Choosing the right Real Estate Agent  

Let's face it, in most situations we would all like to save that large real estate commission when we sell our home right? But when it comes down to it, when your home is a 'FOR SALE BY OWNER' and a buyer comes to view your home,  guess what he is thinking?.... He wants to save that large commission also.

On average, there is no saving. The buyer may ending paying more for a private sale because he/she has no comparative properties to look at and the vendor could also get less than he/she could because he is limited to only his buyers and  has all of the  Realtors in the city  (who probably all have 5-8 buyers each) working against him/her.  So if your home doesn't sell privately and you want to choose an agent, here are a few tips that can help you  choose the right on for YOU!

1.

The first thing you want to know about the agent you choose is whether or not  he or she is a Realtor. The difference between a Realtor and a real estate agent  is that, while both are licensed by the Province, the Realtor is a member of the Canadian and Ontario Real Estate Associations and also, in the your area,  they  are members of the local board.  This gives them  access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).  The MLS puts your  home in  the hands of all Realtors (and all of their buyers)  via the MLS book and the London Real Estate Board web site. If your agent is  not a Realtor, you don't have  this advantage.

2.

Often, you can learn a lot about an agent if a friend, relative or acquaintance has used the service of an agent. Ask them what they thought of the agent.

3.

You can ask the agent some key questions that will help you make the right  decision.

        1. Ask about his/her marketing plan.  A marketing plan is a plan of action
            that identifies what activity will occur and on which dates. Examples are
            putting up a sign, processing the listing through the MLS, having the house
            available for caravan (this is where the agents of the office go out and
            look at your house), agent open house date (this is where the home is
            open for viewing by all agents in the city), public open house, which
            publication the ads will be in and on which dates, etc.

         2. Ask the agent if he/she has any testimonials of other vendors. Ask if
             you can call them.

         3. Ask how many listings he/she carries and ask how many sales he/she
             has  had in the last 3 months and in the last year.

        4. Ask if he/she is available by pager/cell phone.

        5. Ask if he/she does any other kind of marketing.

        6. Ask if you can cancel at any time if you are not satisfied with the service.

        7. Ask if he/she has prepared a market valuation and if the valuation will be
            updated throughout the listing period.

        8. Ask what his/her listing to sale ratio is. This will let you know what
            percentage of listings taken have sold. Ask what the industry standard is.
            This is available via MLS stats.

        9. Ask the agent if he/she is prepared to buy the house if not sold by the end
            of the listing agreement.

4.

If you like what you hear and see and you have a good feeling about the agent,   then hire the agent. The length of the listing is up to you and the agent. Give  the agent ample time to sell the home. Expecting a home to sell in less than   60-90 days is not realistic, although it can happen.