Questions To Ask Your Realtor Before You List (Part 2)

Question 11 - "Will you produce a flier or brochure for my home and what will it look like?"

· Take a careful look at the materials the agent has produced to market their current listings. Do the quality, design and wording of the materials seem to present each home in the best light?

· Put yourself in a potential buyer’s shoes: Would you be interested in the homes after seeing these materials?

Question 12 - How often will you hold open houses? Will they be public or broker-only or by-appointment only? How do you feel open houses will work best for my home? Are they even necessary?

· Simply putting a sign on your lawn and holding an open house every Sunday afternoon will not get your home sold.

· In addition, a house held open too frequently can begin to look like a loser, making it a prime target for low-ball bidders.

· Your agent should have a carefully planned rationale for each open house - if they are appropriate for your area and the overall marketing plan.

Question 13 - What is your advertising plan for my home?

· Most people believe that advertising a home in the newspaper is the way a home gets sold. Unfortunately, this is simply not the case. The truth is: Good real estate agents sell homes. And they do this through their own personal advertising, networking, skill, and creative advertising methods like the Internet and toll-free hotlines that give potential buyers 24-hour access to information about your home.

· Don't be concerned with traditional methods of advertising houses. Make sure your agent uses innovative, cutting edge methods that make your home stand out from the rest.

Question 14 - How else will the property be exposed to other agents?

· Exposure is the key to any home sale. In many cases your home will be sold because another agent knows a buyer who is looking for a home like yours.

· Beyond simply listing your home in the MLS, your agent should be using a wide variety of techniques to let those other agents know about your home and keep them aware of it until it is sold.

Question 15 - Are you going to help me in staging my home?

· Preparing a property for sale, or staging it, is very important in maximizing the value and minimizing the time on the market.

· If a prospective agent does not mention this aspect of the sale on his own during the listing presentation, he probably has no plan to offer this service to you.

· Or he may be afraid of bringing it up for fear of offending you by telling you about negative aspects of your home that should be changed or positives that need to be highlighted to increase its appeal to potential buyers.

· A confident and competent agent will find ways of broaching the subject and let you know of specific ideas beyond lighting a scented candle and putting out fresh flowers for open houses to make your home more salable. - Last Part Is On Friday