How to choose the best real estate agent to sell your property

Are you selling your home now or in the near future? To ensure a great result, you need to take your time to pick an experienced, skilled real estate agent.

Pick the best possible agent and you’ll achieve a higher sale price, with less stress and worry along the way. Here’s what you need to consider.

LOOK FOR THE THREE E’S

There are three attributes that every buyer should look for in a real estate agent – enthusiasm, experience and expertise. It’s also essential that you feel comfortable and that you can trust them.

GO FOR RELEVANT LOCAL EXPERIENCE

If an agent has 20 years of experience selling studio apartments on the other side of town, they’re probably not the right choice to sell your 4-bedroom family home. Look for someone with relevant, local experience that knows your area and is familiar with the type of buyers who may be interested in your home.

FIND OUT HOW THEY WILL MARKET YOUR PROPERTY

Effective marketing is essential to attract buyers and achieve a high sale price for your home, so it’s worth talking to prospective agents about. Here are a few questions to ask prospective agents:

• Will your property be listed on all major real estate sites? Will it be boosted to attract more views and increase buyer competition?
• What marketing channels will the agent use? Digital, print and social should all be considered.
• Will the agent use professional photography and video to market your property?
• Does the agent have a large database full of potential buyers? Will the property be marketed to them?
• How much will the agent spend on marketing?

Spending less on marketing is usually a bad sign, as quality agents will consider a high marketing spend an investment in a successful sale.

QUIZ THEIR MARKET KNOWLEDGE

A quality agent will know exactly what’s happening in the market in your area. Ask your agent about the market and they should be able to tell you about recent sales and buyer demand. This market knowledge will also help a good agent pick a suitable sale type for your property and make sure your listing stands out from the rest.

ASK LOTS OF QUESTIONS

Don’t be afraid to ask questions when you’re picking an agent. After all, you’re trusting them to sell your biggest asset, so they should be happy to answer. Here are a few questions to get you started:

• How many years have you been selling property in this area?
• What will you do to achieve a high sale price for my property?
• What properties have you sold recently?
• What fees do you charge? Are there any extra costs?
• What is my home worth?

If an agent isn’t willing to take the time to answer your questions, they may be similarly impatient when buyers ask questions about your home.

DIG FOR MORE INFORMATION

Don’t take the agents word for it. Go digging for more information before you trust them to sell your house. First, you should Google their name and see what comes up.

Next, look at Google reviews of the agency they work for and see if they’re mentioned at all.

Last of all, type their name into your relevant state public register (e.g. consumer.vic.gov.au). If they’ve ever been involved in a tribunal or legal dispute, you should be able to find details of it here.

Most real estate agents are good at what they do, but you want to find one that’s amazing. Take a little time to choose and you’ll thank yourself later when you sell your property for a healthy profit.