Tips on finding a Realtor and what constitutes a good agent
There are many reasons to hire a real estate agent. The challenge is finding the right REALTOR for you and your circumstances. There are many real estate agents in the market but finding a reliable and experienced real estate agent is a herculean task. A good agent is the one who have experience, enough credentials, has a license or one that outshines the others in their company in terms of performance. There are several strategies you can apply to find the best real estate agent in your area. These include;
Referrals
Ask your friends, colleagues, neighbors, and family to refer you to a good real estate agent they have worked with before. Ask the people you to tell you their experiences with the realtor they are recommending to you. If they are happy with the real estate agent’s services then you should know you have hit a jackpot because a realtor worth his salt will be concerned about giving customers satisfactory services that will make them come back for more. Referrals are quite helpful because they will save you the trouble of going through incompetent realtors before you find the right one.
Professionals’ recommendations
Get other real estate agents to refer you to another agent. Some real estate agents specialize in certain areas of the real estate business, therefore, if the REALTOR you have found does not deal with the type of real estate needs you have, they can refer you to a person who is more knowledgeable about it.
Accreditations
NAR (the National Association of REALTORS) offers a variety of certifications and accreditation’s for learning some specific material. They range from specific training within technology to home buyers or even international buyers and commercial real estate. These certifications are noted by the abbreviation after their name such as:
- ABR
- CCIM
- CPM
- CRS
- and many more.
Internet
The internet is always a reliable source when you want to find something or someone and it can also come in handy with finding a realtor. The best way to find a good real estate agent online is to Google the best real estate companies in your locality visit their websites and search for the profiles of the individuals who work for those companies. You can either choose the experienced ones who might have the disadvantage of being too busy or the novices who might have a lot of time to deal with your issue.
Their Personal Web Presence
Search for local real estate agents. One your cell phone – Google:
“real estate agents around me”
You may want to read our article on Finding the Best Real Estate Schools
You should pull up something that looks like this:
You will want to real their past clients reviews.
Print advertising
Buy your local area newspapers and go to the house ads sections to search if there are and real estate ads. If you find them, search their website and get the contacts of the real estate agents. Inquire from them whether they are experienced and their fees. A newspaper might also contain information about an agent who won an award at work which can be an indication that they are good at their job. Such an agent is worth hiring.
Go to open houses
Attending open houses can give you a chance to interact with real estate agents up close and exchange business cards with them. Observe how the real estate agent is doing their work when showing the home. If they come off as knowledgeable and professional, then you can consider hiring them to sell your house. If she is indifferent and does not want to explain anything to the interested parties then you can keep searching for a better REALTOR.
Monitor neighborhood signs
Take note of the listing signs that are available in your neighborhood. Watch out for the agent who is the first one to sell listings and ignore the one with the most for sale signs because the former is good at his or her job because they are selling houses faster than the later.
You will want to real their past clients reviews.