What Winston-Salem Home Sellers Need to Know About Choosing a Listing Agent

If you plan to sell your Winston-Salem home for top dollar, you'll want to hire a listing agent. A listing agent (or sometimes called seller’s agent) represents home sellers and helps them get their houses on the market. You may wonder what the difference between a listing agent and other real estate agents is – and how they can help you sell your home quickly and for top dollar. The truth is that there are many kinds of agents out there, each with different specialties and strengths. But in this article, we'll focus on what makes a great Winston-Salem listing agent and the criteria for choosing a listing agent for yourself!

A good listing agent has great listening skills to make sure he/she understands your needs and concerns

What does a Winston-Salem listing agent do?

A listing agent is a REALTOR responsible for selling your home. A listing agent will list your home for sale, market it to potential buyers, and negotiate the sales price, terms, and conditions with the buyer or buyer’s agent. Generally, once you choose a listing agent, you will normally sign an exclusive listing agreement.  When selling your Winston-Salem home, that would be an Exclusive Right to Sell listing agreement from the North Carolina Association  of Realtors approved by the North Carolina Bar Association.  

Exclusive Right to Sell Listing

 

An Exclusive Right to Sell listing is when one particular real estate agent represents their client in selling their property. The seller and the listing agent enter into an agreement (not a contract) that requires the agent to market the home exclusively on behalf of the seller. Together, they will use their best efforts to accomplish a sale. In exchange, the seller pays their commission when the listing agent sells the house to a ready, willing and able home buyer.

A good listing agent can help you stage your home to make it more appealing to buyers

What to ask and look for in a listing agent

When choosing a listing agent, there are two things you should be prepared to ask and look for:

●      References. Since you're entrusting someone with the sale of your home, ask them to provide references from past clients. And make sure they're not just family members or friends who will lie and say everything was great. Ask about how long it took for their home to sell and what kind of marketing methods were used throughout the process.

●        Listings sold in similar homes nearby are another excellent source of information about an agent's effectiveness. If an agent can't provide you with these details, they don't have much experience selling homes in your area. That could lead to problems down the line when it comes time for them to get your property sold!

 

How to decide which agent is right for you

The first step to finding the right listing agent is to look for someone familiar with your area. That is especially important if you're selling a home in an area with no open houses. The best way to do this is by asking current clients of the firm that you're considering whether they would recommend them and, if so, on what basis.

If you have several agents from different firms offering to list your property, ask each one for references from previous clients and call those clients yourself:

●       You'll want to ask about their experience selling homes like yours – did they bring multiple offers quickly?

●       Were they able to help buyers make acceptable offers with no back-and-forth negotiation?

●       How did these past sales compare with what's happening in the market now?

Also, be sure that the agent has experience marketing properties like yours. If your house is older than most in the neighborhood, ask about their track record when taking care of those details ahead of time.

If you are ready to hire a listing agent, you should start planning your move to a new home. While selling your current home, you should make sure your new home is move-in ready. Professionals from Beltway Movers advise relocating some of your belongings before showing your home to potential buyers. Removing clutter is always one of the first steps to preparing your home to sell.  Additionally, if you handle transportation of most of your belongings beforehand, your relocation day will be way less stressful.

The right listing agent can help you sell your home for top dollar

A good listing agent will help you price your home, so it sells quickly, stage and market it to buyers in an attractive way, negotiate with buyers when they make offers on your property, and be on your side throughout the process of selling your home. Also, an excellent listing agent will inform you about potential expenses you should expect when selling your home.

A listing agent can also help you find out the following:

●        What other homes in the Winston-Salem area are selling for

●        What houses went for if recently sold

●        How long are homes taking on average to sell

 

Make sure you are comfortable with your list agent

Once you know everything you need to choose a listing agent, you should decide which one to hire. Here are a few things you should consider: 

Ultimately, you should feel the listing agent is the right one for your needs.

 ●        Make sure you are comfortable with your agent. When it comes to real estate agents, a good fit is everything. You’re going to be spending a lot of time together during the listing process, so make sure that you like the person and feel comfortable around them.

 

●        Check references and ask questions. A good agent should have references readily available. They should also be willing to answer questions about their experience and whether they’ve sold homes in your neighborhood before.

●        Ask about communication skills. Communication is critical throughout the home selling process, so it'.  Ws essential that you feel confident about how well your listing agent will communicate with both parties (you and potential buyers) during negotiations and after closing.

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Conclusion

We hope this information has been helpful for you to get started. As you have seen, many steps are involved in choosing a listing agent. But it is important to remember that these are not just salespeople. Listing agents are real estate professionals who can help you navigate the process of selling your home from start to finish. If you have any questions about what it takes and what kind of agent would be best for your situation, don't hesitate to contact us!  Call/text Green Haven Realty today at 336.462.9544.  We're here to help!