5 Steps to Choose The Right Agent
When you think about it, the most important decision you will make when you decide to sell your house is selecting the right team of agents to market and sell your home. You can do everything else right to prepare and present your home in the best possible way, but if you put your trust in the wrong agent, it can have a significant effect on your experience and your result. Imagine if you were unhappy with the decision you made and you were stuck with that decision and the result you would have….It’s easy to see how this could turn into a stressful and tense situation!
So now I’m going to show you exactly what you need to know and how you can protect yourself from a potential legal battle. You need to make informed decisions that will help you to do your own comparison without committing to anything until you are ready.
With 5 simple steps you will be well on your way to making a confident decision and being in control
Research and shortlist agents
• Look at who has the market share in your area and has experience selling similar types of property to what you have to sell.
• Look at what they have recently sold and what current listings they are working on in your area
• Having an understanding of the days on market in your local area will help you understand how long the average property takes to sell
• Shortlist agents to 2-3 to avoid overwhelm and confusion
• Read vendor testimonials to get a picture of the experience others have had with the agents on your shortlist
• Look at who works with the agent so you know who is in the team and what they do
• Book interview appointments for the same day so the comparison between each agent is noticeable.
Interview
• When you are showing the agent through your property, take note if they are asking you questions about what’s important to you and not just telling you how good they are.
• While you are interested to know how much they think your home is worth, ask them to support this with comparable sales?
• Your next question should always be, - What would you recommend advertising this property for and why?
• Understand what method of sale they think would get you the best outcome and why they recommend this?
• What is their process for communicating with you throughout the campaign?
• What strategies do they have for negotiating offers?
• What marketing packages do they offer?
• What is the timeline or schedule of events that will be happening?
• Who approves the marketing material and how much support do they provide?
• What is their commission structure, when are the fees payable and do they offer other terms?
Negotiate
• All fees are negotiable and this is what you need to know
• Negotiate marketing fees – knowing what they charge and what you get is important to compare with other proposals.
• Did you know that by law the agency cannot charge you more for advertising than what they are charged and they must not receive any rebates without notifying you and passing those rebates on to you?
• Some agencies charge for administration costs, auction fees and other in house expenses that are all negotiable
• Negotiate commission structure
• There are a number of different commission structures you can ask for that make it fair and reasonable for everyone and keep the agents accountable for what they tell you in the beginning..
• Payment terms – Make sure you ask when the marketing and other costs are payable?
• The terms of payment are another thing you can negotiate at this point.
Agree
• Check all details are correct
• Check terms of the agreement are what you discussed
• Make the agent accountable by having the term of the agreement for 60 days. This way if you are not happy after this period you are able to terminate the agreement.
• Advertised selling amount or range is what you agreed to
• Commission structure is including GST or you understand if it’s plus GST
• Marketing costs are as per the agreed signed schedule
• Payment terms are correct (on written agreement)
Maintain control
• You need to work as a team so you are in control of the decisions that need to be made.
• Your agent is there to provide you with the information to allow this to happen.
• Understand the schedule of events or timeline your agent has provided and make sure the appointments are met.
• Set communication standards - your expectations for updates, meetings & reports need to be met
• Understand what negotiation strategies are in place so you know what decisions need to be made before they are required.
• Ask for a performance review on your campaign weekly so you know exactly how the campaign is tracking and if there are any changes that need to be made.
There is a lot to understand and if you make the wrong decision it could end up being a costly mistake. I have prepared this as a guide and understand everyone has different needs and every agent has a different approach. Keep in mind, agents will do and say whatever it takes to secure your listing. When you are interviewing the agents be aware of these tactics and remember your research
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