Choosing a Realtor
Have you got some friends who have recently sold a house or maybe that colleague from work? When you are trying to find a realtor, your friends, co-workers and acquaintances can be a good source of information. Look into their suggestions and be sure to check out all.
Look into the local papers for ads from Realtors. You will want to pick a Realtor who will place ads to sell your property. If there are a lot of ads from a specific Realtor, it usually means he's successful.
Find a specialized Realtor, make sure he knows the market. Don't choose one who is specialized in selling residential property if you want a commercial property to be sold.
Get a Realtor that will focus his full attention on the job. Try to find someone who is a full-time Realtor. In some areas this can be hard, but it will be worth it.
If you have done all this research you will have a list of Realtors on your hands. To narrow it down to one, you pick the top three Realtors. You'll have to depend on your previous research to make the decision about who appears to be the best. Try to get Realtors from three companies, because they will compete better. Get in touch with all three and ask for an estimate of the market value, because you are planning on selling your property.
Get an appointment with all three and be honest about the fact that you are also meeting two other Realtors to look into their evaluation. This will cause the Realtors to take it a step up and provide you with even better evaluations. They will compete to get the listing. Let them all know you'll decide when you have received and reviewed the information of every single one of them.
When the Realtor is giving his presentation find out what they are going to do upon selling your house. Ask them about open houses, ads.. Don't be afraid to ask them about their sales record. Ask questions about their market analysis. Did they make the effort to compare other houses to your home in your area? And did they compare houses that are similar to yours?
After the presentation, say you will be getting back to them once you've seen the other Realtors and compared their presentations. Don't make hasty decisions and take your time.
It's not always smart to pick the Realtor that gives you the highest estimate of value. Some Realtors give you the best price, but work slow and this way you'll be forced into getting your price down.
Don't overprice your property, otherwise your property will stay on the market for to long and you risk people thinking there's something wrong with it. If you don't agree with any of the estimations, you can always ask a qualified appraiser for an appraisal on the property.
Pick the Realtor that appears the most excited, fit for the job and who gave the best presentation. Keep in mind to set a realistic price based on the evaluation of all three Realtors.
Realtor is sometimes mispelled realator or realter