Deciding to sell a home is a big deal! It may even be one of the most important decisions of your lifetime.
Choosing the best Orlando Realtor for the job is equally important. You’re looking for someone you can depend on, get along with, and most important…. Someone that will help you achieve your goal of selling your house for the highest price and in the least amount of time.
The problem is… even when you try your hardest to find a good Realtor, you could still end up with someone you’re not happy with. Whatever your reasons may be, you may want to fire your agent.
So…how do you go about it?
Unfortunately, we’ve had dozens of people ask us how to break up with their realtor because they’re not happy with them.
Perhaps you made the mistake of hiring your nephew who just passed his real estate exam last week? Or maybe you hired your friend from the gym who does real estate part-time when he’s not selling memberships?
Whatever the case may be, it’s now become crystal clear to you that you need to end your relationship with your agent…
You should be aware that firing your agent isn’t always easy, especially if you’ve already signed a listing agreement with them. Most listing contracts are legally binding which means that the realtor will have to agree to release you from the contract.
Firing your Realtor isn’t like firing your hairdresser because they took too much off the top. When you hired your Realtor, you signed a contract that legally binds you to that Realtor. You and this licensed real estate professional agreed to certain terms which guarantee that you will use this agent exclusively to sell your home.
Hopefully, you signed an “Easy Exit Listing Agreement” which allows you to end the relationship if you’re not happy like the one we use here at Orlando Realty Consultants. However, most contracts don’t work this way and your agent has to agree to release you from the contract.
Most homeowners fail to realize is that not all agents were created equally. For example, you don’t want to list your home with an agent that specializes in working with buyers. By the same token, you never want to hire a listing agent to find the house of your dreams either. Most people just assume that an agent… is an agent… is an agent….BIG MISTAKE!
Top Reasons To Fire Your Realtor
There are fantastic realtors, horrible realtors, and a whole bunch of average realtors in between. Anytime you take a chance on hiring somebody new in any profession, there is a much greater chance that something will go wrong….or nothing will happen at all.
Some real estate agents will only do the bare minimum to get your home sold. They’ll plop a sign in the yard, list it on the MLS and then cross their fingers and pray for a contract.
These are some of the most common reasons people want to fire their agent:
Communication Breakdown
I know It’s crazy!… but this is by far the most popular reason why people are unsatisfied with their agents. For a homeowner, selling a home will be one of the most important decisions they’ll ever make. That’s why homeowners should be kept in the loop about everything that happens during the process. Like feedback about showings… Did they like it? Did they hate it? Did they think it was too much money?
An experienced listing agent will request the buyer’s agent’s feedback from every showing and pass it on to their clients, good or bad.
Sadly, for some Realtors, selling your home may not be a top priority for them for whatever reason. Maybe they have other, more expensive homes they’re focusing on first to get a bigger payday. Some people are just bad communicators and chose to be in the wrong profession. Whatever the reason may be, they just don’t communicate…
Lack of Skills
It won’t take you long to discover if your Realtor is incompetent or not. Chances are they might not know how to price a home accurately, market a home correctly and be bad negotiators. You may also realize that your agent priced your home too high just to get the listing from you!… This is a tactic used by shady agents who will let your home sit on the market until you agree to a price reduction. This was their strategy from the beginning…
Poor Marketing Plan
The 1st time you met with your listing agent, you probably just assumed that the agent would do a good job marketing your home. Now, several months have passed and still no offers….so now you start to get curious and do some research. You check out your listing on the MLS only to find that the few pics of your home are not good… Besides that, you find out that…
- The agent never bothered to make brochures
- The agent never made a video of your home
- The agent never promoted your home on social media sites
- The agent doesn’t even have a decent website?!!
A good listing agent will know how to promote your home aggressively using multiple platforms until it gets sold.
Other Reasons To Fire Your Realtor
- Unprofessional behavior
- Avoiding agent duties
- Overpricing on purpose
- Liar liar, pants on fire
- Breaking the law
Every situation is different and should be treated as such. However, none of the things mentioned above should be tolerated by a true real estate professional.
