By Elliott Topkins, Esquire
9/8/11
While some of the practices in residential real estate are undergoing change, the concept of the listing agent serving as the focal point for the sale of your home remains a constant. Like many other selection processes, many people will use a neighbor, a friend or even a relative to assist them in selling their homes. In a lot of situations, this approach works well, and your home can be marketed successfully by someone you know and like.

From my experience, however, I would suggest some different criteria for selecting the person to market your home. I, personally, think it is dangerous to use a friend or relative, certainly because they hold that status, alone. My suggestion would always be to interview no fewer than three individuals before you decide which one to use. At the outset, you are looking for information from the people you speak with. How do they normally market a residence like yours? Do they believe in open houses or direct mail or the Internet as vehicles to promote the sale of your home?

Do not be afraid to probe. Ask the people you are interviewing how many sales they have made in your neighborhood in the last two or three years. What trends are they seeing? What kind of work needs to be done on your home to make it attractive to potential buyers? Would they recommend a pre-listing home inspection? (I personally like the “pre-inspection” approach because you can smoke out problems and either address them with repairs and or replacements, or disclose them, and indicate that these issues have been addressed in determining the price at which your home is being offered.)

And last of all, and I think this is the most important thing for you to consider, what would be the price they would suggest for offering your home? Once that number is presented to you, you have to ask more questions and get more answers. Be wary of a potential listing agent who inflates the suggested price to get the listing. Just because the number they suggest sounds attractive, do not accept that suggestion at face value. Ask more questions; try to become more of an expert.

The last important matter is having an exit strategy. Try to work out with the listing agent to establish a workable timetable. Ask the agent how long he or she would recommend you “hold the line” on the offering price. Find out what techniques he or she has found useful to move a property that does not seem to be gathering much attention. The answers to all of these questions will reveal what you can expect from your real estate professional. The really competent professionals will delight in giving you concrete answers and examples. Others may not be as direct.

Your home is probably your most valuable possession. Once you decide to sell your home, you want to work with someone with whom you are comfortable. A little extra work at the outset will almost always pay dividends in the end.

(Mr. Topkins is an attorney with Topkins & Bevans, Braintree Executive Park, 150 Grossman Dr., Braintree, MA 02184. His blog can be found at http://realtorsresourceblog.com. His telephone number is 617/596-3184 and his e-mail address in etopkins@topbev.com.)