Whether you are buying a home or selling a home, do you know how you are going to pick your real estate agent?  Is it important who you hire?  Does it matter?  Are all Realtors the same?  Here’s how most home sellers across the U.S. do it:

• 62% of home sellers only interviewed one agent before listing their home.
• 19% of home sellers talked to three agents before they selected one
• 22% were more interested in determining the list price that would make their home competitive than any other service a listing agent would provide.
• 1% thought professional designations were important when picking their agent.  The other 99% didn’t see the value to be of consequence.
• 3% found picked their agent by walking in or calling a real estate office and speaking to the agent who had floor duty at the time they called.

These statistics are from a Texas survey and were published in the April 2010 issue of “Texas Realtor,” but I have seen similar stats for years from many states, including Washington.

Written from the school of hard knocks, How to Find Your Next Realtor will help, and you can read more excellent articles about agent qualifications and making wise choices in finding a great Realtor by going to the category to the right:   Buyer’s Agent

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What makes one Realtor, or a Sequim Realtor, any different from the thousands of other Realtors out there?  People have been complaining for decades about their agent not communicating with them or not paying attention to details.   But every once in a while you hear someone boast about how great their Sequim Realtor is.  So what is at the core of the difference?  Why is one agent such a pleasure to work with and another makes you feel used?  After 30 years in the business, and I am a Sequim Realtor, I think I can actually answer this question, at least in part.  I’ve observed thousands of agents in these three decades, the good, the bad, and the ugly.  There is most definitely a common thread.  Here is the core of the difference as I see it represented in this graphic.  [Click on the graphic to enlarge it.]

This graphic shows the difference between an old model that many agents have been using and still use.  In their model, their entire focus is on real estate, getting lots of listings and reeling in the buyers.  They set up systems that focus on handling the real estate, not clients.  The proof is in their poor communications and how quickly they move on when the transaction is closed.  This agent cares about money and real estate, not their clients.

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Time for a little fun, and time to laugh a little at my own profession and at myself.   Okay, I’m in a coffee shop.   I’m doing some work on my laptop, checking and answering emails, and writing some articles.   So imagine the humor in the following scenario.   I’m a Realtor writing on my real estate blog when a customer walks into the coffee shop.   Now I rarely pay attention to what other people say, but if they speak loudly and the words catch my ear, I can’t help it.

I hear one of the employees making coffee say to a customer, “Oh, you’re a Realtor?”   The reply was from an older woman whose health did not look good, and carried little enthusiasm, “Yes, I work for [so and so broker],” to which the young female employee loudly and enthusiastically replied, “I’m a real estate agent too!”

I laugh to myself, because one of my observations is that every Tom, Jane, and Mary got a real estate license because it seemed like an easy way to make money.   Does anyone not have a license?

I look around the coffee shop.   There’s an old man with thick spectacles sitting two tables away, apparently reading the classifieds.   He doesn’t move at all for minutes.   Has he died?   No, he turns to the next page.   I wonder.   Is he a Realtor?

A woman and a girl about 13 years old are sitting across the room at a little round table.   Is the little girl a Realtor?   No, I remember you have to be an adult to get a license.   I think.

Two bicycle riders stagger into the shop, all sweaty and obviously hot and tired.   Are they Realtors?   Could be, but I hear no dialogue on real estate issues emanating from their mouths.   But I do pick up some phrases, like “It’s hell out there,” and “a person could die in stuff like this,” and “I don’t know if I can make it.”   Wait a minute, they are talking about real estate.   Maybe.

Finally, I pack up my laptop and head out the door, and as I’m walking past the shaded tables in front of the coffee shop, I hear three ladies talking.   I pause and listen.   I know it’s impolite to listen to other people’s conversations, but this is a coffee shop and they’re talking about real estate.   One is saying, “You should get your real estate license.   It’s easy.   Well the online course is no fun, and the test is a drag, but you can make easy money if someone writes an offer through you.   I don’t have to work if I don’t want to, but when my husband and I want to do something, I start trying to sell a house or find a buyer.   If I’m lucky, I pop a few thousand or even more.   You could do this.   It’s easy.”

Oh, how I seem to have gotten this whole life upside down.   I went to college, worked real estate   as a Realtor and then Associate Broker, and then went to law school to specialize in real estate, worked as a real estate lawyer for 20 years, and now I’m a real estate broker.   All that when I could have just been a housewife and taken an exam.   Silly me.   Well, live and learn, right?

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Sequim Realtors have differing opinions about the timing here:   is now the time to buy a home or should a person wait for a while?   Someone once posted a comment that Realtors always say it’s time to buy.   Well, there’s some truth to that, but it’s not true. I’m more interested in an honest and realistic assessment of the market than trying to promote the idea that people should buy real estate through me now so I can make a commission.   Reputation and referrals are far more important than a quick commission, at least they are to me as one of the Sequim Realtors.

Sequim Realtors Talk

I recently wrote an article entitled, When Will The Market Come Back.   As of today, there were 22 comments, and you’re welcome to read them.   Joetta commented:

I just finished perusing Rich Dad’s Who Took My Money.  He made the point (repeatedly) that when the market is bad is the time to jump in.  I think that’s the message we should get across, and help our clients be smart about it.

