Slow Markets Make Good Agents Very Important

(Selling a home in today’s market is already hard enough as it is, between the millions of homes for sale on the market and lack of buyers.)

In addition to all of these negative factors against a home seller these days, they also have the task of finding a competent real estate agent.

Hiring a good real estate agent is an extremely important part of selling a home in a slow market. In a hot market, like the one we saw just a few years ago from about 2000-2005 you really didn’t even need an agent to sell your home, it basically just sold by itself.

But now the times have changed and employing a good agent could mean the difference between your house selling or sitting on the market for a year.

So how do you find a good agent that will work hard to sell your home during these difficult times?

A November 30, 2006 article by Holden Lewis of Bankrate.com, “Finding the best real estate agent in a buyer’s market,” answers that often-times difficult and elusive question that faces every homeowner looking to sell.

“In much of the country, house sellers have gone from strutting to sulking. At the rate that homes were resold in October, it would take about seven-and-a-half months to sell all the houses on the market. A year before, there was less than a five-month supply of houses for sale. Buyers now have the advantage, as millions of ‘for sale’ signs rust forlornly in front yards. For sellers, the cyclical return to a buyer's market means that it's important to choose the right real estate agent.”

The first step in all of this is to decide whether or not you should even hire an agent in the first place and instead go the For Sale by Owner route (FSBO). “If you're selling in a buyer's market, you have to price the house competitively, ‘and if you also have to tack onto that a 6-percent commission to an agent, you're hurting,’ says Colby Sambrotto, chief operating officer of ForSaleByOwner.com.”

Of course, other people say that you are going to need all the help you can get in selling a home in a slow market, so it is best to hire an agent. Whatever you decide to do, be sure that you ask an expert for advice.

If you decide to hire an agent, the first thing you need to do is interview a few agents and get referrals from family members and friends if possible. When you’re interviewing an agent be sure to assess their knowledge and communication skills.

“Jim Merrion, regional director of RE/MAX Northern Illinois suggests asking for some hard facts that a good agent should know by heart: the average time that houses have been on the market -- in the neighborhood and in the metro area -- and the average time that agent's houses have been on the market. ‘The other thing I would ask is: Tell me about your track record. What kind of transactions have you had? Tell me about what you've sold,’ Merrion says.”

These types of questions will help you to get a good feel for the agent and determine whether or not they have been successful in their endeavors.

Also, talk about the marketing strategies that the agent has for your property. Will they be running ads, conducting open houses? Get a good feel of whether or not this person knows how to get your home out there so buyers will notice it.

Finally, and most importantly in this market, be sure to discuss the asking price.

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