When considering selling your Papakura home or property, you owe it to yourself to find the best agent, but just how do you find the best local Real Estate Agent.
Some people think it’s simple and easy to sell a house and that they can do this themselves so that they can save themselves the commission. Unfortunately for these private seller types these days, this can be fraught with potential issues that can effectively end up costing the seller far more than the real estate agents fees (And have you noticed that the vast majority of private sellers end up selling with an agent in the end anyway? Why do you think that might be?)
How so, I hear you ask? Well, the fact is that any seller of property in New Zealand has Vendor Warranties that they have a legal obligation to honour, and this also comes backs to disclosure obligations that fall on private sellers, just as much as it does with properties sold through an agent.
A top agent will jump through hoops to understand your property inside and out. They will also do their best to obtain as much information from you as possible with respect to what you know about the property. This helps when it comes to full disclosure of any defects or other known issues with the property and helps to protect you as the seller in the event that anything goes pear-shaped.
Not only is it a good idea to engage the services of a top real estate agent for your own protection, but invariably a great agent will be able to negotiate a price on your property that you may not have the skill to do.
Negotiating with buyers for an agent is an unemotional process, unlike an owner trying to sell their property who is often emotionally attached to it. Buyers that view the home through a Private sale with the owner present are usually reluctant to provide honest market feedback as they don’t wish to offend the owner.
That’s very different when they are shown a house with an Agent.
Likewise, a quality experienced real estate agent is able to strategise the marketing of the property and hence manage the sales process to generate multiple offers on a property.
So, now that you understand a few more reasons why involving an agent is a sensible and financially prudent idea, how do you find the best real estate agent to sell your property?
There is a really ‘thought-provoking saying’ that “The Biggest Mistake a Seller Can Make is, Putting the RIGHT Buyer in Front of the WRONG Agent” and that is so true!
The wrong agent will cost you money, in lost sales value as well as the commission fee, which when you total it all up, is likely to be the ‘Most expensive’ agent out of the ones you were considering.
You see, with property, there is no ‘recommended retail’ price, and therefore its an actual fact that the ultimate selling price of the property can be heavily influenced by a number of factors.
Some of these factors are the property presentation, the marketing of the property, the price expectation, and the agent you choose is some of the most important.
Historically, there can be quite a margin of difference between what a property will sell through a good agent, and what it would sell for with a poor, or inexperienced agent. That differential can often be as much 10%. Think of that for a minute. If you have a property worth say $700,000, then 5% either side of that is $665,000 or $735,000. (A $70,000 difference).
Also, the agent’s commission is still payable on either of those sales values, so it just goes to show that if the cheapest agent can only achieve a lower sales result because they lack the negotiation strength to achieve anything substantial, then their ‘cheap’ $15,000 fee leaves you with $650,000, whereas the experienced professional agent, who knows how to negotiate and is able to manage several buyers competing to own the property, and with their $25,000 fee, you’re left with $710,000.
Hence the phrase, sometimes, the most expensive agent ends up being the cheapest, and the cheapest agent ends up being the most expensive.
At the end of the day, an agent brings you offers, and you are not obligated to select any of them if you don’t like what is being offered. So, remember, as the vendor, you are always in control.
When it comes to choosing the best Agent for your home, do your research before making any appointments to meet them.
Have a look online. Do a few local Google searches and see who shows up prominently (ignore the ads) and focus on the Agents that know how to market themselves online. Check out their reviews online. Then create a shortlist of about 3 to meet up with.
When you do meet with the prospective Agents, beware of those with ‘Commission breath’. These are the high pressure, ‘it’s all about them’ types. Invariably, they are probably desperate to acquire your business, and they will also probably discount the ‘heck’ out of their commissions to try and win you over. Just remember, if they are that keen to cut their commission without any commitment from you, how confident would you be that they will uphold the value of your home when push comes to shove.
Another unscrupulous tactic is that of ‘over-pitching your appraisal figure’ in an effort to win your confidence. Any appraisal figure presented to you (and it is a legal obligation of any agent to provide you with an appraisal before they can list your property for sale) must be backed up with recent sales of properties that have sold in the last 3-6 months that are similar to your property in terms of floor size, land size, location, construction, and condition.
In theory, since all agents are pulling sales figures from the same resources, it should be expected that their appraised figures should all be similar. Please DO NOT base your agent choice on the one who gives you the highest appraised figure.
Part of an agent’s appraisal must include a recommended method of sale as well as what commission they would charge when the property sells. Again, another thing to be aware of, is that most agents are paid a significantly higher percentage of the commission when the property sells by Auction. This can possibly be a conflict of interest as it may not be the most appropriate selling method to get the highest possible sale price for the property.
A few other things to check on when trying to find the best local Real Estate agent;
- Do they have Testimonials they can show you? Can you call some of these to validate them?
- How well do they know the local area and how long have they been selling in the area?
- How long have they had their Real Estate license?
- How many properties have they sold in the last 12 months?
- What is their success ratio of listings to sales?
- How up to date are they with the latest Market trends and marketing methods?
- What is their Unique Selling Proposition (USP)? In other words, ask them, “Why should I hire you. What makes you different from all other agents?” This question will separate the professionals from the wannabe’s. Anyone that doesn’t know how to market properly, will stumble at this question, and you’ll probably get rhetoric type answers like “I’m honest, hard-working, trustworthy, etc”.
Once you’ve gone through all your questioning and you’re able to narrow down your choice to either one agent or to a couple of agents that stand out from the rest, you should make your decision based on how well you get along with the Agent, and how well you feel they are likely to relate to a wide range of buyers. After all, this agent is going to be your conduit between all buyer types and they must be able to communicate well with all walks of life.
Don’t under-rate the importance of choosing the right agent and hence take some time to ensure you find the best local real estate agent for you and your property on your terms and not on theirs.
All the best and Good Luck!
If you’d like to Talk to Warren and/or Phillipa, please click here to send us an email. We would be more than happy to help you.