1. Experience
An Agent’s experience and understanding of the sales process have value. The more experience they have, the more ability to help clients achieve their goal of buying or selling a home. The agent will help you avoid potential missteps in the process and guide you to a successful closing. We live in a society were everyone is looking for the “easy button” but buying and selling a home is not easy. Trade experience is invaluable helping you move through the detailed process.
2. Key Local Insight
Most of the news reported on real estate is done on a national level. Although trends at the national level are important, it is local details and insights that most affect buyers and sellers. Details like what homes actually sell for vs the asking price, how long homes are on the market, average and median sale prices and what other homes in the area look like. It’s important to measure your competition and only an agent has that detailed insight. For buyers the same holds true, the agent can easily see potential buying opportunities as they come available and far quicker than a buyer can on their own.
3, Network of Local Resources
A truly professional agent can recommend resources from babysitters to bicycle technicians. They know home inspectors, plumbers, electricians, landscapers and pool companies among other’s. Buyers and Sellers can take advantage of the Agents knowledge and leverage that into fair priced work with trusted contractors.
4. Valuation Expertise
If sellers trust Zillow for the valuation of their home before listing it for sale, odds are they are going to get it wrong. An Agent has the ability to put together a complete valuation analysis and to present it in a way that sellers can easily understand. It will help them sell their home for the highest price possible in the least amount of time.
When a buyer is interested in a home they should receive a similar market analysis showing the fair market value. Buyers can see what their offering is not out of line or above what the market reflects. The buyer is then equipped with the confidence to make an offer based on the knowledge of the market, not some guess or what the sellers asking. It makes decisions on offers or counter offers based on facts and with less emotion.
5. Negotiation Skills
An experienced Agent should be an astute negotiator who negotiates on behalf of the client at a high level. The Agent’s value will outweigh the commission and in many cases make the client money. When choosing an agent be sure to ask a lot of questions about negotiating skills and ask for examples of how they will negotiate on your behalf. A good Agent will be able to show you they have the skills needed by giving examples of how they work in the negotiating process.
6. Marketing Skills
This is mostly for sellers but effective marketing provides the exposure sellers need to garner the number of showings necessary to maximize the sales price of their home. In today’s real estate market Agents should be utilizing every social media outlet as well as every real estate focused sites like Realtor.com, Zillow.com, Redfin.com, LiveinAlabama.com (The Local MLS Public Site) and every individual agency public facing sites. Agents invest in top-of-the-line photography and videography services or have the skills and equipment themselves to produce media the market demands. Agents know how to tell a story through media and a skilled agents have proven success in marketing through media. Sellers will have the confidence in knowing their home is being exposed in the maximum ways to return the highest net sales price through excellent media.
7. Legal Navigation through the process
We live in an ever-increasingly litigious society and this is an area where that an Agents experience is paramount. An Agent has the ability to help navigate clients through the buying or selling process, avoiding potential pitfalls or liability, that is needed now more than ever.
The Agent understands how to properly word contingencies that protect their clients. The Agent provides updates on upcoming contingency deadline dates. The Agent is the professional who understands the contract completely and by doing so will not only be protecting the client but making sure you also understand everything you need to know in simple, easy terminology.
