Touchy subject, I know.
How do you know if your Realtor is doing a good job with your property?
If it sells have they done a good job? If it doesn't sell are they doing a poor job?
Here are some guidelines to follow when evaluating whether your agent is worth holding on to, or when choosing an agent:
1. Do they answer their phone and email? Not just when you call, but for potential buyers and other agents. I cannot tell you how many times I call on a property to show it or ask questions for a potential buyer and never get any communication back. Test your agent. Have your friends and associates call just to see what happens. If your agent is not calling/emailing back within a reasonable time frame, this is a red flag. Many times buyers and agents will move on to the next property and not even bother to show it.
2. Is your property listed in the appropriate MLS? How unfortunate for the seller that wants to help out a friend with their real estate career and lists their property in the wrong area. In Park City, we have our own MLS that covers the Wasatch back - Park City, Midway, Heber ,Oakley and surrounding areas. Many times a home will be listed with a Salt Lake agent who is not a member of our MLS, so when the agents that work and sell up here pull properties to show, that one won't show up, and most likely won’t be shown.
3. Is your property being marketed in the most effective way for your area? Each area has a proven method for marketing that works. Some areas it is the newspaper, other areas it is a local magazine or radio program. For many resort areas the internet is the most effective tool available. Find out not just the circulation of the marketing tool, but the results of the marketing tool. When looking for a buyer in a resort market like Park City, they aren't usually reading our local paper or listening to KPCW, our local radio station. They begin their search on the internet, they ask their friends for a referral to a local Realtor. Then they start their search.
4. Has your agent helped you prepare your home for sale? Prior to listing, your agent should conduct a walkthrough with you and help with suggestions for decluttering, staging and a list of items to fix. Your agent should tell you how important these things are in the sales process. If a home appears dirty or unkempt, buyers will subconsciously look for deferred maintenance and wonder how the seller could possibly keep up with maintenance when they can’t even keep up with the daily clutter. I offer my sellers a no charge 1 hour consultation with a home staging expert to really give them the edge on the competition.
5. Pricing. Even if you and your agent do everything possible to stage and prepare your home for showing, price will determine whether you get activity and offers. In today’s market price is everything. Every agent should know the maximum activity will come in the first few weeks of listing the property. Having said that, is your agent sharing the feedback with you? Are you acting on it?
6. The key to helping the seller make the right choices is feedback. Feedback comes in two forms - agent feedback from showings, and market feedback in terms of how the homes with which you are competing are responding. Are other similar properties selling and yours is not? Examine why - most of the time it will come down to price.
We know that the majority of the time the buyer that purchases your home will be represented by a Realtor other than the listing agent. So if there are no showings by agents, then they are not all on vacation. They are showing other homes that their buyers think offer the most value. Overpriced properties will only be shown to demonstrate to buyers why another home is a good deal, and they will sit unsold.
So ask your Realtor for a market update. Use this information wisely. Your agent can send you a detailed report where you can look at each and every property that has sold. Were they really better than yours or just marketed better and priced right?
For all of your Park City, Utah Real Estate needs call me today.
Heather Feldman
435-731-0803
