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Okay, we are trying to make a decision between two realtors to list our home with hopefully in February. **NOTES: WE ARE NOT LOOKING TO SELL RIGHT AWAY BUT WOULD BE NICE NOT TO HAVE TO KEEP HOUSE STAGED OR UP FOR BUYERS MORE THAN 90 DAYS! (We tried in 2008 to sell and it didn't sell after 9 months!). We do want to be to new area (moving from Acworth GA to Buford or Cumming area) before our child goes to new school next year before it starts. **ANOTHER NOTE: It is important to me to have people help me pack up things as we have A LOT TO DO decluttering packing etc to put in basement before i can list our home.
Anyways, I have heard that listing your home, it really doesn't matter who you list with (that they don't do a lot to market it)..it's really buying a home where you want a buyers agent and need to be choosy. Is this accurate? I also don't like to mix friendships/family into business transactions, which is why we are not planning on going with a friend or family to list or buy...but things could change later on we will see (on buyers side) but for listing here are description info of two realtors:
1) First agent seemed a little more prepared on presentation etc. Also *she wanted to start low price but willing to list hire but not as high as other one. IS this to sell fast, so she can still keep top selling agent ratings? (my question)? First one lists everywhere possible, does believe in doing open houses, has awesome marketing flyers and photos/colors, is with a bigger agency (Atlanta Community to be exact) and is one of the top realtors in GA (also backed by Dave Ramsey - which supposedly you have to meet certain criteria like followup etc to stay backed by him). She will charge the normal 3% for sellers side and she doesn't know Cumming or that side of town well but will go out to buy there or she can refer us out to someone. She has an assistant and another family member to work with her clients to pack up things fast (but they are not free which I understand it's like $10 or $12 an hour which would add up fast) and her presentation was more put together. She is taller (not sure why that matters but it might? lol...and on her reviews on zillow they are praising her tons of of testimonials said she's like a "bulldog" at negotiating table (but never shows it to you)...so easy to work with. She wasn't as warm as other one but, I'm sure she'll do a good job. Also on zillow she has sold I think so far up to 16-20 something houses so far and has 10 or more reviews I think this year. She does live in Woodstock (not sure if I should have someone closer to Acworth)? She is younger early 30s, was a financial advisor before, has been doing real estate about 5 years or more and has her marketing degree. She gets her flyers printed by professional out of state and hires a photographer to take a lot of her photos and has an assistant. It's a family team business that has been doing it I think like 40 years. She gave us a few tips to use when trying to sell our home. I asked her to send me realtor info. for agents in Cumming and she said she was going to, but haven't heard from her. Although she did send us thank you card (probably her assistant wrote it and she's tried connecting with me on linkedin.
2) Second agent: She was willing to list much higher but only keep it at much higher price couple of weeks, then lower close to what other one was going to start with. She does has a sweeter personality, I clicked with her more, she is a REFERRAL from a friend that she just sold their home, and will only charge 2% to us since I was referred. She looked out house inspected just to look before appraiser will to tell what might need to fix, and I think did a good job checking out the house. She did carry a flyer but didn't tell us much about the business (she owns it and it IS NOT a well know business). She is the broker of her business thou. She also lives near Brookstone in Acworth, so not too far incase she might need to pop over to the house etc. I don't like the colors as much on her flyers and they aren't as nice in my opinion as the other one, but she does list on all the common sites. But, not sure she lists all that the other one does, because we didn't ask and she didn't tell really. She was patient and stayed a long time, got to meet my son (my son liked her said to hire her but he didn't meet other ones lol). My dog really liked her. She said she's a good negotiator but they all say that. **She does not have any reviews on zillow this year and has only sold 2 homes. *She does have her marketing degree also and has been doing real estate 15 years and she's my age. She did say looks out for her clients interests, and she doesn't go out getting business like I think larger companies do, and I think she might spend more time with them? Would you think that is the case? She only lists at max about 10 homes at a time or refers them to other agents in her business. She said she knows some people that pack but you have to have everything ready (men not people that work with her) and she said she would send me the info still not heard from her.
Any suggestions or thoughts opinions who we should go with?
Really would like some opinions! thanks!
Vickie
Last edited by gabaseballmom; 01-16-2014 at 09:41 AM..
Anyways, I have heard that listing your home, it really doesn't matter who you list with (that they don't do a lot to market it)..it's really buying a home where you want a buyers agent and need to be choosy. Is this accurate?
This is probably the most inaccurate thing I've read in the past year on city data. You want the best listing agent to promote and market your house.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gabaseballmom
1) First agent seemed a little more prepared on presentation etc. Also *she wanted to start low price but willing to list hire but not as high as other one.
