What is a Realtor?

In short, a Realtor represents someone else. This "someone else" in most business dealings is called the PRINCIPAL. In real estate a Realtor becomes a substitute for the principal; that is, he or she acts, speaks and listens for the principal. Once this interaction takes place an AGENCY RELATIONSHIP is formed. In British Columbia any person that is employed to help sell a specific property must be licensed as either a real estate salesperson or a real estate agent.

What are some Different Ways to Choose a Realtor?

The different ways of choosing a Realtor are similar to those of choosing any other professional person (e.g., doctor, lawyer, accountant or dentist). These include:

• Word of mouth - ask friends, neighbors, and fellow employees for recommendations.
• Within your Neighborhood - you may meet a Realtor at an open house in the area where you live.
• Make appointments - meet with Realtors to discuss their range of services/specialties, education/background and fees.
• By e-mailing sellingkelowna.com on the internet :)

Remember that your home is a major investment; therefore, as it is important to look for characteristics of "excellence" in other professions, it is important to look for those qualities in a Realtor.

Suggested Questions to ask Potential Realtors

• How long have you been selling real estate?
• How do you know about the market in my area?
• How many homes have you sold in my area?
• What educational designations have you achieved?
• What is your average market time vs. the market’s?
• What is your list price to sales price ratio vs. market?
• How much are you willing to spend in marketing?
• Do you zone-farm my neighborhood for buyers?
• Do you mail flyers of my home to the public?
• Do you mail brochures of my home to other agents?
• May I see a sample brochure of past homes sold?
• Do you provide a home marketing book for prospects?
• Do you provide a written report to sellers?
• Do you have a personal assistant to help with the details?
• May I see your resume or personal brochure?
• If I list the home, when would the marketing begin?

What can a Realtor do to Sell my House that I can not do for Myself?

Facts suggest that the difficulties of trying to sell your own home generally out-weighs the benefits. Here is what an agent can do that the private seller can not, or finds extremely difficult to do:

1. Places your property in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which exposes your home to all the buyers working with cooperating member agents. This essentially puts every agent in the area to work helping to get your house sold.
2. Exposes your property to a large pool of qualified buyers the agent spends a career generating. Without this network, a for-sale-by-owner is reduced to a yard sign, some classified ads, and lots of luck.
3. Provides up-to-date market information with recent sales and current listings (a CMA) which helps you price your home strategically. This increases the possibility of a quick sale at the best price obtainable.
4. Shows your home whether you are in or not, saving you hours of "minding the store".
5. Provides pre-qualified buyers who know what they want and how much they can afford. Screening prospects saves you from the hassle of keeping appointments with "sightseers" and protects you from the threat of "unwelcome visitors."
6. Shows your house to its best advantage. Buyers often shy away from asking homeowners questions; homeowners are sometimes defensive about defects in their homes. A Realtor can answer necessary questions objectively and guide the buyer to purchase.
7. Helps you negotiate a satisfactory sale. Without an experienced mediator to act as a buffer between the parties, many negotiations "bog down".
8. Leads both you and the buyer through the puzzle of rates, fees and financing options, helping with loan placement and follow-up, including the provision of names and telephone numbers of specific loan officers. Without expert knowledge of alternative financial resources many sales are lost - especially in tight money markets.
9. Protects your interests from contract to closing with an understanding of real estate procedures. An agent has the ability to smooth the way toward agreements and the experience to attend to all the details that must come together before settlement can take place.

What will a Realtor Charge?

Typically, Realtors work on a commission basis; that is, upon the sale of your property they will receive either a percentage of the total sale price or a fixed dollar amount. This "rate" or "fee" is negotiable - it is not fixed by law nor by any Real Estate Board - between you and your chosen agent.

How and Where do Realtors find Buyers?

Realtors are constantly in contact with the largest number of potential buyers possible to generate a steady flow of prospects specifically interested in your property. Typically, 60% of all buyers come through these referrals and ongoing marketing, about 20% come from "for sale" yard signs and general company reputation, and less than 20% come from promotions and advertising. These percentages very by area and company. It is not uncommon for less than 12% of sales to come from classified advertising.

By far the largest number of buyers come from referrals sent by satisfied past customers, corporate contacts, friends, acquaintances, relocation networks, the Multiple Listing Service, and cooperating seller’s or buyer’s agents. Regular sales meetings and listing tours within the agents office also promotes your property throughout that agent’s company. Agents continually work to maintain a "pool" of buyers through an extensive network of contacts and sources. This frequently results in agents having buyers on hand, just waiting for the right house to come on the market.

Our Relocation and Referral Network

REMAX Realtors want their clients to be well taken care of when they move. The best way to be sure of this, is to refer then to a REMAX Realtor in their destination city. These incoming referrals make up an important part or our business. They supply us with a continuous stream of purchasers. In order to keep the flow coming, we send out thousands of referral cards to other Realtors letting them know how effective we are at relocating clients. In addition, we offer the referring Realtor 25% of our commission as an incentive to recommend us to their clients.

When we receive a referral call, we immediately call the referred person to introduce ourselves, then follow up with a comprehensive relocation package on Kelowna, sent via courier. Included within the package is any additional or specific information that they require on Kelowna real estate. We feel that this attention really takes the confusion and uneasiness out of moving from city to city. Therefore, if you are selling in order to move to another city, let us refer you a REMAX Realtor at your destination. He or she will treat you with the same professionalism that we pride ourselves on!

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