How to Choose a Listing Agent to Sell Your Home

I hope you invest some time to look for the right listing agent to sell your home.  You don’t want to be the one telling the story of how you hired your cousin’s connection who dabbles in real estate, or your agent is an out- of-town friend, or how you called just one of the big companies and hired whoever walked in the door.

At an average price of about $1,000,000 in the Brookline and Newton area, you’d think an approximate paycheck of $50,000 warrants some investigation.  The truth is that many potential home are overwhelmed by the research, and some bully agents discourage it.  Here are some tips to choosing the right real estate agent for you.

  1. Call several offices.  Take the time and speak to a few companies.  And don’t just stick to the two big ones in Chestnut hill, Brookline and Newton.  Call some boutique agency, maybe a mid-sized office, or perhaps a brand new realty office just opened.  This way you’ll get a variety of perspectives on the marketing options, and you’ll choose what you think works best.  There are pros and cons to various sized companies, much of it depends on your comfort level and the agent representing the company.
  2. Remember, it’s about the agent.  If you don’t like the agent, things will end badly regardless of the brokerage firm.  You’ll be going on a long bumpy ride with this agent, so choose someone you feel is hard working, understands fiduciary obligations, and someone you’ll enjoy working with.   Yes, it’s personal.
  3. What’s the marketing plan?  You need a clear plan of action of how your home will be marketed.   You need to know the marketing plan that will be implemented, and that your home’s sale is a top priority.  What will be done, when will it be done, and by whom should all be answered.  As Brian Tracy said, “failing to plan is planning to fail.”  It always amazes me some agents are still “winging it.”
  4. Local market knowledge.  It is vital a listing agent knows as much as possible about the local market.  An agent planning on listing your home should have seen other homes in your neighborhood, and understand local housing trends.  For example, the Newton market the past spring was extremely busy, and multiple offers very common.  Yet the numbers show single family home prices are down in Newton about 10% this year.  Does your agent know the seasonal price changes, and how it affects the pricing for your home?

The right listing agent will have a great marketing plan, in-depth knowledge of the local housing market, and the backing of a brokerage firm you like.  But most importantly, your listing agent will be someone with whom you’ll feel comfortable and confident to make very big decisions.

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