Did the agents justify their proposed listing price by using comps of all recent previous sales in your neighborhood? Think in terms of the correct market price, not a high or low price. Avoid an agent who just picks a number out of the air without showing you all recent previous sales.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gabaseballmom
Okay, we are trying to make a decision between two realtors to list our home
Any suggestions or thoughts opinions who we should go with?
How about the third or fourth one? I would find a high profile agent in my neighborhood who actively promotes their listings.
OK, I'm going to give you a little tough love, here:
1. First, good on you for interviewing a couple of agents. You took the process a step further than most.
2. Does either agent have a demonstrable way of showing HOW they came up with their price? Comparables, recent sales, market surveys, trends, etc.? Or did they just come in a throw a number at you? It is a common mistake to go with the agent who will "list high" to give you "wiggle room". It's a very fine line -- too high, and you lose the interest of the very buyers you are trying to attract. There are agents who don't care, as long as they get the listing -- they know that if the house doesn't sell, they can always shrug and point out that "they told you so" and get a price reduction, anyway.
A little market instruction: Your house gets the most interest in the first two weeks of listing. After that, interest drops dramatically. IF you are priced right, then, assuming that your home is in the best shape possible and compares well to other homes in the neighborhood, then you should get some serious interest. What we have found is that even if it's just a tiny bit UNDER the market price, it can spark a multiple-offer situation -- that's been true of the last few houses that we've listed in the last few months. Multiple offers tend to drive the price up over the list price. Price it too high, and people won't even bother looking at it. Which position would you rather be in?
3. Zillow and Trulia endorsements -- mildly interesting, but certainly not a make-it-or-break-it criteria. I know superb agents, top of their office, Multi-Million Club for 20+ years who may only have 1 or 2 testimonials on Zillow. They don't care -- their leads come from satisfied clients, not Zillow.
4. Who tends to sell the most in your neighborhood? Do you know? THAT'S the agent I'd want to be interviewing.
5. Re: the first agent. I can almost guarantee you that she is trying to sell it fast because that is what most clients WANT. The speed in which she sells it doesn't contribute to "top agent" ratings -- SALES are the only thing that count on those ratings. Why futz around? Do you want to sell it or not? If she's a top agent, she's probably competitive and, personally, would like to keep her position (what's wrong with that?), but it doesn't drive her business decisions. It's just an added bonus.
6. I tend to be skeptical of agents who offer to undercut another agents' commission just to get the listing. It's a cut-throat business, to be sure, but to me, that's just lazy. (And no, it's not typical around here to give a discount to a friend's friend. That's just the excuse that was used to undercut the other agent.)
7. Professional flyers are fine, but are rapidly becoming passe' -- they are done mostly for the client's sake, not for the buyer's sake. The buyer already has more info in his hand on a house than ever before thanks to the internet. Most walk in with a copy of the MLS listing, and have already seen pictures on the internet, or have a copy of the listing on an app on their phone. Professional photographers are good -- they tend to do a better job than an agent with a iPhone or an iPad.
8. A team that works together on a listing can be great -- or bad, depending on the members. :-) A lone agent can often do a good job, especially if your house is their only listing. But having more than one point of contact is sometimes a good thing. So what if her assistant wrote the note? In a team like that, a client belongs to the entire team, not just the agent.
9. Re: the packing and decluttering. Most agents have vendors they will be happy to refer to you who can help you with that, and if the first agent has a couple of people that can help with that (at $10 an hour, that's CHEAP -- have you ever priced movers?!?!) that sounds great. However, in reading your description, you sounded almost like you thought the agent should declutter your house as a free service. Umm . . . no. They are real estate agents, they are NOT movers, and you are NOT their BFF, that they will drop their entire business for a couple of days to help you clean up crapola that you have been living on top of for years. Hello? Some agents will provide a free hour or two of consult with a stager to help you show your house to best advantage, and some will even pay for the stager entirely, depending on the price point of the house (isn't cost feasible for a moderate-priced house.)
10. You know, after spending the last two days setting up marketing for a new listing, I almost spit Diet Coke all over my screen when I read that blithe "it really doesn't matter who you list with (that they don't do a lot to market it)" If that's how you feel, why in the name of all that's good are you going with an agent in the first place? Why not just do a FSBO, since "it's not marketed, anyway." In the last two days, on just one house, we've reviewed disclosures with a client, accompanied a photographer to help stage the house during the photo shoot, prepped flyers, a home book, set up email blasts to agents, have the open house scheduled and noticed for that published, sent emails to the top 50 agents who sell in that area, sent out a just listed postcard to the neighborhood. We're also setting up for an agent caravan, polished up the listing in Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow, and called several clients who have had an interest in that neighborhood. Don't do a lot to market it? If that's the way you feel, don't hire an agent and save the 5-6%.
