Selling your home can be roller coaster of emotions if you aren’t mentally prepared, especially if you’re living in it. It means that you have to keep it showroom ready for any stranger with a pre-approval letter to take the ten cent tour. Then you stress about if they liked it or not… then you think to yourself….why didn’t they like it?? These are just a couple of examples of what some sellers go through.
Oh, and what about hiring an Orlando realtor to sell your home?… With so many agents out there, how do you know you hired the right one for the job? Just in Orlando alone there are over 8,000 active real estate agents!
The scary thing is that unless you do your research, you have no idea what their skill set is or their level of experience. Just last week I was visiting with a friend who owns a real estate school and she told me that every one of her classes are full… all of the time. Since it’s relatively easy to obtain a Florida real estate license people are clamoring to get one.
Many new agents believe that once they have their license, then the listings will automatically start falling into their lap. The truth is that only a small fraction of Orlando realtors are top producers, a good amount of average agents and the majority are so bad that they have no business being in the real estate business…but they are… so choose carefully.
So what should you expect of your Orlando realtor when selling your home? Your agent should be doing and practicing the following 10 things. If not, then unfortunately… you probably hired one of the bad ones.
If you are still searching for your Orlando realtor then use this 10 point guide to make sure you hire a hero and not a zero.
1- Honesty Is Their Policy
An honest agent means that they will always be truthful with you, even if it hurts. Honesty is also included in the REALTOR code of ethics. The problem is that sometimes you just don’t know just by meeting them. I’ve met some amazing liars in my time and yes…some of them were shady real estate agents. The truth will always come out …. eventually, the trick is to find out just how honest they really are before you hire them. You have to do your research before you commit or it will be too late.
Written testimonials aren’t enough. For all you know, they may have written their own testimonials. Ask them to provide you with some contact information of a few of their most recent seller clients and start reaching out to them and ask about there experience with Mr. Realtor. This will help you to separate the closers from the posers…
If they aren’t able to provide you with this information, then it means their clients aren’t willing to say anything nice about them or they don’t have any recent clients. Neither one of these reasons is a good thing and should be considered a deal killer.
2- Professionalism
Most homeowners assume that all real estate professionals are just that… professional, unfortunately, it’s just not the case.So how do you you know you’re dealing with a true professional? It starts with their appearance. Are they well groomed? Well dressed? A realtor who shows up in acid washed ripped jeans and a tiee die t-shirt probably won’t be taken seriously by a prospective buyer… or anyone else for that matter.
Being punctual is also a big part of demonstrating professionalism and shows that they respect the time of other people. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to schedule a private showing for a buyer only to be left waiting on the front door step for the listing agent to show up.
A seller should expect the same of the realtor they hire to represent them and their home. If I set an appointment with someone and they show up late without a good excuse, then they’re pretty much done in my book. Anyone who doesn’t respect my time , doesn’t deserve my respect.
3- A Skilled Negotiator
A listing agent’s job is to sell their clients home for the highest dollar amount possible in the least amount of time…period. Therefore they have to be skillful negotiators in order to be effective. They have to know what to say to the buyers agent and know how to say it. Reviewing offers and countering offers is a true art form and you can’t appear too eager to lower your price. Sure… it’s ultimately the sellers decision but a good negotiator should advise the seller on what the next move should be.
4- Creativity
Selling a home is not just plopping a sign in the front yard and praying for an offer. Although many real estate agents swear by this technique. Sometimes they will even bury a statue of St. Joseph in the front yard….Yup, that’s a thing!
A good realtor knows how to market a listing. Each home has it’s selling points or lack of and they need to know how to bring to light the best of the listing and even make the bad stuff sound appealing. Everything from the angle of the photos to the copy in the descriptions must be considered and marketed in the best light possible.
At ORC, we create a unique video for each and every listing. Everything from the script to the photos and even the music is carefully chosen to create the biggest impact. I would have to say that creativity is probably the area where most realtors are lacking. Everyone seems to do the same thing over and over.
5- Experience
It’s true, there is no substitution for experience and being battle tested. Homeowners commonly make the mistake of not researching an agent’s past results and instead hire an agent because they are a friend or a relative…. BIG MISTAKE! This is not the time to hire your niece that just passed her state exam two weeks ago. Find out how many transactions they’ve closed recently and how their clients enjoyed working with them.
You should also be wary of the agents who say “ I’ve been doing this for thirty years” sometimes these agents are even worse than rookie agents because they may have the same mentality they did 30 years ago. Real estate is ever changing and you must have an agent who is up to speed on how real estate works today.
6- Have a Team
A great Realtor will have a team of professionals that they work together with like a well oiled machine. From a good mortgage broker to the best title company to a list of qualified appraisers, contractors and home inspectors. This makes the whole process come together like clock work and can make selling your home a pleasurable experience.
7- Be A Good Communicator
There’s nothing I hate more than working with someone with poor communication skills. If I leavre a message, I expect a call back. If I send an email I expect a response. If I ask a question I expect an answer. A good realtor will keep their listing clienbt in the loop evry stepof the way throughout the entire process all the way to the closing. Selling a home is stressful enough as it is and if your agent is keeping you in the dark about what’s going on it just adds to the stress.
8- Internet Presence and Technology
These days realtors have access to some pretty powerful tools that helps with everything from lead management to marketing a property to the right buyers with just one click of a mouse. Some realtors avoid using the latest technology because they are afraid of learning something new when they should be embracing it and using it to it’s full potential. Technology exists so that we can be more efficient in everything we do. Realtors who refuse to get with the times will ultimately get left behind because there’s just no way they can compete in today’s market place.
Tech savvy Realtors will also have a strong internet presence from a state-of-the-art website to being active in the most popular social media sites. Having a blog [like this one] should be a given. Having a library of informational videos on their own Youtube channel is also a good sign. A few Realtors will even have a podcast so they can cater to people who prefer to listen as opposed to watching a video or reading an article.
