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Please help me with some advice regarding real estate agents.
I am in the process of trying to select an agent to work with. We are currently in discussions with two. The 1st has been working close to the town where we want to buy, is nice, and not too pushy. However, when we saw a house a few weeks ago with her, she failed to alert us about a major transportation (train) that was 300 ft from the house. I only found out about it as I was looking at google maps and discovered it myself. I feel that she should have at least mentioned it and thus I do not have 100% confidence in her.
The second has only been in the business for a year and I doubt that she has any experience in the town. However, she seems smart, eager and more informed about the real estate market in general.
My question: Which agent should we use or should we keep looking for others? Thank you.
We are tryong to sell our home now and it isnt going great. My advice is pick an agent who knows your town where your are selling if you can find out what agency closes the most deals in your town and go with them only them....
What town are you in?
Good Luck
I would pick a more experienced one. It's very important to have an agent who is familiar with the area and with the process. Having said that, please remmember that their primary objective is to sell you a house as quickly as possible, collect their comission and move on to the next client. Don't rely on your agent for "subjective" information such as which part of the town is better? Is it a nice, quite street? Etc...
What we did with our agent was we asked her to sent us daily MLS updates on houses available in the area in our price range. So, every day, we would get an MLS link to all the new houses that come on the market as well price changes (usually reductions) on the existing houses. They all have an address listed so we would go through the list of houses, check out pictures, etc and then go to Google to check out the location. We too were concerned about noise, proximity to major highways, train station, etc. You could also check things like how far is the elementary school (which was important for us), supermarkets, etc.
Once we picked the houses that we wanted to see, we would let her know and she would show them to us. That way there were no suprises as to location, etc.
If you're not 100% comfortable with either one of them, move on. You need an agent you can trust.
This wont answer your question about an agent but it may help. I Highly recommend spending time in the areas that your are looking if possible. When I was selling my mom's house the people who we were selling to would drive by at all hours. I know that they wanted to be sure the area was right for their family. This is important. What is happening in the neighborhood on nights, weekends etc. This will also help you to get to know things like traffic issues and patterns. DO NOT DEPEND ON AN AGENT TO BE COMPLETELY HONEST. No offense to agents but they will tell you what they think you want to hear and that's it. That way they can't be held accountable. I had an agent completely gloss over schools in my town when I was buying. She threw around statistics making one area "seem" better than another. Her numbers were right but she left out a lot. I found out more when I did my own research. Be your own agent as much as possible. Look for an agent who is full time and lives in the area. Then tell him/her what you are expecting and say if they fail to deliver then you will find another agent. Let them know you've been disappointed in the past.
you need to be comfortable with your agent... the new one may be more familiar witht the little details of the town if she has been a long time resident.The more experienced one may be a better negotiator...either way, use someone very local to the area where you want to be. There are thousands of us in NJ A good Agents would not "gloss over" ...and will provide full disclosure...however they must know your question.
There are things by law we cannot discuss..like an areas ethnic or religious makeup...the best advice I can offer...as a extremely ethical Agent is ..to say you are part of the research team... the info you provide and the questions you ask will help the Agent find what you want. Dont hesitate to change agents if after you are out a second time you are not being shown what you have asked for.Where I come from we know that if we just "sell and move on", we would lose our business not grow it... I need referrals from you to be successful... A bad reputation spreads like wildfire as is so obvious in the other answers you have gotten so far.Best of luck!
I think she should have told you about the train. I am moving to atlanta and was referred an agent who made us feel comfortable and knew what she was doing. She actually was very honest and we found our home and are closing in a few weeks. If you would like I could refer her to you.
This wont answer your question about an agent but it may help. I Highly recommend spending time in the areas that your are looking if possible. When I was selling my mom's house the people who we were selling to would drive by at all hours. I know that they wanted to be sure the area was right for their family. This is important. What is happening in the neighborhood on nights, weekends etc. This will also help you to get to know things like traffic issues and patterns. DO NOT DEPEND ON AN AGENT TO BE COMPLETELY HONEST. No offense to agents but they will tell you what they think you want to hear and that's it. That way they can't be held accountable. I had an agent completely gloss over schools in my town when I was buying. She threw around statistics making one area "seem" better than another. Her numbers were right but she left out a lot. I found out more when I did my own research. Be your own agent as much as possible. Look for an agent who is full time and lives in the area. Then tell him/her what you are expecting and say if they fail to deliver then you will find another agent. Let them know you've been disappointed in the past.
Good luck!
That's not entirly true. Tha Agent that listed my house in NJ was so honest , sometimes it hurt, but she did tell us all feedback and was very professional. You know I don't like Jersey but this agent that lived right near me went all out. When my buyers wanted to do the walkthu at 9pm , she did it. Yes 9pm! When their agent insisted she come to all 5 inspections, she did!
I felt so bad that she had to go beyond her Job, that I gave her a gift card after I closed.
There are agents like that and I really don't like the Idea that your agent skipped telling you about the train.
Please help me with some advice regarding real estate agents.
I am in the process of trying to select an agent to work with. We are currently in discussions with two. The 1st has been working close to the town where we want to buy, is nice, and not too pushy. However, when we saw a house a few weeks ago with her, she failed to alert us about a major transportation (train) that was 300 ft from the house. I only found out about it as I was looking at google maps and discovered it myself. I feel that she should have at least mentioned it and thus I do not have 100% confidence in her.
The second has only been in the business for a year and I doubt that she has any experience in the town. However, she seems smart, eager and more informed about the real estate market in general.
My question: Which agent should we use or should we keep looking for others? Thank you.
You are about to make one of the biggest investments of your life and YOU MUST FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH THE AGENT YOU CHOSE, Right now it seems you are not so i would find another agent.
There are certain things that agents are not permitted to discuss, as per the "Code of Ethics", such as school systems, religious make up of a town, etc. However, the agent can guide you as to where you can find the information. Regarding the train, she absolutely should have disclosed that to you.
Simply choose the one that you relate to more and feel that they know the areas that you are moving into more. Experience is a great thing but should not be the only factor because just because they are experienced, does not mean they will bring in the clients.
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A good Agents would not "gloss over" ...and will provide full disclosure...however they must know your question.
