Choosing the Right Listing Agent – What You Need to Know
by Jill Heineck, Associate Broker
Heineck & Company @ Keller Williams Realty Peachtree Road
Agent: By definition, it is someone who acts on your behalf, or something that makes things happen. When you’re selling your home, you want the real estate professional you partner with to be both.
For most people their home is the single biggest purchase they’ll ever make and when they sell, it’s important to get the best return possible on the investment. The listing agent you work with can make a huge difference in whether that happens or not. So, how do you choose the right one?
Realtor® or Real Estate Agent?
Many people think of Realtor as just another word for real estate agent, but there is an important distinction. As members of the National Association of Realtors, Realtors are bound by a strict code of ethics. They have a fiduciary relationship with their clients and are obligated to act solely in the client’s best interest. From the initial pre-market consultation through closing (and the many points in between), your Realtor’s job is to ensure you and your interests are protected – something far more than simply attracting potential buyers to your home.
Experience
You want to work with a full-time professional who’s actively engaged in transactions of properties like yours, in your price range. That means both the buying and selling ends. Why? A Realtor with ample experience in both brings greater understanding and insight to assessing how your home stacks up against the competition and how to craft the best marketing strategy for multiple offers. So, when you’re sizing up potential listing agents, ask them for details about past purchases and sales, as well as for testimonials from clients to see what they have to say.
Market Knowledge and Marketing Expertise
A successful sale requires market savvy. This means knowing your market inside and out and making that information work to your advantage. I see about 20 to 40 homes every month – whether I have a client in the game or not – to get a true understanding of what the market is bearing in any given neighborhood or area. This knowledge helps me guide every one of my clients in the most effective home prep before listing, setting the right asking price, and positioning the home in marketing efforts.
Plus there’s more to the residential real estate market than housing. New developments, such as an announcement that a major employer is coming to or leaving the area or that school redistricting is around the corner, can impact pricing and marketing strategy. A market savvy Realtor will be on top of trends and changes and help you adjust to them quickly.
A Winning Team and Trusted Network
No matter how experienced, no matter how dedicated, no single Realtor can do it all. There are a dozen or so roles to be filled in a home sale: pre-listing home prep (aka staging), appraiser, listing coordinator, and closing attorney to name a few. When you’re considering listing agents to work with, ask about their network of support. You want to know you’ll be served by tried and true professionals and not some unknown quantity.
Integrity
An agent should always be acting in the client’s best interest. Sometimes that means delivering news a client doesn’t like. Asking price is a good example. I’ve had experiences where a realistic asking price based on market analysis is lower than the seller is willing to list for. But any good Realtor knows a listing price that’s too high can backfire, with the seller actually selling for less than he or she could get – and taking much longer to do it.
The upshot? Whether it’s home prep, listing price, or negotiating offers, an agent should strive to reconcile seller expectations with market realities. Anything less undermines a successful sale and simply is not in your best interest.