My response:

Joetta, point well taken.   I agree with you, but let me refine our reasoning a bit.   We need to be smart about how we go about advising clients to get in there and buy.   We need to be honest about the market conditions.   It is not true that it is always a good time to buy, and it is not always true that when the market is bad it is time to jump in.   Robert Kiyosaki would agree in Rich Dad, because buying in a bad market means buying when it makes sense, not just throwing money at any bad market.   Our clients expect us to be intelligent and wise, and they rely upon our counsel, so they should buy when the market is bad, but timing is everything.   When should they buy?   How or what should they buy? If you had told a client 8 months ago to buy, because they should jump in when the market is bad, your advice would have been poor advice.   Since then, depending upon the location, they might have lost as much as 30% in the investment you recommended.   We may or may not be at a bottom, but we can’t say for sure this is the right time to buy.

What we can say, and I think you will totally agree with me, is that a particular house may be a really great value right now, and with interest rates at historical lows, and with this being a buyer’s market, a particular house may actually be a fantastic buy right now, especially because we have houses that are $100,000 below where they were a year ago, and it may be listed as a short sale.   Even if the market goes down somewhat further, this kind of transaction could be a great deal, if negotiated professionally.   I do think clients are intelligent and want to hear the whole story, and listen to our reasoned opinions about the market and timing.   What they don’t respect is Realtors constantly saying, “Now is the time to buy!   Now is the time to buy!”   Many of them have seen how that advice turned out this past year.   Good clients will buy when the timing seems right and the investment looks good.   It’s our job to help advise them as best we can.

More from Sequim Realtors

And another comment to that post:

Great writing and quite informative. As an investor and agent, I have always believed that the only real money is made when one buys the property. If one has appreciation, great – that is a bonus as far as I am concerned. I buy and so do my active investors properties that cashflow. I always am concerned about buying a great location and with obtaining the best financing. I am happy to report that I am selling a property that I bought about 6 years ago for about $500,000 profits (before Uncle Sam). It was positive by over $2000 per month all but the last 6 months when it was in contract. The mortgage was paid down by over $100,000 (by the tenant).

There are now almost too many opportunities to evaluate! I can’t wait. I am working with “flippers” who are making more money than ever in this “terrible” market   – and with less risk. Yes, one door closes and another opens. Open the door!

And this one:

Chuck … I was at Sequim and Port Angeles years ago for a beautiful week and pleasant time, now days gone by. I agree that  the wise man will prepare for the long winter, be careful with resources, adjust something about the products  he sells, use new methods, reach new customers, be careful about costs, surround himself with wise people, develop a strong network of friends and business associates, people to help each other,   not waste time on old concepts, prepare for other such times, be stretched and challenged, be humble and seek to learn. The wise man will also  put the needs of his clients and customers first.

I think that last sentence says it all:   The wise man will also put the needs of his clients and customers first.

Update on what Sequim Realtors say at Sequim Real Estate Market Prediction.

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Who is the best real estate agent or Realtor in Sequim or Port Angeles?   That’s a tough one.   Maybe the question would be better asked, “Who is really good, competent, trustworthy, and experienced in the area?”

I think it’s a short list, but let’s face it, if we were asking the same question about lawyers, the list would be short, too.   [I've been both.]

I don’t think people actually asked such questions before they hire an agent, at least not quite articulated like this.   I could be wrong.   My experience is that people call an agent off a sign or through the MLS, for example, and they focus so intently on the property they want to look at, they don’t stop to think about doing their due diligence on the agent.

There’s a lot of subconscious communication that does on between an agent and a caller, of course.   But due diligence in finding a good, competent, trustworthy, and experienced Realtor could make a huge difference for both buyers and sellers.

Here’s what I would suggest.   First, find your Realtor by searching on the Internet, by emailing, by telephone call, and secondly, get his or her help in finding your ideal home or lot, and work faithfully with that agent to get the job done.   In other words, start with an outstanding agent, then you’re really prepared to get the best possible help finding the ideal home, negotiating your best price and terms, and getting the kind of professional transaction coordination all the way to closing that you expect and deserve.

This does not mean you can’t be searching the Internet for real estate, for the right home, the perfect little haven.   Search all you want.   Look at 100′s of possible properties using the Internet.   It’s all there now.   Isn’t this convenient?   Get familiar with the area and generally with prices and inventory.   But then find a professional Realtor before you go further.   You will be glad you did.

I am totally willing to compete with other agents in this process, so that you get the best professional representation you can get.   The goal, of course, is to get you the best price and the best terms for your property.

The beginning of your due diligence could start with these websites and blogs:

SequimPortAngeles.com
Sequim-Real-Estate-Blog.com (this site)
SequimPortAngelesRealEstate.com
Sequim ActiveRain Blog
Sequim & Port Angeles Featured Listings
EzineArticles
Seattle PI Real Estate Blog
Chuck Marunde’s Professional Profile

And you are welcome to email me or call me.   I’m easy to talk to.

Very truly yours,
Chuck Marunde, J.D.
chuckmarunde@gmail.com
(360) 775-5424

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