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SIMPLE YET CRUCIAL STEPS TO GETTING YOUR HOME RENTED/SOLD AND CHOOSING YOUR AGENT:
Can you rent/sell your home yourself? YES! It is very possible to do so. If you are able to do the following, you can definitely save costs on an agent by putting your home on the market YOURSELF.
You must have the TIME & FLEXIBILITY IN SCHEDULE: Prospects call all day everyday wanting to see your home, so if you have a full time obligation away from home, you may need an Agent.
A good balance between practical intuition & non-attachment to emotions: You must have enough intuition to know how to 'go with your gut' in relation to a prospect that would like to occupy your home, but although you should have a positive feeling about the family/individual, it is just as important to keep your emotions OUT OF the situation, for obvious reasoning. Finding a good balance is key. If you tend to get highly emotional or too attached , you may need an Agent.
Realistic expectations & views of the current fluctuating market: Something an agent does consistently is check the comparables for your home, whether it is already on the market or not. Whether you are referring to the rental market, or a buyers market, the price for your type of home fluctuates constantly, and you always want to make sure you are priced competitively. An Agent has access to the exclusive MLS, where you can find the most up to date, accurate information available on your home and others like it.
Reasonable amount of knowledge and research of the current market: A reasonable amount of knowledge regarding the process of selling or leasing of homes is obviously necessary, which is why an Agent's licensing and Real Estate education must stay up to date.
Renting or Selling your home yourself is very possible if you meet these 4 qualities. If not, and you realize you do need a qualified Agent to market your home, the following can help make the process of finding the right Agency A LOT easier....
WHEN YOU HIRE AN AGENT TO MARKET YOUR HOME these are the MOST important factors that come into play when finding the right tenant/buyer.
It is easy to think when finding an agent, the most experienced, knowledgeable, polished person is the one that will be able to get the best tenant for the highest amount of rent possible, but this is simply not true. As an agent myself, let me let you in on a little secret: Being an agent is really no more than being YOUR assistant in regards to your home, and the Agent's primary obligation is to facilitate the process of renting or selling your home. Your home sells itself. Period. No matter who is listing it, whether it is a high profile real estate agent, or the owner himself-with no experience in the field of Real Estate, YOUR HOME SELLS ITSELF. There are no magic tricks, gimmicks etc that one company or Agent can do over another, that will make the home rent/sell faster, for higher rent, or to a better qualified individual. Nothing more than DILIGENCE, COMPETENCE, & REALISTIC EXPECTATION is needed to fill your home. Ask an Agent why he/she believes they are best for the job of selling/renting your home, and all you will get are buffers, facts about their career etc, that have absolutely nothing to do with the rental or sale of your home at the end of the day. So how do I go about choosing a proper Agent for my home? I'm glad you asked. There are most definitely certain qualities you must look for in an Agent that determine how quickly your home will get leased/sold with a minimal amount of chaos. In fact, I would venture to say you can tell who is capable of leasing/selling your home the best way possible all by how they interact with YOU. As I noted earlier, your Agent must be DILIGENT by answering their phone or returning calls in a very timely manner, and advertising/marketing the home on a daily basis. He/she must be COMPETENT by taking the names & numbers of prospects down and confirming/reminding near the time/day of the showing, and of course by being available to show the home multiple times per week, as traffic is most important in finding the right person to occupy your home. And lastly, REALISTIC EXPECTATION as it relates to price and time is most needed by both the Agent AND the homeowner. No matter what agency you sign with, you may not get the price you want for your home, not because you chose the wrong company, but because there are many other homes on the market that other prospects are comparing your home to. (I know, I know, as special and near and dear to your heart as your home may be to YOU, it is simply another home to the majority of available prospects.) The number 1 factor in selling or leasing your home is in the home being priced right you cannot expect your home to be sold or rented in the quickest amount of time, if you are asking top dollar. If your home isn't receiving serious interest or getting the amount of traffic you would like, that is almost ALWAYS an indication that it is priced too high. You also may not get your home filled in the time you have allotted, again, not because you chose the wrong company, but because it may take more time than expected to find the right, QUALIFIED tenant. I cannot tell you how many times I have witnessed homeowners rushing to fill their properties and ended up with a NIGHTMARE of a tenant, so please, just to be on the safe side, make necessary preparations for your home to be vacant for 4 months and wait it out (you wont be sorry in the end)!
