Should You Use a Realtor to Sell Your Home?
Why Should You Use a Realtor to Sell Your House?
Yes, of course since we are a real estate team, so we are going to tell you to use a Realtor to sell your house. Before making your decision on how to sell your house, it is a good thing to educate yourself on the struggles of selling your house yourself and potentially losing out on thousands of dollars. To the untrained eye, selling your house yourself may seem like a money-saving easy thing to do. Many people may think to themselves, “well, I could just sell my house with a company like GrapeVine or ComFree and I’ll save money by not having to pay commissions”. The thing that sellers sometimes don’t realize is that there is a lot of work that goes into selling a home and not having the expertise or knowledge on negotiating your deal could end up costing you thousands of dollars on your sale. Hiring a professional real estate agent to post your property on websites and social media platforms is going to reach a lot more eyes and could potentially get your property into multiple bidding situations (which is something you will want a Realtor to help you with). Below are just a few reasons why you should hire a Realtor to sell your home:
Advertising & Marketing
Perhaps the most beneficial part of hiring a Realtor is the amount of exposure you will receive. Your Realtor can help you stage your home, have top-notch photos taken, and give you quick tips on making your house more desirable. As for advertising, not only does your home go up on the multiple listing service, but your home goes on your Realtor’s website, their social media, Facebook and Instagram ads, along with any print media they may create. Realtors will advertise in magazines, billboards, radio, tv, benches, busses, you name it! The possibilities are endless for marketing your home with a Realtor. Not to mention their network of connections who they can share your property with, and help find the right buyer for you.
Education & Experience
Realtor’s are always building their knowledge and skill set in real estate. They attend workshops and courses regularly and are always learning new ways to help you buy and sell. Have you ever written up an agreement of purchase and sale offer before? Do you know which terms and conditions to include? You wouldn’t try to fix the broken air conditioner in your car if you had no previous experience doing so, why would you try to sell a house if that is not your expertise. It is best to stick to what you’re good at and let the professionals handle what they are good at.
Neighbourhood Knowledge
Chances are that if you are listing or purchasing a home with an agent who is based out of your neighbourhood, they are going to know a whole lot about that area. Agents who work in a specific city or neighbourhood have lots of experience with pricing the homes correctly and working with other Realtor’s on the purchasing side of the deal. If your Realtor doesn’t know the area well, they are much more willing to take the time to learn about the neighbourhood and provide a comparative market analysis to properly price your home.
Negotiation Skills on Point
Agents can be great buffers between a buyer and a seller who could get themselves into an emotional confrontation that would most likely end up badly. Agents can remove themselves from the emotional aspects on a transaction because they are skilled and experienced at doing so. Your agent will not back down and is willing to walk away if they need to (or at least look like they are going to!). Your agent also knows when and how to say “no” and knows how powerful this can be in a negotiation to get the most for their clients.
FAQ
If you are trying to sell your house by yourself and have never worked in real estate or had any real estate friends, there may be a few questions you have. Though the internet is a wealth of knowledge, a lot of the time it can be tough to find property specific answers that you may need to know. For example, perhaps this is the first house you are selling that has a fireplace and you don’t know what a WETT certificate is and how to get one. Or maybe you are buying a condominium and aren’t sure why you would need a status certificate. Your Realtor is highly trained and knows terminology like this inside and out. They can let you know if it is something that you need to protect your best interests.
Your Agent Will Take Care of You
From effectively marketing your home to driving hours out of their way to show you properties, your agent cares about making you happy. Much of an agent’s business comes from referrals and they want to make sure that the customer service provided to their clients does not go unnoticed. Many Realtors will deliver closing gifts as well as invite you to client appreciation events where you get to participate in fun things and eat free food. Though there are some agents out there who are only after your cash, there are also many great Realtors who are down to earth and excited to work with you. If you are lucky and choose the right Realtor to work with, you might just be making a life-long relationship and friend.
Selling your home is a huge life decision and it is not something to take lightly. It is best to make sure you are well represented and that you get the best possible price and treatment. Here at the Susan and Moe Team, we know how to take care of our clients. Give us a call today at 613-457-5000 to further discuss the benefits of having a great Realtor represent you, we would love to hear from you!
