Are you moving house soon? Well, let’s start with the bad news. Unfortunately, selling your home is one of the most stressful life events you’ll encounter.
Ok. Now for the good news.
With the wealth of information online, it’s never been easier to find a reputable agent. One who can help make your move a little smoother (and stress-free) – providing you know what qualities to spot in a good realtor.
And we’re here to help. Here’s our guide to how to choose the right real estate listing agent for your home move. Follow these straightforward tips to help you achieve a successful, easy and quick house sale.
Experience
Look beyond a stylish website and a well-prepared pitch and ask the real estate agent what previous experience they have in the industry.
While many agents will profess enthusiasm and passion, none of that replaces years of experience in successfully (and quickly) selling houses (and preferably close to their asking price).
Experience means the listing agent will know how to price your home correctly, how to improve curb appeal, how to photograph it effectively, and how to sell it to a potential buyer.
Accreditations
When choosing a real estate listing agent, kook on prospective real estate agents’ websites or brochures for certifications, as well as information on education and qualifications.
At a minimum, the realtor should hold accreditation with the National Association of Realtors.
Read Testimonials
Testimonials and online reviews are a great source of information when you’ve shortlisted your preferred realtors. Testimonials will give you a feel for their strengths.
Reviews will often have lots of information from happy and unhappy customers. They’ll help you uncover potential problems and weaknesses and help you avoid those with a poor reputation.
Talk to the Agent Directly
Communication skills are critical for a real estate agent. They must talk fluently, confidently, and honestly with potential buyers about your property.
A good agent will have natural selling skills, which will essentially be down to communication.
You can feel how effectively an agent communicates by having a telephone or face-to-face conversation.
Watch out for other cues that will tell you a bit about how effective they’ll be, such as how quickly they respond to messages and return your call.
When talking to the agent, find out how they handle real estate terms.
Locality
Does the real estate agent know about your location? That is one of your top questions to ask. Find out if they are local to the area and how long they’ve worked as an agent in that locality.
It means they can confidently talk to buyers about local amenities that could be the tipping point in getting them to make an offer on your house.
Ask for a Referral
Before signing on the dotted line, ask the agent to provide references. That will give you the chance to reach out to past customers and get a final insight into who that realtor is (and whether their claims are truthful).
Finding the Best Real Estate Listing Agent
Don’t be too hasty in selecting a realtor. By taking the time to research a reputable real estate listing agent, you will help improve the chance of a successful house sale at the price you want.
If you enjoyed this article, look through our latest trending posts for more advice and tips.
