providers.
Agents either possess intimate knowledge about your area or they have the contacts and resources to find the necessary information. They can identify comparable sales and find more demographic and statistical information than the average person. For example, you may know that a home down the street was on the market for $600,000, but a professional real estate agent will know the home had upgrades and sold at $565,000 after 45 days on the market. A real estate agent will also have market conditions data, which will affect your selling process. Many factors determine how you will proceed. Data such as the average per-square-foot cost of similar homes, median and average sales prices, average number of days on market, and comparisons of list-to-sold prices will have a huge bearing on what you ultimately decide to do. Attempting to sell your home without an agent requires a major effort, resources, and countless hours understanding and organizing all the work. Professional agents’ careers depend on their ethics and ability to build relationships with clients and the community they serve. Agents looking to make easy money rarely go to the effort of establishing a solid marketing plan or work at strategic pricing. Here are some traits to look for when hiring an agent. Is he or she… Current? Is the agent up-to-date with the latest housing trends so he/she can serve you effectively? Connected? Does the agent have the necessary contacts who can assist in every phase of selling your home? A network of 94
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