How to Select the Best Listing Agent: Part 4

Hello and happy holiday season from The Herrick Team and myself. I hope this magical time of year finds you warm, happy, and full of the giving spirit.

Today, I want to complete my 4 part series on How to Select the Best Listing Agent. To get caught up on the first 3 installments, please visit my video library by clicking here!

Selecting the best listing agent is a must, and there are many determining factors when sifting through the lists of agents in your area. To conclude my series, I'd like to focus on what specific deliverables you should look for:

Deliverables:

1. Ask for the Agent's plan of action. Do they have a written plan of action or a list of tasks that they're going to do when working to sell your home?
2.  Ask for a minimum of 5 references. These references should have phone numbers so that you can call and validate everything that you discuss with that agent.
3. Ask for their daily schedule. Why? Because you want to know how that agent spends their time while working to sell your home.

In future blogs, I'm going to into further detail on these three topics, so stay tuned if you want to stay informed. But in the meantime, may you and your family have a wonderful holiday season. Thanks!

How to Select the Best Listing Agent - Part 3

Welcome back to my video blog. Today I wanted to continue our video series on how to choose the best agent when it comes time to sell your home.

Let's go over what we have covered in the past two videos. A lot of people ask friends for referrals. It's good to work with someone you know or know you can trust.

It's also important for your agent to have knowledge. It's important for your agent to know what's happening in the market. Make sure to ask them the following two questions:

1. How many homes are on the market in your area?
2. How many homes have come on the market in the past 30 days?

Today, though, I wanted to talk about performance. Do you agree that past and current performance indicates future performance? If yes, then you agree that you should ask performance related questions. When it comes time to interview your agent, ask the following questions:

1. How many homes have you personally sold? Find out how many homes your agent sold, not their company. I have sold 46 homes each year for the past two years. This year I'm well on my way to exceed that number.
2. What is your current inventory? How many homes does that agent have on the market and how many of them are under contract? 
3. What is your list to sales price ratio? I rarely get asked this question, but it's one of the most important. Our average is 98-99 percent. That's more money in your pocket!
4. Are you continuing your education or being personally coached? The real estate market is constantly changing, you need an agent that is up to date on everything that is going on and learn how they can constantly improve their business.

These are four important questions that will help you determine how your agent will perform when working for you.

If you're thinking about selling, or would like a copy of my list of "15 Interview Questions to Ask a Realtor", give me a call at (703) 831-4131 or shoot me an email at HerrickTeam@gmail.com.