11. Proximity of office to house: I'd be more concerned about this if the house was empty than if it were occupied. But how much "running over" needs to be done if you're living there? Woodstock . . . Acworth . . . eh, basically the same neck of the woods. Most agents, especially experienced ones, cover a pretty wide geographic area around here. I suspect that you'll find that the first agent will be much more prone to providing referrals for you once she knows she has your business -- I mean, why give it away?
If you don't like either of the two (and regardless of which agent your dog picks out), then interview another one. Suggestion: Check with your friend/family member who IS an agent, and ask them to refer you to someone. I know you want to keep your friendship separate from business, but this way, they would get a referral fee, which would be nice (no cost to you), and you'd get an agent that you might like better. Win-win!
as a buyor, ALL realtors are against you. buyor/seller realtors only want to make a sale. Just be mindful of that whenever you go shopping for a home...in the end, you are on your own and there is no true liability on the seller side...they can make anything up and in the end, no enforcable litigation can be done...true, but sad.
as a seller, I would choose the cheapest seller realtor who takes the best pictures and stages your house the best and submits MLS ads as well as redfin ads. It is true, all seller realtors are alike these days, the internet has destroyed their business model. 90% of buyors find their homes on the internet before the seller realtor suggests any.
in short, do Redfin...they in atlanta, they cheaper, and everyone uses it.
OK, I'm going to give you a little tough love, here:
1. First, good on you for interviewing a couple of agents. You took the process a step further than most.
2. Does either agent have a demonstrable way of showing HOW they came up with their price? Comparables, recent sales, market surveys, trends, etc.? Or did they just come in a throw a number at you? It is a common mistake to go with the agent who will "list high" to give you "wiggle room". It's a very fine line -- too high, and you lose the interest of the very buyers you are trying to attract. There are agents who don't care, as long as they get the listing -- they know that if the house doesn't sell, they can always shrug and point out that "they told you so" and get a price reduction, anyway.
A little market instruction: Your house gets the most interest in the first two weeks of listing. After that, interest drops dramatically. IF you are priced right, then, assuming that your home is in the best shape possible and compares well to other homes in the neighborhood, then you should get some serious interest. What we have found is that even if it's just a tiny bit UNDER the market price, it can spark a multiple-offer situation -- that's been true of the last few houses that we've listed in the last few months. Multiple offers tend to drive the price up over the list price. Price it too high, and people won't even bother looking at it. Which position would you rather be in?
3. Zillow and Trulia endorsements -- mildly interesting, but certainly not a make-it-or-break-it criteria. I know superb agents, top of their office, Multi-Million Club for 20+ years who may only have 1 or 2 testimonials on Zillow. They don't care -- their leads come from satisfied clients, not Zillow.
4. Who tends to sell the most in your neighborhood? Do you know? THAT'S the agent I'd want to be interviewing.
5. Re: the first agent. I can almost guarantee you that she is trying to sell it fast because that is what most clients WANT. The speed in which she sells it doesn't contribute to "top agent" ratings -- SALES are the only thing that count on those ratings. Why futz around? Do you want to sell it or not? If she's a top agent, she's probably competitive and, personally, would like to keep her position (what's wrong with that?), but it doesn't drive her business decisions. It's just an added bonus.
6. I tend to be skeptical of agents who offer to undercut another agents' commission just to get the listing. It's a cut-throat business, to be sure, but to me, that's just lazy. (And no, it's not typical around here to give a discount to a friend's friend. That's just the excuse that was used to undercut the other agent.)
7. Professional flyers are fine, but are rapidly becoming passe' -- they are done mostly for the client's sake, not for the buyer's sake. The buyer already has more info in his hand on a house than ever before thanks to the internet. Most walk in with a copy of the MLS listing, and have already seen pictures on the internet, or have a copy of the listing on an app on their phone. Professional photographers are good -- they tend to do a better job than an agent with a iPhone or an iPad.
8. A team that works together on a listing can be great -- or bad, depending on the members. :-) A lone agent can often do a good job, especially if your house is their only listing. But having more than one point of contact is sometimes a good thing. So what if her assistant wrote the note? In a team like that, a client belongs to the entire team, not just the agent.
9. Re: the packing and decluttering. Most agents have vendors they will be happy to refer to you who can help you with that, and if the first agent has a couple of people that can help with that (at $10 an hour, that's CHEAP -- have you ever priced movers?!?!) that sounds great. However, in reading your description, you sounded almost like you thought the agent should declutter your house as a free service. Umm . . . no. They are real estate agents, they are NOT movers, and you are NOT their BFF, that they will drop their entire business for a couple of days to help you clean up crapola that you have been living on top of for years. Hello? Some agents will provide a free hour or two of consult with a stager to help you show your house to best advantage, and some will even pay for the stager entirely, depending on the price point of the house (isn't cost feasible for a moderate-priced house.)
