One of my favorite reads is The San Diego Home Blog by Kris and Steve Burg. I’ve found, in the last few months, I can start reading at one of the large real estate people gathering places, and end up being able to pick Kris’ writing out of a crowd.
Tonight, as I was getting ready to call it quits and pick up the book I’ve been trying to finish for two weeks, I found a link to a Kris article. Knowing her posts always provide a quick laugh, good insight, and general education, I clicked on it.
The post is called
Choose your agent wisely. There is no shortage of inventory.
and is a must read for anyone thinking of listing their home or property for sale in this market.
A few excerpts
“So you have decided that it is time to sell your home. The first thing you will want to do is run to the drug store to refill your Valium prescription. Wait, that’s the second thing; the first thing you will want to do is select a real estate agent to help you. “
“Weeding through the thick field of job applicants can be a daunting undertaking. Sure, you can make a beeline to the “Neighborhood Specialist,” but we are all neighborhood specialists if you believe the bus benches, the shopping carts, and the leaflets in the flowering shrubs outside your front door. You could just pick the one with the most attractive glamour shot on their yard sign, but then Steve and I would be living out of your guest room or selling our kidneys while the really pretty agents represented you in your transaction. No, the process needs to be more scientific. You owe it to yourself. “
Kris then gives the CHECKLIST and while the “spelling test” caused me to laugh, here are a couple of great starting points:
“4. Do not hire the agent who gives you the highest opinion of sale price unless he is simultaneously whipping out his own checkbook. Enough said. “
“6. Select the best agent first; negotiate fees second. Rinse and repeat if necessary. You are concerned only with the bottom line and, yes, fees are negotiable. But if I charge you $5.95 and my marketing plan for your home consists of this,(insert one sad blurry photo) your bottom line just got spanked (and I was overpaid). “
For the whole list please follow the link to the San Diego Home Blog and happy house selling!
Great article. Here are some other pointers on Choosing an Estate Agent