How to pick an agent?

We have had 3 agents from different places come around and give their thoughts on our house. Theres a huge variation on what they think our property is worth. How do you figure out which one to go with? This is the feedback we have had..

#1 : 2 agents came around and had a really good look, and listened carefully to what we were going to do before putting it on the market and gave us tips on what to do with the back rooms to make them more appealing. They came back with a figure of $285k

#2 : I didnt like this agent, her manner but I like the company so if we went with them I'd choose a different agent. She didn't seem to listen to anything I said though and came back wiht $270k

#3 : She is a good agent who actually sold this place to us. When she came back with the appraisal she only had 4 other properties to compare to but they weren't even fair comparisons. ie a place of similar size inside sold down the road for $240k but has a yard half the size of ours, only a single garage, ours is a large double plus has extra rooms on the back, ours is brick, theirs has weatherside on it which is problematic and no longer a cladding allowed to be used and also no privacy, you can see the entire property from the footpath. And shes come back with $240k-$260k

If I put all the info together from all the agents on how they came to their prices it looks like properties in our area are selling above their GVs and within a month for most of them. Our GV is 260k and we have done a lot of improvements to it.

Its hard to figure out which agent is actually right. We like agent #3 but I can't believe our property would get that low of a figure. Can't help but wonder if the reason she sells so many properties is that she undervalues them so gets them sold off quick

I'd go with the agent you are happy with too.
I found when we were looking to buy and attending open homes we were able to get a good feel for how hard the agent worked in trying to sell the property.

Also look at what commission's they're charging. As to the value of your property you can do your own research via trade me or open 2 view - list recent sales.

GV is 2 years old in Palmy and isn't a reflection of the market value - its a figure purely for use by the council to levy rates.

Edited by caliandjack

I've been told that the people with the all yellow signs? I think Ray White?? don't list houses with a price but only put their GV on them & tend to sell them for basically that.

Could be wild speculation or it could be true but it was enough to put me off them.

summerlamb wrote: Pick the agent you had the best rapport with and put it on for a price you are comfortable with using their valuations ony as a guide. Liking and trusting the person and being happy with how they are marketing and selling your home to potential buyers is the most important thing.

agreed. i would talk to them and see how happy they are to go with the price you want first... if they dont respond well to the first time you want something your way they may not be good after all. Just make sure you dont over price the property to start with.

I certainly wouldn't go with JVL, I had the mis-fortune of working for them and found the way they operated very lacking in integrity and professionalism.

We bought our property thru PB and found their agents very hard working in trying to get a sale.

 

Hi, I work in real estate - pick an agent you feel comfortable with. What advertising are you getting - professional photos?, print media and net? Unfortunately the RV (GV) in the current market isn't a true reflection of what your property is worth and many sell below. Also people like to see a price not POA or By Negotiation.

I was going to say JVL are great, they were the best when we were looking a few years ago at selling our place.

Can you tell me which agent it was at JVL??? I might come round and see you tomorrow arvo after I ditch Andrew at a birthday party round the corner from you.

Have you considered selling privately?

having just sold our house, this is what we did.

We had 2 agents around, both were nice enough and we were pretty comfortable with both of them. There prices came in within 20,000 of each other.

We (and I mean DH cos I am a wus when it comes to this stuff but he is in sales and loves it!) got back to them both and said basically it was between the 2 of them, there prices were close enough etc and asked the what they could do to better the deal (ie cut their commission) We went with the agent who fought hard for our house and really convinced us she could sell it for a top price. She also cut her commission by 1% and gave us some free advertising.

We ended up selling for well above RV (although RV was on our ads cos like others I hate looking at houses not having some kind of guide for whether i can afford it)

Good luck!

You can use the QV E Valuers its a computer generated one but it only costs $35 and gives you a list of properties that have sold recently in your area as a comparison.

Doesn't hurt to list the property yourself on TM either.