Why You Should List Your Home With A Realtor Rather Than Try It Yourself

Those that sell with a Realtor get 13% to 19% more for their home

Since there is so much information on the internet now-a-days some clients ask, "Why should we hire a real estate agent?" They believe that they can buy or sell a home through the Internet or regular marketing and advertising channels without representation, without a real estate agent.  The truth is only some do fine on their ​own, but many don't. 

Below are 10 reasons why you might want to consider hiring a professional real estate agent.

 Education and Experience
Even for a seasoned Real Estate agent, it is tough to keep up on knowing everything about buying and selling real estate between the legal changes, economic market changes and interest rate changes.    Henry Ford once said that when you hire people who are smarter than you are, it proves you are smarter than they are. The hardest part is trying to find the right agent for you.  You should always work with a seasoned Realtor. If you are working with someone new in the field, ask them if they are working with a season team agent.  New agents do not necessarily have the network nor the marketing ability as a seasoned agent.    So why not hire a person with more education and experience than you.


Acts As A Spam Filter
Agents take the spam out of your property showings and visits. If you're a buyer of new homes, your agent will shield you from relentless calls from builders trying to sell you something you are not interested in. If you're a seller, your agent will filter all those phone calls that lead to nowhere from lookie-loos and try to induce serious buyers to write an offer immediately.  Filtering those phone calls can also help prevent you from being scammed by people pretending to be a Real Estate Agent and buyers that are not who they say they are.


Neighborhood Knowledge
Real Estate Agents possess intimate knowledge or they know where to find the industry news about your neighborhood. They can identify comparable sales and hand these facts to you, in addition to pointing you in the direction where you can find more data on schools, crime or demographics. For example, you may know that a home down the street was on the market for $450,000, but an agent will know it had upgrades and sold at $365,000 after 75 days on the market and after a couple of different purchase agreement offers fell through.


Price Guidance
Contrary to what some people believe, agents do not select prices for sellers or buyers. However, an agent will help to guide clients to make the right choices for themselves. If a listing is at 6%, for example, an agent has a 7% vested interest in the sale, but the client has a 94% interest. Selling agents will ask buyers to weigh all the data supplied to them and to choose a price. Then based on market supply, demand and the conditions, the agent will devise a negotiation strategy. 

Market Conditions Information
Real estate agents can disclose market conditions, which will govern your selling or buying process. Many factors determine how you will proceed. Data such as the average per square foot cost of similar homes, median and average sales prices, average days on market and ratios of list-to-sold prices, among other criteria, will have a huge bearing on what you ultimately decide to do.  Studies have shown that using an agent can net you 13% to 19% more on your home over selling it yourself.

Professional Networking
Real estate agents network with other professionals, many of whom provide services that you will need to buy or sell. Due to legal liability, many agents will hesitate to recommend a certain individual or company over another, but they do know which vendors have a reputation for efficiency, competency, and competitive pricing. Agents can, however, give you a list of references with whom they have worked and provide background information to help you make a wise selection.

 Negotiation Skills and Confidentiality
Top producing agents negotiate well because, unlike most buyers and sellers, they can remove themselves from the emotional aspects of the transaction and because they are skilled. It's part of their job description. Good agents are not messengers, delivering buyer's offers to sellers and vice versa. They are professionals who are trained to present their client's case in the best light and agree to hold client information confidential from competing interests.

Handling Volumes of Paperwork
Many years ago purchase agreements were just a page or two. Today's purchase agreements run ten pages or more. That does not include the federal- and state-mandated disclosures nor disclosures dictated by local laws. Most real estate files average thicknesses from one to three inches of paper. One tiny mistake or omission could land you in court or cost you thousands!

Answer Questions After Closing
Even the smoothest transactions that close without complications can come back to haunt you. For example, taxing authorities that collect property tax assessments, doc stamps or transfer tax can fall months behind and mix up invoices, but one call to your agent can straighten out the confusion. Many questions can pop up that were overlooked in the excitement of closing. Good agents stand by ready to assist. Worthy and honest agents don't leave you in the dust to fend for yourself.

Develop Relationships for Future Business
The basis for an agent's success and continued career in real estate is referrals. Few agents would survive if their livelihood was dependent on consistently drumming up new business. This emphasis gives agents strong incentives to make certain clients are happy and satisfied. It also means that an agent who stays in the business will be there for you when you need to hire an agent again. Many will periodically mail market updates to you to keep you informed and to stay in touch.