Cindy's Blog

As I stated in my last post, I really wanted to take a bit of time and cover just a few things about agency. An oft misunderstood aspect of the real estate business, and one which even agents can become muddled or  confused about, thus having more difficult time explaining it to their clients.

I'm going to try to cover most questions, at least, that folks might have, highlighting things that have come up for me or other agents I know.

Recently I had an issue with someone I know, who had called a while back and given me every indication that he was going to list his home with me, asked for help getting it ready for market, etc. Because I knew that they were not going to be ready for a few months, I hadn't pressured them at all.

Imagine my surprise when I received an email saying that they had decided to go with an agent that "specialized in the neighborhood" . I think this is one of the most prevalant fallacies in this business. I've never really understand the notion of the "neighborhood" agent, myself.

I understand that I may have a bit more information about my neighborhood because I live here, but most of the information that I have is about the other people in the neighborhood and either violates fair housing, other privacy or disclosure rules or laws, or just plain good manners.

Does it mean that when someone lists a number of houses in an area they then have clients that call them when they want a house in that neighborhood? If they had a pocketful of clients, wouldn't they have already sold the other homes they have listed, or sell the listings they've had much more quickly?? That is usually not the case.

The best I can tell is that the "neighborhood agent" doesn't do any better for the client, either buying or selling, than any other agent- they just have more of a name for themselves in that area, and leverage their marketing to get more listings in the area. Smart business, sure, but will it help your house get sold quicker? Probably not.

Hopefully I've not digressed to much and lost you by now. As we all do when we read something, I'm sure you're asking, "how does this affect me, and why do I care?"

Well, fundamentally, you should only care because you should choose an agent not where they live, or where they supposedly specialize, but because of these reasons:

For an agent listing your home:

-How are they going to market your home? Are they just going to put an ad in the paper once, or just put it in mls, or do more?

-What is their record for past sales? How quickly do most of their listings sell compared to the other agents in the market?

-What are his or her thoughts about the current market, and are they prepared with comparable sales to show you?

- How will they keep you apprised of any activity on the home, and feedback received. What is the long term (which realistically may happen) plan?

These are just a few of the important criteria for determining who the best listing agent for you is- none of them really have anything to do with where the agent lives, or frankly, where they've listed homes previously.

For a buyers agent, Basically, the criteria are the same. You really want to make sure you have some who works the same way you do- if you're a tech person, ask how they'll let you know of listings, etc. If they can't use email and you're "plugged in" to the nines, this is probably not the person you want... If you are highly motivated and need to move fast, and they're a part time agent, you probably need to look elsewhere.

Obviously, this business is what puts food on my table, but ultimately this business is about people and relationships. I want to work with people who want to work with me, and vice versa. I think most people feel like that.

Regardless of where your agent lives, the most important thing is the way you get along, and the knowledge they have of the transaction, and how much time and attention they are going to devote to you. This is what is going to result in a successful transaction and a lasting relationship.