When you have decided to make a move, sell your home, and find another, the biggest first step in the process is finding a real estate agent. For many Bergen County homeowners, the search for a great real estate agent begins with asking for recommendations from family and friends. Although family and friends are great resources for finding a real estate agent, your search should never stop with the recommendations.
Once you have a list of names, there’s further work to be done to find the real estate agent who will be the best fit for you. You should call at least three agents on your list and have meaningful conversations with them about your home. Ask them for an evaluation for your property. A dedicated and professional agent will share data and statistics on recent sales within Bergen County comparable to yours, and will help you find the proper price point for your home. Agents should also be able to suggest some affordable and simple upgrades to your home that you could make to increase the asking price.
You should feel free to interview the real estate agents you’re in contact with similar to the way you would someone you were to employ. You should have a thorough understanding of the agent’s qualifications, and any specialized training he or she may have received. It’s good to ask how long the agent has been in the real estate industry, and whether real estate is a full time profession or a part time job for him or her. Though there are many stellar part time real estate agents, if your agent being readily available to you full time is something you desire, this is an important consideration.
Though many people flock to accolades, finding a real estate agent really is about finding a fit for your home, your budget, and your needs. The highest selling regional agent may be available and willing to take the sale of your house on, if your home is on the lower end of his or her price spectrum and the sale of your house will bring in less than the sale of another house on his or her roster. You may be a small fish in a big pond. In other words, if the price of your house is on the lower end of the spectrum, it might be a better fit to work with an agent where the sale of your house is more of a priority.
Finally, it’s a good idea to ask each real estate agent you are considering working with how he or she would market your home. Will newspaper ads be placed? Will open houses be held? A great real estate agent will have ideas and a solid approach for marketing your house, and will be willing to be open about that approach with you. If an agent brushes this off or implies he or she would prefer to worry about the details without the input of you, the homeowner, the agent may not be the best person for the job.