Community Chat

[Elom]

For any of you that have sold or selling a house, what questions should I ask agent before listing? I will soon be ready to put my home on the market again as my son is finally finishing up some improvements. My previous realtor wasn't very good at creative marketing and just waited on calls or contacts from realtor.com. I was giving her more suggestions than she even thought of and it was frustrating. I live in a remote mountain area but near all the 4 season activities and a log home so it becomes a challenge.

Is it the company I choose or agent? Thanks I always come here for thoughts as I am never let down with suggestions,

[YorkieonmyPillow]

If you were giving your previous realtor suggestions, I doubt you even NEED to list your home with a real estate agent.

Sounds like you did all the work yourself.

I've dealt with many realtors in my area, and it's the same story. I usually know more about the properties I called about than they do!

I would try selling it myself first, and save the realtor's percentage.

[GCR18]

I've sold a condominium and a house and both could have gone better.  The first time, I interviewed 3 realtors from different companies.  I picked the one I connected with.  She was a bad choice.  My condominium was on the market over six months.  I moved out of state after listing it.  I couldn't reach her by phone.  The house sale was better.  I used the realtor who sold it to me.

How long have you been a realtor.

How do you plan on marketing the house.  I.e. realtor showings, open houses, newspapers, etc.

How does your marketing plan change if there is no interest in 30 days.

What do you see as a challenge/obstacle with the house/location.  

How many houses have you sold in the past year.

What was the shortest and longest number of days on the market.

Do you do 90 day contracts.

Does the realtor have a ton of properties on the market, may be stretched too thin.

[on the bay]

@GCR18-

Those are such good questions! I'm going to write them down.

When I asked the realtor we got for my son's house how he would market it, he said the internet. I said what about the real estate magazine, open houses etc,he said no they were not really a good time investment.I told him that's how I looked for houses (at the time). He really was not very good and I felt like he advocated more for the buyer. It is really difficult to know and find a good realtor!

[DiAnne]

Are there real estate companies in your area that specialize in log homes?  

[Ibby114]

Or have neighbors had good (or bad) experiences with local realtors? Word of mouth is the best resource for a successful search. 

[Azcowgirl]

Try  searching top selling realtors in your area. My log home in a woodsy resort area took listing three summers in a row to finally get it sold. The agents in the area weren't into open houses or any really creative marketing ideas. 

Our most recent home sale was sold in one day, also in a resort area, but I searched the top selling agents and got lucky with an excellent one.

[Carmie]

With today's multi-list practices, any realtor can sell your house. Usually the listing agent is not the person who actually ends up selling it,

The best way to market your your home is to have it priced right.  If priced  too high the house will sit, then when the price is lowered, buyers might think something is wrong with the house and don't even want to see it.

Use a REALTOR, not just a realtor.  These people are better trained and do a better job.  IMPORTANT: use someone who is familiar with your area.  They might already have a buyer who is looking and they are better at pinpointing an amount that is a fair and honest price.  

Very few homes sell at an Open House.  Open houses are a good way for the realtor to pick up buyers who usually end up buying somewhere else.  Open houses make the seller feel good in that they feel their home is getting marketed.

The bottom line is this.. have your home priced right and use a realtor who is familiar with the area.

I was the top selling agent in my office for six months during my first year I was licensed. I did this because most of my business was in the area I grew up in.  I knew the houses and the neighborhoods.  

Best of luck,  I hope you have a great selling experience.

[151949]

We chose a local realtor who owned the agency. I did not want a soccer Mom who was busy raising a family and only had part time to give attention to selling homes. So I looked for a man , who was the agency owner, and this was what he did full time to support his family. He very actively showed our house - it was shown 15 times in 9 days. He held an agents open house the first day it was listed, and there were about 30 agents who came. Ironically , a neighbor down the street had an open house and someone going to their open house saw our sign, liked our house better & called our agent asking to see the house.They bought it. So our agent gave us a 1% discount on the commission because he said the house sold itself.

[granddi]

I would ask a few questions.

How long is the contract?

Does this include pictures? How about video of home?

Is there a lock box? Is there a central system for scheduling showings?

Tell them how much notice you want to show.

How will you handle any security system ie give them the code or they have you disable with moble app.

Is this agent full time or part time? 

You expect a multiple listing but does your agent have an active FB account?

Is the fee negotiable if you do not get a full price offer or if not sold in time agreed to?

We have looked at some homes that the Seller Agent was present during the showing and it makes so much difference. He/She knows the house and explains little things. The Buyer's Agent for the most part just opens the door and walks through with you.