MrsRelocation

I received a call from a friend of my Dad’s who solicited my advice regarding the sale of his home that had been on the Pittsburgh market since June 2009 (with a top agent in that area).  He had about 6 showings during that time and was considering cancelling his listing and re-listing with me.

After looking at the listing currently for sale, I had several questions:

1. What are the terms of your listing contract (i.e. how soon after the listing can you cancel the listing)?
2. What is your basis for concluding that this is a top agent in your area? (an agent with many listings does not always mean that they are servicing ALL of the listings well to market and sell them in a timely manner)
3. Did you meet with ANY other agents before choosing this one, as you would do research when purchasing a less expensive computer or pair of shoes? Shouldn’t we be competing for your business?
4. Did this top agent come to your home and give you a LISTING PRESENTATION, telling you how they would market and sell your home?; there’s more to selling a home besides putting it in the Multi-List, placing a sign in the yard, & Hoping another agent sells it.
5. Did this top agent present you with a personalied, written, Marketing Plan, detailing what they were going to do to market and sell your home (i.e. how they are going to EARN their commission) for you to review and sign off on?    
6. When you purchase a computer or even a pair of shoes, you look at the brands (Realtors), you check pricing (commission & comparables they’ve provided to price your home), you review the list of what a computer offers or if the shoes are leather or not (written marketing plan), etc.
7. Come on Homeowners, even when someone recommends a certain brand of computer or a brand of shoe, you still do some homework before making the purchase….do the same for one of your biggest assets, YOUR HOME!!  
8. I COULD GO ON, BUT PLEASE SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS!