Have a real estate question? E-mail it to me. I'll get back to you within 24 hrs. A Realtor® is licensed to offer advice on real estate matters. Consult an attorney for legal advice or a CPA for tax advice. The answers to the following questions pertain to real estate sales in California. Laws & procedures in other states may be different. Consult an expert in your state for questions pertinent to your area. Answers below are Judy Dickey's opinions based on her experience selling real estate. Other agents may have different opinions.
Your Real Estate Agent
When to Sell Preparing the House for Sale
Pricing
Commission
Tax Considerations in Selling
Q: How do I find the best agent to sell my house? A: I would hope you are looking for a very experienced, knowledgeable local Realtor®, someone with lots of experience, excellent market knowledge, and an agent with an excellent track record. I can help you find an agent. I sold real estate in our area for 15 years until 2001. I know who are, in my opinion, are the best agents here. I'd be glad to share with you the names of some very experienced, knowledgeable buyer and seller agents available in my area. Of course, you can also ask friends to recommend someone they've worked with, call an agent who is well known in the area, call a local real estate office and ask for a recommendation from the manager, or visit open houses and talk with some agents. Another way, of course, is to check out agents on the Internet. It would be a good idea to interview several agents to determine who would work best with you. Ask for references, find out how long that agent has been in the business, ask how many homes they sold last year, ask them to tell you the details of how they work. Don't just pick the person you like the best. Also consider their qualifications, experience, etc. After all, you'll be selling what is probably your largest asset. Find a very experienced professional to guide you through the process. It's not just what your agent does that's important, but what that agent KNOWS. For more information go to: Finding an Excellent Agent.
Q: I'd like to work with a successful agent, but maybe I should choose an agent who does less business and would have more time for me? A: Good question. Would you choose a doctor, attorney, or CPA based on who does the least amount of business? You would most likely choose the person with the proven track record, and who is considered a very knowledgeable expert as a result of all their experience. A successful business person is successful because they are very good at what they do. Past clients have recommended them to others and their business has grown. The person who is less successful may have more time to spend with you, but may offer you less in skills and experience. Obviously there are exceptions to this rule. Ask lots of questions when you interview agents and decide who will have time for you and who also has the skills and experience that are so important in an agent.
Q: My agent wants us to have someone "stage" our home just before it goes on the market. Isn't that a waste of money in a hot sellers market like we have today? A: This is one of my favorite questions. By staging your home, you are increasing the likelihood of having multiple offers on it. If your home shows very well, two, three or four sets of buyers may want it. The home may sell over asking price by thousands of dollars. It could be $10,000 over asking or much, much more. By all means, follow the recommendations of a good stager. You most likely will get a return of many thousands of dollars over what it might cost for the staging. If you don't stage it, it may look okay but might not have the emotional appeal that the staged homes have. Q: What qualifications should I look for in an agent? A: Your agent should have lots of experience, know your neighborhood well, and have a proven successful track record. Lastly, you should feel very comfortable with that agent and trust them. Check out Finding an Excellent Agent. Q: Do I need to interview 3 agents like they say in the newspapers? A: It depends completely on you and your comfort level. It is very time consuming to interview 3 agents. They each may want to come to your home twice. The first time to briefly see the house and the second time to discuss an estimate of value with you and present their marketing plan. Interviewing two agents is probably sufficient unless you don't feel comfortable with either of them. If you have received a strong recommendation from someone who is very knowledgeable about real estate, you may want to interview that agent and see if you feel satisfied with that agent without interviewing others. If you don't feel they are right for you, then you can interview another agent.
Q: When is the best time to sell: spring, summer, fall or winter? A: The traditional best time to sell is usually the spring. The flowers are blooming, the sun is shining and the most buyers are usually out in the market looking for a home. The fall can also be like a "mini" spring and can be a good market for sellers. As we reach the holidays, many sellers take their homes off the market. There often are buyers who look during that time so a seller will usually have less competition. The winter can be a good market but poor weather can cause the market to slow. In our area, the winter can have some lovely days and the real estate market can be quite active. However, the biggest activity of all is usually the spring.
Q: My agent says the price I want is too high. What's wrong with trying that price for awhile? A: You are on the verge of making a classic mistake. In our current market, if your home is priced too high, it may end up sitting on the market for weeks. At that point, the buyers will begin to wonder if there is something wrong with it. You may end up having to reduce your price over and over again in order to get it sold. In our current market, it is to your advantage to price your home very fairly. Doing so may create lots of interest in your home and you might have multiple offers. With multiple offers, the sales price will probably end up well over your asking price.
Q: Should I have my house inspected before I put it on the market? A: Yes, this will inform you about any problems you might have with the house. Then you can decide if you want to fix them before selling, offer a credit for their repair, or require the buyer accept the problem. This makes the process much less stressful for you. You know what you have and can decide how to best handle it. If you wait until you get a buyer, then you have many fewer options available. I would suggest a pre-sale pest inspection and a pre-sale house inspection. Discuss this with your agent and ask for advice from your agent.
