Changing agents - questions to ask (RE market, new agent, fee, price)
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Our house has been on the market for 10 months, we have stayed with our original listing agent out of loyalty from other transactions. It is now way past time to move on and the house is going off the market after this weekend.
We have interviewed a couple of new agents already and both have indicated what we thought - price is fine, condition and quality of the home is excellent, location is in a popular area, they believe that a different approach is needed to marketing the house. Our current agent didn't do much more than list on MLS and wait for someone to call. Our agent also recommended too high of an initial listing price and we ended up chasing the market.
One agent we interviewed says their strategy is marketing toward buyers instead of agents. He said most buyers find their own listings and bring them to the showing agent. Because of this they focus on paying to feature listings on the big sites such as Zillow, Trulia, etc. as an integral approach to how their homes are marketed. Because this is their philosophy they don't do agent caravans and similar things.
The other agent suggested waiting until after the holidays to list again. She said taking the house off the market and giving it a break will bring renewed interest when it comes back on the market, the other agent feels that there is plenty of reason to stay on the market with less inventory and more serious buyers out shopping.
I'd like to hear some thoughts on our situation and also suggestions for what we need to ask to find an agent that will bring energy to our listing and get it sold.
Hmmm. Mysterious. Have you checked the listing, how it appears. Carefully so you don't overlook something since you know the house and think something is there that's not. See if any little thing was entered by mistake that could make a difference. Septic over sewer or well over county water, for instance.
Be sure the subdivision and zip code are correct. Amenities are listed correctly. HOA fee etc. correct.
Aside from that...yes, yes, yes. People are very do it yourself with listings. They are so available. Realtor.com too. Hey, is your agent's mls system hooked into realtor.com. (I know one that had trouble getting connected up so not impossible).
One of those sites the listings can go on automatically, one is paid for.
Yes, see where your house is/was advertised.
FB too. Other social media. You tube it.
Start next time at a good price, still leaving yourself a little leeway.
Can you give your address or mls listing link?
It can actually be a good attribute in a Realtor that they are not tearing apart another Realtor. Can show an honest professional nature.
As far as the holidays. Winter may be combined with weather where one feels like not getting out so much. What's done in your area? Things can slow down. It can be hard for Realtors to show homes when people have family visiting and a mess from holiday cooking and gifting and guests. But you might get one of those family members who wants to live near your neighbor. I don't know. Maybe rest a bit but let your neighbors know if they have anyone interested (and if the neighbor wants family living nearby) to call your Realtor or something. Then list after....what...Jan 1? After last snow?
Everything on the listing seems to be correct. At one point the agent fee was listed incorrectly - showed 2.5% instead of 3 but that was fixed. As far as timing - this is a very engineer and defense based industry area. We have been told things have been quiet the past few weeks but will pick up some after the elections this week. Department of Defense items are based on election results.
Things slow down here but there may also be transfers over the holidays with people wanting in new homes before school starts over spring break. It has been our experience that there is an excuse for slow showings almost all year, we've heard it all - too hot, too cold, spring break, back to school, mother's day...you get the picture!
My gut tells me it won't sell if it isn't listed so we are better off staying on the market than being off. However, I don't trust my gut because real estate isn't what it was several years ago when we dealt with this before.
Some of the other agents were just blowing smoke up your butt.
especially with that "featured listing" junk on Trulow. Buyers don't just look at featured listings. They look at everything.
Just moving it up on the list is not enough.
Also, most buyers work with agents, so it is more important to market to agents. Listing agents should promote their listings to other agents and follow up with them.
If you do want to switch agents, check those agents' listings for quality and time on market.
I don't know your market, but I did a quick search for houses between 250k-300k, and there are 100 homes to choose. Is your area saturated? Some of the older listings I saw have been on the market for 5 months already
Last edited by oh come on!; 11-01-2014 at 03:08 PM..
Some of the other agents were just blowing smoke up your butt.
especially with that "featured listing" junk on Trulow. Buyers don't just look at featured listings. They look at everything.
Just moving it up on the list is not enough.
What do the first 3 sentences of your listing description say? "honey stop the car!" "Location location location"?
Does your house have a quirk that price cannot fix? e.g. big power lines...
If you do want to switch agents, check those agents' listings for quality and time on market.
The one agent we talked to said they sell the most homes in town and are in the top 10 of the state. He said their listings typically sell 75% quicker than the local average. I don't really have any way to verify that.
No big quirks in our house, the biggest problem is new construction. There is lots of it all around us. We bought from a custom builder who sold the rest of his lots to tract builders. This caused us to lose value and in the meantime, many new subdivisions are popping up at a lower price point. Based on neighborhood comps we should now be priced right, just a matter of getting buyers in and pointing out the quality and features we have that they won't get with new.
The one agent we talked to said they sell the most homes in town and are in the top 10 of the state. He said their listings typically sell 75% quicker than the local average. I don't really have any way to verify that.
Sure you do. Just ask them for a list of their old listings.
You can also go on realtor.com and look at the property history tab in their old listings to see how long they've been on the market. If they are truly quicker, see if they didn't just price the houses low.
Quote:
No big quirks in our house, the biggest problem is new construction. There is lots of it all around us. We bought from a custom builder who sold the rest of his lots to tract builders. This caused us to lose value and in the meantime, many new subdivisions are popping up at a lower price point. Based on neighborhood comps we should now be priced right, just a matter of getting buyers in and pointing out the quality and features we have that they won't get with new.
and this is why marketing to agents is more important.
Caravans are not absolutely necessary, but not doing them can be the same as just waiting for a buyer to come along.
Also, how easy is it to show your home? Do you have a lockbox, or is it appt only?
If appt only, how fast does your agent respond to showing requests?
Some buyer's agents expect to be able to show your house with ridiculously short advance notice, and I've lost some potential buyers because I could not provide them a showing in such short notice.
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