Selling your home is a huge undertaking. A lot of the process can feel like it’s out of your control. So, finding the right real estate agent to sell it for you is a huge part of managing a successful sale! One of the safest ways to pick the right listing agent is to make sure you don’t fall for some of the typical real estate trappings. Learning a little bit about the process will help you know what to expect and what to look for. If you as a seller is educated, you can make the experience much less stressful from start to finish.

Why get a listing agent?

It is quite difficult to sell a house by just sticking a for-sale sign on your front lawn. This is true, in general, but especially now-a-days with the continuously changing real estate market. A real estate agent can be a great asset when it comes to selling your home. They will bring their expertise, help you determine a fair price, and help you market the home to get more potential buyers through the property. They will also help you with the other parts of the sale, such as negotiations and reviewing contracts. You might feel uncomfortable saying no to offers or bargaining. However, if you hire a listing agent, you’ll have someone who will do that for you. They will also have your best interest at heart. You’ll also be able to go to them with any real estate questions you may have throughout the process.

It’s important to know how to choose a great listing agent because they are the ones that can market your home to potential buyers and other real estate agents. They’ll know where and how to advertise your home to sell your property fast. Furthermore, they will be the ones organizing viewings and helping you communicate with prospective buyers once offers start rolling in. They do get commission somewhere along the line of 5 to 6 percent of the total price of your home. However, experts say houses sold through listing agents typically sell for much more money than when they are sold through the owner.

This is how you pick the right listing agent:

1. Ask around

How do you pick the best listing agent to sell your home? There are several things to pay attention to. Firstly, listing agents are usually quite aggressive in advertising their services. You shouldn’t have trouble knowing where to go for interviews. It would be a good idea to shop around for a while and see who offers the best conditions and services. Reach out to friends and family who may have sold property in the past. If they had a great relationship with their past agent, it may be worth the time to give them a call and chat about your real estate goals. Knowing someone who’s had a positive experience with a particular listing agent can go a long way in making you feel comfortable when working with them.

2. Stay in your lane

Another real estate tip that experts give when discussing how to pick the right listing agent is to look at a particular agent’s other listings. Your best bet would be to choose someone who is currently selling or has sold properties similar to your own. You should be able to find this and all other pertinent information online. Most real estate agents have functioning and up-to-date websites that you can consult when considering your options.

3. Interview

An important part of picking the right listing agent is to actually talk to several of them before making a hire. After doing your research, shortlist the candidates that seem the most promising and set up appointments with them. When making the appointment, let them know that you would like to see a comparative market analysis for your property. You might also want to look at their activity list, i.e. the list of their more recent sales. A comparative market analysis is a report consisting of current market data and trends on comparable properties to your own home. Experts suggest you do your own research on this beforehand, but sometimes websites like Redfin and Zillow can be deceiving, so it's always good to double-check with the experts.

4. The fee

Different listings agents will ask for different fees. Knowing how to read this is an important part of knowing how to pick the best listing agent to sell your home. If the fee seems too low, you might want to reconsider your options. In this industry, if something seems "too good to be true" often times it is. This may be an agent’s strategy to compete within their very competitive field and can hit you with a surprise fee during the transaction. Some agents may even lower their fee if you’re both selling your old home and buying a new one. (This can be particularly useful for you in different ways. Listing agents are experts in their field and can even recommend the movers you can use to transport your household items.)

5. Setting the price

This part might be the key to knowing how to pick the right listing agent. Be wary of prices that seem inflated compared to what your research has shown. Real estate agents sometimes promise unrealistic prices just so they could make you give them your business. If the price doesn’t seem right, they may be showing you homes much different from than what you’re selling. This is also a warning sign as it shows that they don’t know the market that well, or are being dishonest. Some of the safest and most realistic listing agents will actually give you a range when discussing your selling price.

The right price can determine whether or not you have success selling your home in a timely manner. Overpricing can lead to your house getting stuck in the selling process with no viewings requested. This in turn will make you lower the price which can cause some concern for potential buyers. With the home sitting on the market for quite a few days, and then going through a price reduction, this may cause buyers to believe something wrong with the property which in turn will cause your home to sit on the market even longer.

Conclusion

There are so many beneficial reasons why you should hire a listing agent to sell your home. Although, we just touched on a few benefits, give us a call today for a free consultation! Team Steele is always more than happy to answer any of your questions. We would love the opportunity to be interviewed as your listing agent, and would be more than happy to put together a comparative market analysis so you have a better understanding of your home's current value. Whether you're thinking about selling now or in the next year, give us a call so we can chat!