Most of these quite simple yet ever so crucial qualities that are needed to fill your home can be seen in the Agent before you even hire him/her for the job. Did the Agent answer the phone when you called? If not, how long did it take for him/her to return your call or email? When interviewing with you, was the Agent prepared, did they show up on time, were they patient with your questions and genuinely friendly when answering them, or was he/she trying to force a sell by mentioning all of their qualifications? Did the Agent play on your emotions by telling you what you wanted to hear, or were they realistic in what you should expect? However your Agent was with you, is how they will be with prospects, if they take days to return your phone call, they will take days (sometimes longer) to return a phone call of someone who would like to see your home.
Now these qualities don't seem too difficult to possess, right? Of course not! But sadly, MOST people/companies overlook the simplicity of this kind of competence, probably because they know most people look for the right OUTER appearance, and make judgments based on how well someone can play the ROLE of an Agent, rather than looking at the inner qualities of who a person is naturally, that determines how well people respond to him or her. People tend to be blinded by all the wrong things, including how 'impressive' someone comes across, and thus, we have a majority of in-genuine businesspersons trying to 'impress' and 'win over' people all for the sake of a sale.
In short, to find the most qualified Agent to market your home, do not rely on 'good actors' who present themselves as a notable, business savvy Real Estate Agent, pay no attention to the 'bells & whistles' you usually look for when interviewing an Agent, but look deeper into their character, again, by how they interact with you and others, how helpful and friendly they are when they aren't receiving anything in return, and their proven diligence, competence & overall integrity. So choose wisely, who you decide to do business with. Your home deserves the highest, most genuine quality service, and the most qualified occupants that will care for it as their own. And last but certainly not least, you deserve peace of mind in what can sometimes, unnecessarily be a chaotic tenant/buyer searching process by employing the wrong Agent.
SIMPLE YET CRUCIAL STEPS TO GETTING YOUR HOME RENTED/SOLD AND CHOOSING YOUR AGENT:
Can you rent/sell your home yourself? YES! It is very possible to do so. If you are able to do the following, you can definitely save costs on an agent by putting your home on the market YOURSELF.
You must have the TIME & FLEXIBILITY IN SCHEDULE: Prospects call all day everyday wanting to see your home, so if you have a full time obligation away from home, you may need an Agent.
A good balance between practical intuition & non-attachment to emotions: You must have enough intuition to know how to 'go with your gut' in relation to a prospect that would like to occupy your home, but although you should have a positive feeling about the family/individual, it is just as important to keep your emotions OUT OF the situation, for obvious reasoning. Finding a good balance is key. If you tend to get highly emotional or too attached , you may need an Agent.
Realistic expectations & views of the current fluctuating market: Something an agent does consistently is check the comparables for your home, whether it is already on the market or not. Whether you are referring to the rental market, or a buyers market, the price for your type of home fluctuates constantly, and you always want to make sure you are priced competitively. An Agent has access to the exclusive MLS, where you can find the most up to date, accurate information available on your home and others like it.
Reasonable amount of knowledge and research of the current market: A reasonable amount of knowledge regarding the process of selling or leasing of homes is obviously necessary, which is why an Agent's licensing and Real Estate education must stay up to date.
Renting or Selling your home yourself is very possible if you meet these 4 qualities. If not, and you realize you do need a qualified Agent to market your home, the following can help make the process of finding the right Agency A LOT easier....
WHEN YOU HIRE AN AGENT TO MARKET YOUR HOME these are the MOST important factors that come into play when finding the right tenant/buyer.
