You have been looking for the perfect real estate agent but the all tell you that they are the best, are they? You have met some agents with letters after their name. The letters after the real estate agents name are designations and the designations stand for specialties that the agents have studied for and achieved the necessary prerequisites. There are many designations and you can go to the National Association of Realtors web site at Realtor.com and search "designations" and you will see all the designations available. Among the more common are ABR (Accredited Buyer Representative) ALC (Accredited Land Consultant) CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member),CPM (Certified Property Manager), CRS (Certified Residential Specialist GRI (Graduate Realtor Institute) and many others. You may want to consider working with real estate agents who have specialty designations because these agents will have a much deeper understanding of your needs and how to fill them.One way to get a good real estate agent is to talk with your mortgage professional. Mortgage professionals work with agents daily and can often give you a great person to work with.
Finding a good Realtor can be like picking through a pile of melons at the supermarket. You need to go interview a few before you find the right one. Ask for referrals from people that you do business with. When you find a Realtor spend sometime talking to them, you are entrusting them to help you with a major decision in your life, you want to make sure it's a good fit.
Many real estate agents specialize or are particularly good with certain types of properties. For example, many cater exclusively to high net worth individuals. Others focus on Vacation homes, and there are many real estate agents out there who prefer to represent first time home buyers. Find an agent who does what you need done well, and don't forget to check their references!
Other things to look for in a Realtor is the ability to price your house fairly for your situation. Are you looking for a quick sale? Are you looking for the best price? How do you present your home for the best of both worlds? Does the Realtor have a system in place to capture all possible leads that could look at your home?
If you are selling your home, it is important to understand that nearly 75% of today's homebuyers begin their search on the Internet. With that in mind it is now crucial that you understand a Realtor's Internet marketing strategy. There are some Realtors who are very web savvy and then there are others who are very "old school" and have not embraced or understand the net. Be sure and ask your prospective listing plenty of questions on how they plan to market your home and specifically how they will be using the Internet to do it.
A real estate agent should be knowledgeable about the area and community you wish to live within. An experienced agent will have inside information regarding such things as schools district scores, crime history and any other information pertinent to a finding you and your family the perfect home.
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