For several years, until 2018, I was a licensed Realtor in the Chicago area. This was in addition to having my design business and staging homes for sale. As a Realtor, I had seen it all. It is not all glitz and glam like you see on HGTV shows, and it can be pretty cutthroat (but what industry isn't). I loved what I did, but being an ethical realtor took its toll. There are plenty of good realtors out there; but I quickly learned that for some realtors, their priorities were a bit off.
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Life can throw you curve balls, and you never know when you or someone you know may be looking to sell or buy a home in the next couple years; so take note and heed these warnings. I am going to share with you:
1) what to look for when choosing the right realtor.
2) what to look for during the contract-to-close process.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN CHOOSING A REALTOR
The list is long of what to look out for when choosing a realtor to help you sell or buy a home. It is not to be taken lightly, and it is important to be selective in choosing the right realtor for you.
I am sharing with you a screenshot below of a rave testimonial from a past real estate client of mine. If you read this testimonial, you will see a list of reasons why they hired me. If you hire a realtor with similar qualities, you will have a similar outcome. However, it goes much deeper than that. Keep reading to see how to avoid pitfalls.
THIS TESTIMONIAL AND SALE WAS NOT DURING A HOUSING BOOM
INTERVIEW THREE REALTORS. Select a realtor who you know is knowledgeable of the market and real estate process, is caring, and will fight for you. Make sure you check off ALL those boxes. No exceptions. Another thing to consider is just because you have a friend or family member who is a realtor, it doesn't necessarily mean you are off the hook. It is possible they may not be the best realtor for YOU. Be open and weigh your options. Be alert and diligent about the following in the interview process:
1) Do not allow a realtor to suck you in by getting you to believe your home is worth more than it really is. I have experienced this myself where I was convinced I got the listing and then lost deals to other realtors because he/she told the sellers their home was worth more than it really was. After all, that is music to sellers’ ears. Do NOT go with a realtor who overprices your home when they go over their comparable market analysis and listing presentation with you. This is probably the most challenging part when it comes to deciding which realtor to hire and list your home. You naturally want to go with the realtor who says you can get the most money for your home.
Most sellers think their home is worth more than it really is. They become attached to their home and start throwing out all kinds of reasons why the home should be listed at a certain price. I can’t tell you how many times I lost similar deals to another realtor only to watch those homes sit on the market for several months because they were priced too high.
It is wise to familiarize yourself with similar homes (comparables) in your neighborhood to get an idea on what your home might be worth and to compare what features other sellers have in their home that you don’t, etc., to adjust the pricing up or down.
2) Focus on a realtor who will listen to you and address your questions and concerns. Pay close attention to each realtor you interview to see if they really address your questions or if they just gloss over them. If they don’t look you in the eyes or seem confident in their response or ability, they are probably hiding something from you or don’t know what they are doing. Mastering real estate is a process. There is a saying in real estate that goes like this, “Fake it ‘til you make it”. You would be shocked if you knew how complicated the real estate process is for newer realtors who are not very experienced.
3) Find a realtor who uses a professional photographer: If you are the seller, find a realtor who uses a professional photographer to take photos of your home. Professional photos are so important and is what initially attracts someone to want to see your home in the first place. So, make sure your realtor offers that to you FOR FREE as part of their service to you. Realtors know the importance of professional photos and should never balk at the idea of paying for the photos themselves.
4) Find a realtor who sees the importance in staging a home and at least SUGGESTS your home be staged. Staged homes sell for more money, regardless of whether it is a sellers’ market or not. I ALWAYS staged my sellers’ homes when I was a realtor, which is why approximately half of them sold to the first or second buyers in the door. Better yet, is if one of the realtors is a certified home stager. Just be aware that some stagers can earn certification from not so reputable organizations. I received my certification through a 6-week training with The Decorating and Staging Academy. Don’t get wrapped up into the details, but the point is a realtor who recognizes the importance of staging is on the right track.