It is easy to think when finding an agent, the most experienced, knowledgeable, polished person is the one that will be able to get the best tenant for the highest amount of rent possible, but this is simply not true. As an agent myself, let me let you in on a little secret: Being an agent is really no more than being YOUR assistant in regards to your home, and the Agent's primary obligation is to facilitate the process of renting or selling your home. Your home sells itself. Period. No matter who is listing it, whether it is a high profile real estate agent, or the owner himself-with no experience in the field of Real Estate, YOUR HOME SELLS ITSELF. There are no magic tricks, gimmicks etc that one company or Agent can do over another, that will make the home rent/sell faster, for higher rent, or to a better qualified individual. Nothing more than DILIGENCE, COMPETENCE, & REALISTIC EXPECTATION is needed to fill your home. Ask an Agent why he/she believes they are best for the job of selling/renting your home, and all you will get are buffers, facts about their career etc, that have absolutely nothing to do with the rental or sale of your home at the end of the day. So how do I go about choosing a proper Agent for my home? I'm glad you asked. There are most definitely certain qualities you must look for in an Agent that determine how quickly your home will get leased/sold with a minimal amount of chaos. In fact, I would venture to say you can tell who is capable of leasing/selling your home the best way possible all by how they interact with YOU. As I noted earlier, your Agent must be DILIGENT by answering their phone or returning calls in a very timely manner, and advertising/marketing the home on a daily basis. He/she must be COMPETENT by taking the names & numbers of prospects down and confirming/reminding near the time/day of the showing, and of course by being available to show the home multiple times per week, as traffic is most important in finding the right person to occupy your home. And lastly, REALISTIC EXPECTATION as it relates to price and time is most needed by both the Agent AND the homeowner. No matter what agency you sign with, you may not get the price you want for your home, not because you chose the wrong company, but because there are many other homes on the market that other prospects are comparing your home to. (I know, I know, as special and near and dear to your heart as your home may be to YOU, it is simply another home to the majority of available prospects.) The number 1 factor in selling or leasing your home is in the home being priced right you cannot expect your home to be sold or rented in the quickest amount of time, if you are asking top dollar. If your home isn't receiving serious interest or getting the amount of traffic you would like, that is almost ALWAYS an indication that it is priced too high. You also may not get your home filled in the time you have allotted, again, not because you chose the wrong company, but because it may take more time than expected to find the right, QUALIFIED tenant. I cannot tell you how many times I have witnessed homeowners rushing to fill their properties and ended up with a NIGHTMARE of a tenant, so please, just to be on the safe side, make necessary preparations for your home to be vacant for 4 months and wait it out (you wont be sorry in the end)!
Most of these quite simple yet ever so crucial qualities that are needed to fill your home can be seen in the Agent before you even hire him/her for the job. Did the Agent answer the phone when you called? If not, how long did it take for him/her to return your call or email? When interviewing with you, was the Agent prepared, did they show up on time, were they patient with your questions and genuinely friendly when answering them, or was he/she trying to force a sell by mentioning all of their qualifications? Did the Agent play on your emotions by telling you what you wanted to hear, or were they realistic in what you should expect? However your Agent was with you, is how they will be with prospects, if they take days to return your phone call, they will take days (sometimes longer) to return a phone call of someone who would like to see your home.
Now these qualities don't seem too difficult to possess, right? Of course not! But sadly, MOST people/companies overlook the simplicity of this kind of competence, probably because they know most people look for the right OUTER appearance, and make judgments based on how well someone can play the ROLE of an Agent, rather than looking at the inner qualities of who a person is naturally, that determines how well people respond to him or her. People tend to be blinded by all the wrong things, including how 'impressive' someone comes across, and thus, we have a majority of in-genuine businesspersons trying to 'impress' and 'win over' people all for the sake of a sale.
In short, to find the most qualified Agent to market your home, do not rely on 'good actors' who present themselves as a notable, business savvy Real Estate Agent, pay no attention to the 'bells & whistles' you usually look for when interviewing an Agent, but look deeper into their character, again, by how they interact with you and others, how helpful and friendly they are when they aren't receiving anything in return, and their proven diligence, competence & overall integrity. So choose wisely, who you decide to do business with. Your home deserves the highest, most genuine quality service, and the most qualified occupants that will care for it as their own. And last but certainly not least, you deserve peace of mind in what can sometimes, unnecessarily be a chaotic tenant/buyer searching process by employing the wrong Agent.