Choosing the best Realtor to sell your Sun Lakes home is one of the most important decisions you will make in the sales process. Although there are many Realtors to choose from, there are some steps that you can take to make sure you are hiring the best.
First, I would like to make an introduction via video. I think it is important to have a great relationship with your Realtor since you will be working as a team to sell one of the most valuable assets you own – your home. So, please sit back and watch this short introduction and then read on about how I feel you can choose the best Realtor to sell your Sun Lakes home.
Steps for Choosing the Best Realtor
We have heard many stories from homeowners who, against their best judgment, caved in to hiring a friend of a friend to list their home. It’s one thing if that Realtor knows your market, but all too often they are new in the business or they sell in a neighborhood on the opposite side of town and know nothing about your neighborhood and all the benefits and features it has to offer.
- Hire a Realtor who knows your neighborhood.
The best Realtor to list your home is someone who lives in or works a significant part of their real estate business in your area. We have had buyers that we’ve taken into a home listed by someone who doesn’t know Sun Lakes. That agent generally cannot answer questions the buyer is asking. Often they do not include the floor plan name which is very important if you have clients who are searching for a specific model. That’s not a good thing when the buyer’s agent pulls all the listings for that model and yours does not show up. We have seen poorly written directions to a home. If a buyer’s agent who is not familiar with the neighborhood is bringing their buyers to see your home they need to know how to get there. Agents who do not work in the neighborhood have been so sloppy as to write “Enter the guard gate and ask for directions.” Really? That listing agent is not doing you any favors.
- Marketing is key! It was true a few years ago that marketing a home was placing a for sale sign in the front yard and entering the data in the multiple listing service. Today, buyers start their search online. The Realtor who lists your home better have a strong online presence or your home will not be seen except by your neighbors who drive by and an occasional weekend open house group. Ask to see the Realtor’s website. Ask to see their social media. See what kind of posts they are placing on those pages, and how many followers they have. Anyone can have a website and a Facebook or twitter account, but do they use it? Are people following them and interacting with them? If not, it is of little benefit to you. Ask to see some of their listings which brings me to our next point.
- Photography and Videography If the Realtor you are interviewing is not using professional photography and video in their listings they are working in the past. The new way of marketing is online and if you have dark or poor quality photographs buyers will skip over your home and it may be just the one they are looking for, but they don’t know it because it is represented poorly. Virtual tours are yesterday’s marketing. Today it is all about video. We hire a professional videographer that will make your home stand above the rest! If you are on a golf course or have waterfront or a really spectacular lot we will also do aerial shots to market your home.
- The proof is in the pudding – It’s really about results, isn’t it?
Ask your Realtor how many homes they have sold in the past year and how many in the last several months. Is the real estate agent full time or part time? If they are not full time do they have someone to cover for them when they are not working? Will they be hard to reach and responsive when you need them? What are the average days on market of that agent’s listings? If most of their listings are on the market 90 to 120 days could it be they are overpricing the home? Check references. Written references are great, but your agent isn’t going to ask for or receive a reference from an unhappy client. If you are working with someone in your neighborhood, chances are neighbors have heard of the real estate agent. Ask around and ask to speak to real people that have worked with the agent. We have a live video testimonial from some clients. And, lastly, check with the Better Business Bureau to see if the agent has had any complaints.
Choosing the best Realtor to sell your Sun Lakes home doesn’t have to be difficult. There are some great agents to work with. Take the time to interview and ask the questions we have outlined above. You will be glad you did and I would be willing to bet if you do these things and make the right hire you will get your home sold for the best possible amount in a fair amount of time.
To demonstrate our Sun Lakes real estate listing videography, take a look at one of our recent listings and how we marketed with a blog post using video and selling the community as part of the lifestyle. When you are ready to list your Sun Lakes, AZ home, give us a call at 480-809-5759 and we will share our professional listing package with you and show you more of our listing data.