1.) Go with an Expert or go with who you know who is in Real Estate or your friend's friend
You may want to use your friend's fiend, or your cousins uncle's next door neighbor but is that really the smartest thing to do? You are buying your largest single asset, shouldn't you have someone helping you with the experience to make the transaction go smoothy and a win-win? Also, are you comfortable with them knowing sensitive financial information about you? Can you rely on them to be impartial and give you the tough answers that you may really need?
2.) Internet Marketing/Utilization or go without?
Website with lots of tools and information (videos!, home info),that is drawing plenty of unique visitors, both buyer/seller. If your agent does not have a great website or utlize the best marketing tools to get your home sold, are they going to get you the best price and sell it in the quickesst time? We use Listing Story Board, walking tour videos and other tools to really make your home stand out from the crowd. **Story about how we get a ton of customers tht are working with other agents but are still using our website because their agent either does not have one or it is not very good. This is the digital age, get with it people! Just say no to the 3 P's of real estate! Also this is one of the main problems of FSBO's, no exposure and no experts to help the process.
3.) Go with the agent who can provide maximum exposure to Both Buyers/Sellers or go with the minimum exposure (mls?)
Buyer/Seller Storyboard. We have a great tool that can really help flesh out your situation and humanize the buying and selling process. The MLS is a great tool but it is only one tool. Listing story board helps bring your property to life by showing people how you live in your home, what you like to do locally, where you like to eat and shop, and really helps the buyer get a feel for what its like to live in your home when they buy it. You want the buyer to get a take mental ownership of your home, that's why they say you should depersonalize your home when selling. Take down the personal pics and decorations that will only pertain to your family.
4.) Go with agent who is single, doing all the work themselves, or go with a team that works at maximizing all the stregnths each member brings to the table
A.) Buyer Spec
B.) Listing Spec
C.) Concierge Team
D.) Admin Staff
Being a single agent is the hardest job in real estate. They have to be a jack of all trades and master of none. Who is answering the phones when they are on appts and a buyer is calling about your home they have listed? There are only so many hours in the day and how they spend it is crucial. What does their quality of life look like too? Are they burned out? There are so many jobs in real estate, so many things that need to be done it is extremely difficult for one person to do it all. Steve Jobs once said ʺthe best things are done by teamsʺ *parphrase* What happend when they go on vacation? Do they get vacations?
5.) Go with the most Innovative Tools to Buy/Sell or go with what everyone else is using
A.) CPO program..Certified pre-owned..Makes your home stand out because the buyer knows he is getting a good home at a fair price and the seller is not hit with crazy expenses at the last moment in the transaction and has to scramble to get everything together. Any repairs that need to be done are done, there is nothing left to scare the buyer and no need to worry about getting hammered over an over-priced repair list. The appraisal assures all parties that the price on the home is fair and everyone can feel goood about it because it is realistic and no one has to be worried about getting the shaft.
B) We discussed Listing Story Board and how it helps your home to stand out from the crowd.
C) Coming Soon/Going soon programs. We premarket your home before it hits the market, creating scaricity and driving u demand for your home. Going Soon-once your home has an offer on it we reach out to anyone who has expressed any interest in your home and let them know that there is a narrow timeframe to get an offer in. Again creating scarcity for your home and helping to mget you the most money for your home