10. You know, after spending the last two days setting up marketing for a new listing, I almost spit Diet Coke all over my screen when I read that blithe "it really doesn't matter who you list with (that they don't do a lot to market it)" If that's how you feel, why in the name of all that's good are you going with an agent in the first place? Why not just do a FSBO, since "it's not marketed, anyway." In the last two days, on just one house, we've reviewed disclosures with a client, accompanied a photographer to help stage the house during the photo shoot, prepped flyers, a home book, set up email blasts to agents, have the open house scheduled and noticed for that published, sent emails to the top 50 agents who sell in that area, sent out a just listed postcard to the neighborhood. We're also setting up for an agent caravan, polished up the listing in Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow, and called several clients who have had an interest in that neighborhood. Don't do a lot to market it? If that's the way you feel, don't hire an agent and save the 5-6%.
11. Proximity of office to house: I'd be more concerned about this if the house was empty than if it were occupied. But how much "running over" needs to be done if you're living there? Woodstock . . . Acworth . . . eh, basically the same neck of the woods. Most agents, especially experienced ones, cover a pretty wide geographic area around here. I suspect that you'll find that the first agent will be much more prone to providing referrals for you once she knows she has your business -- I mean, why give it away?
If you don't like either of the two (and regardless of which agent your dog picks out), then interview another one. Suggestion: Check with your friend/family member who IS an agent, and ask them to refer you to someone. I know you want to keep your friendship separate from business, but this way, they would get a referral fee, which would be nice (no cost to you), and you'd get an agent that you might like better. Win-win!
Thank you for taking the time to reply to my post. I do appreciate the love and advice.
Yes, both of the agents pulled comps in the area, and I think the first agent does want to sell fast and yes wants to keep her reputation for being top realtor, which i understand that completely. However, not sure if we want to sell from what she recommended to grab someone first two weeks, only because it was a lot lower than we were thinking-and need more since it will help with down payment (also because it's 30k less than what we bought the house for).
Regarding #9., no I don't expect them to do it, and not sure how my post came across to you that way. I am in situation where it's going to be mostly me doing it, and take longer than the realtors have recommending me to get it on the market. Obviously, I want to get it on the market soon before more competition comes on in the spring to have a good chance at selling it. Anyways, I know I'll need help but our funds aren't great for paying for it as often as I would like to get it on the market by early February.
And referencing #10. I don't know why you would say that's how I feel...I was stating simply what others (that are not in real estate field have told me, one being my husband!). So, I was really wanting to know if there was any truth to that statement, and he's only learned it from hearing it from others. But, anyways, I just think that we want to be sure who we choose is the best person, which is why we both are unable to decide because we like both of them and think each of them will do a good job.
My friend did refer me to the second realtor, so not sure what you meant by the referral fee part.
I honestly still don't know which realtor to choose, but maybe we should interview a third realtor and how do I find one that markets a lot to this area? Would it be someone that I see their signs throughout a lot of the surrounding neighborhoods around mine and in my neighborhood, or can I find it by doing a google search?
I am surprised that you haven't decluttered by yourself. Can you enlist your family to help? Spend this long weekend doing it?
Absolutely, go by the signs of who is selling the most in your (and nearby) neighborhoods --that is who I would interview, if you haven't yet.
Well, we have a lot to declutter and have a busy life and busy child. So, sorry you are surprised, but easier said than done. Some people spend time doing that more than we do in our family. It would be nice if we had it all done. No my family can't really because of health issues with both sides of our family (our parents) and his live out of state. I don't have any siblings, but he has a sister that will throw everything away instead of help me decide. So, I am slowly going through it all. It's just going to take a while. I don't have a close friend that would be willing to give up their time with their kids or family to help.
I will take a look at our nearby neighborhoods and see what I can come up with on who's selling in the area.
Pathkid mentioned Redfin.. Does anybody know how they compare to Duffy?
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Okay, we are trying to make a decision between two realtors to list our home with hopefully in February. **NOTES: WE ARE NOT LOOKING TO SELL RIGHT AWAY BUT WOULD BE NICE NOT TO HAVE TO KEEP HOUSE STAGED OR UP FOR BUYERS MORE THAN 90 DAYS! (We tried in 2008 to sell and it didn't sell after 9 months!). We do want to be to new area (moving from Acworth GA to Buford or Cumming area) before our child goes to new school next year before it starts. **ANOTHER NOTE: It is important to me to have people help me pack up things as we have A LOT TO DO decluttering packing etc to put in basement before i can list our home.
and she's tried connecting with me on linkedin.