Hopefully, you have some level of discernment to sort through the realtors to determine the best one for you; but if you interview a realtor who embodies the above points made, it’s probably safe to say they are knowledgeable, caring, and will fight for you during the home buying or selling process.
WHY A GOOD REALTOR IS SO IMPORTANT: There are a lot of people involved during the contract-to-close process, and you can’t control what other people do. Because of this, you really need a good realtor to rely on to juggle more things than you can imagine. They have to work with (or deal with) the other realtor, the attitude of the opposing buyers or sellers in the other party, the lender, attorneys, home inspection results, mold inspection results, negotiations, and so on. Many ‘fires’ can pop up, and you need a realtor who knows how to put them out. This leads to my next point …
WHAT TO LOOK FOR DURING THE CONTRACT-TO-CLOSE PROCESS
Once you have chosen to work with a Realtor, you still need to be aware of best practices and to know the warning signs.
1) Make sure your realtor goes over the contract with you between the seller and buyer. (*See legal clause below). It is lengthy (was 13 pages when I was a realtor, not including the disclosures) and I can tell you a lot of realtors don’t fully understand the whole contract. This is not to be confused with legal advice. This can be dangerous, depending on what isn’t understood or explained properly. If there are any questions unanswered or the realtor isn't sure what something means on the contract, it is best to refer to your attorney. Open communication and understanding is key to a smooth process. You, of course, can’t control what may come up with other parties involved.
*LEGAL CLAUSE: The #3 section below can be found from a 2021 post on The Illinois Association of Realtor website.
3. REALTORS® should not offer specific legal advice. A REALTOR® should not give any advice or offer an opinion as to the voidability of a contract or the meaning of a clause in a contract. For example, if a Seller client asks their listing broker if they can terminate a contract in order to accept a “better” offer, the broker should never offer a legal opinion on the potential impact of that decision. They can only point out any relevant provisions in the contract that may apply to the situation and advise their client to seek private legal counsel.
2) Make sure you are pre-approved, not just pre-qualified, before making an offer. There is a difference, and one ensures a safety net while the other does not.
3) A good realtor needs to be a good negotiator. This could be stipulations and terms of the contract, whether you are the seller wanting the highest price possible or you are the buyer wanting the lowest price possible, or there could be issues to settle from the home inspection, and so on. Whatever the case may be, make sure your realtor is looking to save you the most money or make you the most money possible.
4) Do NOT do the final walkthrough until the day of closing. Don’t do the final walkthrough a week before or even a day before closing. I am speaking from my own personal experience as a realtor where I saved some clients’ behinds by doing the final walkthrough the day of closing.
For example, a bad situation came up with one of the buyers (a couple) I had represented, and the morning of the closing, we went to the home to do a final walkthrough and the home theater (which was located in the basement) had a very large and FRESH water stain in the ceiling and the ceiling was drooping. So, I took a picture of the damage and showed it to the attorneys and sellers at the closing. The seller said she was just at the house the day before to look everything over (she had a new home in the city where she had moved into), and said everything was fine. It turns out a pipe had burst. Fortunately, because we caught this before the closing, the seller paid for the damages. However, if we had done the final walkthrough the day before, the buyers would have been responsible for paying for the damage.
This just goes to show you that anything can happen at any time, and you don’t want to be a statistic of being a victim getting stuck with a damaged home because you did a final walkthrough too soon prior to closing.
I will share another story. This one is extreme but true. Fortunately, this did not happen to my own buyers; but there were buyers that did a final walkthrough the day before closing and went to the closing the next day and purchased the home, only to find out it had burned to the ground sometime between the final walkthrough and closing. They were stuck with a new home that was no longer there.
IN CONCLUSION
Yes, there are plenty of good realtors out there, but having been a realtor in the past, I have seen and heard it all. This includes the nightmare consequences clients have experienced as a result of their hiring the wrong realtor. I cannot stress enough the importance of hiring a knowledgeable realtor who knows the market and understands the contract-to-close process. It is equally important to hire a realtor who truly cares about their clients and will fight for them. Be aware, be smart, and be selective. WATCH FOR THE WARNING SIGNS!
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