When it comes time to choosing a real estate agent in Papakura to sell your home, there is an abundance of choice out there, so how can you ensure that you select one of Papakura’s Top 10 Best Real Estate Agents?
Like many things in life, it’s often always about a process of elimination.
Start off by doing some online research researching as many potential real estate suitors as you can. Take a look at the main players in the local market, for example, the main brands in Papakura would be;
- Ray White
- Barfoot & Thompson
- Harcourts
- Harveys
- LJ Hooker
Each of these brands has its own respective website and sometimes exploring these websites can highlight a potential agent candidate for you to consider. The key task here is to create a list of agents, perhaps a dozen to start with that you can then narrow down to about 2 or 3 that you can then call in for an interview.
Let’s say, you’ve found a dozen agents and added them to your shortlist. Now what? To narrow the list further, you want an agent that has a reputable reputation and not one that has been before disciplinary tribunals, so one process of elimination is to check on the REA website. This site an NZ Governmental site that oversees the real estate industry.
On the front page of the REA website, click on ‘Search the Public Register’. Then enter the name of each person on your shortlist. Anyone that comes up with a disciplinary record under their name should be an instant pen through their name. There are so many great agents that do fantastic work, that the last thing you need is to choose someone who flouts the rules.
Next, whilst you’re on the REA site look for an agent’s experience. For each Agent, check how long they have held their license for. This site only started registering Agents licenses when the Real Estate Agents Act 2008 came into force, so don’t expect to find any licenses first registered before that. What you’re looking for here is someone that has at least a couple of years experience since first becoming licensed.
If you’ve selected a couple of people that work together, even better. Often their combined experience in the industry can complement each other, for example, one may have a flair for marketing in unique and innovative ways, whilst the other may have a decorating and presentation flair that can help when it comes to making your home look extra special.
Hopefully, by now, you should, you should have eliminated several of the options you selected. The next thing is to type their names into a Google search and Facebook. This will help in two distinct areas. Firstly, searching for them in Google will give you an idea of what the agent is like at promoting themselves in the market. If they aren’t able to promote themselves effectively, then what chance do you think your home has in standing out from all the other properties that might be on the market at the same time?
Then on Facebook, again, search their personal profile. This should give you an insight into what the agents’ interests are, and whether or not you feel they may be a good fit for you. At the end of the day, you need to choose a top Papakura agent that you can work with. Selling your home can be a very stressful and involved process, and you need to pick someone that you can relate to, that understands you, and above all, is looking to do the very best for you (without any apparent self-interest).
Well, so far, so good.
Hopefully, you’ve now got a shortlist of 3 or 4 of Papakura’s best real estate agents that you can call and make a time to meet at your home so they can undertake an appraisal on your home.
Allow at least half an hour between each meeting assuming you want to do them all on the same day.
When you arrange to meet each agent, see if you can have a friend be present at the same time. They can either sit in the background or be at the table with you. It’s up to you whether or not they are involved in the meeting, but how the agent engages (or not) with your friend will tell you a lot about how respectful the agent is to others and this can sometimes give you an idea how the agent will interact with potential buyers visiting your home at Open-Home time.
When an agent presents you with an appraisal for your home, there are a few things to be aware of. The Real Estate Agents Act 2008 requires that all appraisals in NZ be in writing, and they should validate a narrow price range for your property using past recent local sales of other properties that are similar and comparable in terms of land size, house size, construction type, and decor.
They should also propose to you a method of sale (assuming you’ve indicated to them that you are looking to sell) and how much commission you will be charged if they sell the property at the appraised price.
Be aware, many agents may recommend the Auction method and this may be an appropriate suggestion, however, agents are often remunerated by their Agency with a higher percentage share of the commission if they sell a property by Auction, and the Agent must disclose this to you if recommending Auction.
Now that you’ve met with 3 or 4 agents and you’ve got a good feel for who feels the right fit, take a review of everything you’ve learned and of each agent you’ve interviewed before you make a decision on who to appoint.
Many sellers make the mistake of either choosing the Agent that gives them the highest appraisal figure or else they choose the one with the lowest commission rate. Either way, choosing the best Papakura real estate agent to sell your home based on the highest appraisal range, or the lowest commission can be fraught with problems.
Often the cheapest agent can work out to be the most expensive agent and anyone appraising your home for a lot more money than the other agents is just trying to buy your listing.
An experienced agent with skills, negotiating prowess, and a proven track record of success knows the difference between an average or mediocre agent and a good agent can be as much as an extra 10% on the final sale price.
So just consider it for a second, when you choose to go with a cheaper commission agent, you might end up missing out on that extra 10% that a quality, experienced agent could have achieved in the final sale figure for your home.
On a $750,000 home, that could amount to around $75,000 extra in your back pocket, all because you wanted to save a few thousand dollars on the commission. That’s what we mean when we say the cheapest agent may end up being the most expensive agent.
Congratulations! Now you’ve reached a final decision on who is going to be your agent to sell your Papakura home. We wish you well, and every success when it comes to getting your home sold.
If you’d like to discuss your Papakura real estate needs with a couple of local, experienced top Real Estate Agents in Papakura, please call Warren Tibbotts on 021 977775 or Phillipa Tibbotts on 021 888168 at Ray White Papakura