The number
of licensed real estate agents is steadily rebounding since the great recession
forced nearly half into other industries or completely out of work. According to The National Association of
Realtors®, there are approximately 2 million realtors in the United States. Which brings up the question, how do you find
a good realtor in your local area that looks after your best interest?
The right
agent should help you – the homebuyer or seller - to buy your dream house
or sell your existing home as quickly as possible. Dealing with the wrong
agent could essentially burn up your time and money overnight, leaving your
frustrated and angry.
AgentRave.com
was created to help homebuyers and sellers select the right real estate agent
in their area. On AgentRave, all real
estate agents get a profile with detail information about the agent; including
agent’s hobbies, license number, neighborhoods of focus, property
specialization, etc.
Although
the nuances may appear subtle when searching for a real estate agent, it is extremely
important that homebuyers and sellers pay attention to as many subtle differences
as possible. A real estate agent, for
example, that specializes in more than 10 neighborhoods may be all over the
place and could very well lack adequate knowledge of your neighborhood.
Here are 5
critical tips to keep in mind when searching for a real estate agent:
1.
Ask
people around your neighborhood who recently bought or sold a home.
Pay very close attention to how they describe their real estate agent and the
transaction. “She was very nice” or “He
sent us gifts after we bought the house” are important compliments but you need
to learn more about the transaction and professionalism of the real estate
agent. For example “She responded to our
text messages within 24 hours and was always on time with the paper work”. “He
negotiated a price that we never thought was possible in this market on our
behalf and he knew exactly what to say to get us the best deal”. These are compliments of great value.
2.
Validate
your findings.
Validate your findings by visiting AgentRave.com. You can search for a real estate agent by
first name, last name, neighborhood of focus, zip codes, etc. Check out the real estate agent’s profile and
reviews to learn more about the agent beyond what you were told. Are the reviews online consistent with what
you’ve heard or do they defer by a vast margin?
Does the real estate agent specialize in residential properties or
commercial or both? Does the agent live
in or around your neighborhood?
3.
Your
price range is a problem. Some real estate agents prefer to work above
a certain price range but prefer not to disclose this information to their
buyers or sellers. Ask your real estate
agent how many properties have they sold in the past 12 months and the average
price range. If, for instance, you are
searching for a home priced between $100,000 and $125,000, and your agent sold
8 homes in the past 12 months at an average price of $350,000, you may be
forming the wrong partnership.
4.
Is
the real estate agent a buyer’s agent or seller’s agent? Most homebuyers and sellers assume that a real
estate agent should be able to seamlessly help them buy or sell their
home. Well, I have news for you. Most real estate agents prefer to work with
sellers rather than buyers. The primary
reason for this stigma is buyers tend to require more time than sellers. The transaction with sellers is much faster –
in many instances, you list the house once and market it – than when dealing
with buyers. So, if you are a buyer, you may want to ask your prospective real
estate agent how many transactions have they had in the last 12 months and how
many of those were buyer related?
5. What is the real estate
agent’s primary goal? This is a tricky question that requires a
little more probing than a direct inquiry.
I know of an agent who’s primarily goal is to sell 80 homes in 12
months. Of course, this is an aggressive
but attainable goal. The concern with
this particle agent is, he has absolutely no time to waste on indecisive buyers
and sellers. We all know that owning a
home is a massive financial and at times emotional commitment. Thus, when dealing with a real estate agent
who’s primary goal is to get as many deals as possible, the probability that
such agent may drop the ball in other areas is high. However, this does not mean that such agent
cannot deliver on her/his promises. You
simply need to know the agent’s primary goal. Is it to deliver outstanding
customer service to their client, negotiate the best price on behalf of their
client or make a lot of money in the business and retire early?
To
summarize, make sure you have done your homework on the agent prior to
selecting them to represent you. The
wrong agent could cause you many migraines and financial ruin. But the right agent could very well help you
reach your financial goals a little sooner by saving you thousands or hundreds
of thousands on lack repairs (because they help you buy a sound home), insurance
(because your home is more disaster resistant), private schools (because they
got you in one of the best school districts in the state), etc.
Please
visit AgentRave.com
to find the best real estate agents in your neighborhood. We sincerely thank you for reading this
article. If you find it helpful, please
share it with others.
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