretends he/she knows everything when they don’t, they’re more likely to ignore important issues they should be paying attention to. It means they’re blind and they’re trying to lead you. That’s dangerous to me.
If you ask about the safety of a neighborhood and he says, “yeah it’s safe”, without double checking the crime rate or advising you to check it out online for yourself, that’s a bad sign. Similarly, if they don’t know something, instead of guessing, they should say, “I’m not sure, but I can check with xyz”, or “I can look it up for you.”
If you catch the agent making a mistake, he/she should be able to admit the mistake and apologize immediately. He/she should detail a plan of action to avoid future mistakes like that and they should have enough respect for you to understand if you don’t trust him/her as much after that.
Tip #5 – In regards to selling a home, make sure he has a marketing/advertising plan.
Make sure your agent can explain to you what they’re going to do to advertise your home and why. The why is important. Newspapers aren’t as effective anymore. Neither are the thousands of small sites that say they’ll help you sell more.
There are a few main ways people become aware of homes for sale.
- Realtor MLS (Multiple Listing Service)
- Zillow
- Craigslist
- Signs on your front yard
Tip #6 – Make sure your agent can show you a good photography portfolio of past homes that were sold.
Good pictures are crucial to selling a home. A great home with bad pictures just makes people run away from your home faster.
Although the physical home tour and purchase terms are what ultimately sell the home, beautiful photos are effective at bringing more people to view the home. Most people look at homes on their phones nowadays and the pictures are one of the first things they look at to help them decide if the home is worth looking at.
You don’t need everyone to buy your home. You just the need the one person to fall in love with the home and pay the right price for it. The more people who come see the home, the higher the chance of that happening, and happening quickly.
For reference,
Here is my real estate photographer’s album:
AC Photography’s Real Estate Album
Contact Info:
Andrew M. Cheung
E-Mail: ACPhotographyLV@gmail.
Cell: (626) 822 – 8668
I hope this article helped you learn to choose the right listing agent for you!
If you have any questions at all, feel free to call or text me at 702-343-2670, or e-mail me at lengsellsrealestate@gmail.com
Have a great day!