5 costly mistakes that you can make when hiring a Realtor that result in your house selling for thousands less, if it even sells at all.

1.  Revealing too much information

Agents will try to get you to reveal secret information that they can use to help their buyer clients buy your home for as little as possible.  You should never reveal anything to the agents you interview that you wouldn’t want the buyer to know.  Imagine trying to negotiate with a buyer that already knows your bottom line and desperation to sell before ever setting foot in your house.  Only share the following information with the agent you hire:

• The lowest price you would take
• Your financial situation if it’s really bad
• How desperate you are to sell
• And anything else you wouldn’t want the buyer to know

2. Hiring an agent with no sales record in your area

Agents will try to exaggerate their expertise in your area.  Don’t believe them unless they can show you listings they’ve sold in your area.  If  they aren’t already involved in your market, they probably will not give your listing the attention it deserves nor will they know how to effectively price it or market it.

3. Hiring an agent that uses your house as a trophy

Some agents take listings, not with the intent on selling it, but to use it as a trophy to attract new listings and buyers.  By keeping houses as trophies, an agent can use it as listing bait, to attract other listings, and as buyer bait, to attract buyers that they can steer to other homes they’re trying to sell.

4. Hiring an agent based on an inflated list price

A common tactic agents use to win a listing is to suggest a high listing price. They knowingly pick a price they think you want to hear, knowing that it won’t sell at that price.  Once the house is on the market, they keep dropping the price until the house finally sells.  Most of the time, it sells for far less.

5. Hiring a part-time real estate agent

You’re paying full commission and you want that agent to be available to handle problems that come up.  Don’t make the mistake of hiring an agent that doesn’t treat real estate as a full-time profession.  If they can’t make enough money to support themselves in real estate, why would you want to hire them?  If you did hire them, why would you want to pay full-time rates?

How to Avoid These Costly Mistakes

AgentHarvest can help you avoid these costly mistakes by helping you find agents that are nationally recognized for their sales abilities in your area by either national awards or rankings.  We evaluate each and every agent we refer and constantly monitor their performance to make sure our clients are given the best possible service.

If you are buying or selling a house and are looking to hire a successful real estate agent to help you through the process, take a look at AgentHarvest's list of top-ranking local Realtors in your area. We found these agents by examining their sales track records, awards, rankings, client testimonials and by conducting personal interviews.