miercuri, 25 decembrie 2013

Buying Or Selling? Here's How To Select A Realtor

By Madeleine Glazier


Selecting a real estate agent can be difficult. After all, there are so many realtors out there competing for our business. However, the right real estate agent can make all the difference when it comes to buying or selling a home. Here are a few questions that you should ask your potential realtor before signing a contract.

During your first meeting with a realtor, ask about their general qualifications and level of experience. While someone with just a couple of years' experience could be perfectly capable of helping you buy or sell a home, it's a good question to ask. If you are selling your home, more experienced realtors often have some good ideas to make the process move more quickly. Some realtors also go a step beyond the training required for them to become real estate agents and they further their education and receive special designations. Ask about any extra designations they might have, such as GRI, CRS, CSP or ePro. All of these require quite a bit of extra work and study to acquire.

The success rate of your realtor also is a huge factor, especially if you are selling a home. Ask them how many homes they have listed and sold in the last year. Also ask them about the general sales price of these homes. If the realtor typically sells lower priced homes and yours is worth millions, it might not be a great fit. Your realtor should be familiar with selling homes in your price range and especially in your area. Also inquire how long the homes stay on the market, but be sure to ask about the sales prices. If the homes move quickly, it might be because the realtor encourages clients to drop the prices significantly in order to move the house into escrow faster.

The process of selling your home can be stressful, but your real estate agent will do their best to make it as quick and painless as possible. Ask your realtor to take a good look at your home and make some suggestions for small changes and staging which might make the home sell more quickly. When you set the asking price, be sure to ask your realtor for the comps that were used to set that price. It's also a good idea to visit some of the comps and look at the homes for sale that are in competition with your home.

For those who are just buyers and not selling their home, you should have an easier time completing your real estate transaction. However, during that first meeting, you need to bring a list with you with details about all of the things you want in your new home. Include a few items that are absolutely necessary, such as staying within a particular city or school district or perhaps the necessity of having a certain amount of bedrooms. Keep in mind that you probably won't get every single thing you want, the perfect house probably only exists if you build it yourself. Also, be clear about your budget and go to a lender or bank and get pre-qualification for a loan before you start looking.

If you are searching for the ideal home in either Contra Costa or Alameda counties, contact the 1stInSite.com staff. They are experts at finding homes and investment opportunities within the real estate markets of Pleasanton, Livermore, Dublin, San Ramon and many other nearby cities and communities. They can also help you market and sell your existing home or property.




About the Author:



Niciun comentariu:

Trimiteți un comentariu

Yahoo! News: Most Viewed