Q: My niece is in real estate but she lives 60 miles away. Should I list my house with her or a local agent? A: In my opinion, definitely list with a local agent. A local agent has seen recent sales, knows the community well and how to best work with the other local agents. Your niece will most likely find it difficult to handle an out-of-the-area transaction and will probably not be as effective as a local agent.
Q: I've talked to two agents. Shouldn't they be willing to reduce their commissions in order to get my listing? A: Real estate commissions are negotiable. However, each agent is bound by the policy of his/her company and that agent's ability to make good business decisions. Most excellent agents know that the agent offering the lowest commission may or may not be the best agent. An excellent agent knows he/she can often save the seller many thousands of dollars in the negotiating process. Therefore, the important issue for a seller to consider is which agent can bring him/her the highest bottom line dollars in the end. That may not necessarily be the agent who offers the lowest commission.
Q: I keep seeing ads for discount internet real estate companies.. They advertise up to $15,000 or more profit on your home sale because you use them. Is that a good deal? A: Check with the discount companies and ask for documentation showing their agents' experience and the number of sales they have had in your area. I would suggest checking on the experience level of many of the agents with those companies. An experienced, knowledgeable agent who works in your community and has a proven track record there is invaluable to you as a seller or buyer. Your "traditional" real estate agent may also save you many thousands of dollars during a transaction. Advice on properly preparing your home for sale can often result in homes selling way over asking price in this market. There are often many negotiated items in a sale transaction particularly at the end of the inspection period. A top agent can steer through a "minefield" of pitfalls and save you money in many problem areas. An inexperienced agent could cause you to lose thousands of dollars in your sale. Choose your agent very carefully. Q: I interviewed two agents. One said that she works with lots of relocation buyers from all over the world. The other agent didn't seem to have as strong a relocation connection. Is that relocation connection important when selecting an agent to sell your home? A: I don't think it makes much difference. Most all companies have relocation companies. All those agents who work with the relo companies will show your home to those potential buyers. It doesn't matter if they don't work for the company that you have listed with. It's unlikely that the agent's strong relocation connection will make much difference in the long run. Q: I want to sell my home. How can your service help me? A: I offer a free service providing recommendations for the best local real estate agents for your situation. I'll do some research and give you the names of several agents to interview. They will be very experienced, knowledgeable experts in your area and price range. Advantage to you: prescreening, saving time, knowing you have a really top agent. Q: Who are some good home stagers in our area? A: There are several that were my favorites. The first is Homestyle in Lafayette, 925-935-0971. Also, Improve to Move in Orinda, 925-254-1201. Both companies are excellent. Call them for a consultation and they will give you recommendations for what should be done to get ready to sell and then will come back, if you'd like, and stage your home just before it comes on the market. Both companies have long lists of happy sellers and agents who attribute staging their homes to enabling them to get higher sales prices (sometimes MUCH higher). Q: How will an agent determine a price for our home? A: There are several tools an agent uses. First, the agent researches our multiple listing records for past sales, pending sales and active listings of homes that would have some similarities to your home. Next the agent tours other homes currently on the market that might be competitors and lastly, uses their years of experience and knowledge of local sales to refine the price estimate. In addition, an agent may have some other agents from their office visit the home and get those agents individual opinions of value. Q: Should we expect that the agents we talk with will do a written estimate of value? A: Absolutely! How else can you see data on other homes for sale and homes that have sold that are similar to yours? Even if you agent shows you an on-line tour of comparable homes, I think you should also request a written copy so you can look over the information in more detail. Q: I need to get $200,000 out of my house in order to sell. How should I set the price so I'll be assured of getting that? A: It sounds like you are making a common mistake. Some sellers price their home on the basis of how much they need to get to buy their next home. That approach often is flawed. Your home may not be worth what you need. Find out what your home might be worth first, then determine what you can afford to buy rather than the other way around. Q: Who determines what the price of a house should be when it's put on the market? A: The price is determined by the seller of the home as a result of discussion with their agent and a professional estimate of value given to him/her by their agent based on market research and their experience. Q: Why shouldn't I just sell my house myself? I could save lots of money. A: Some sellers are successful in doing so themselves. There are significant advantages though to using a professional, experienced, knowledgeable agent. Your agent serves as your (1) trusted advisor, (2) experienced negotiator and (3) expert facilitator. As far as the saving money question, stats from the National Association of Realtors actually show that most sellers end up with more money when they use a Realtor®. The answers to these questions apply to real estate in the state of California and to our specific area here. Laws concerning certain issues such as agency may be different in some other states and local customs may be different in other parts of California. |
