I came across a survey a few days ago that resonated with me, and I wanted to share it with you. It's what home buyers and sellers expect from their agent, by level of importance. I nearly fell off my chair when I read some of the numbers. EXPECT MORE FROM YOUR AGENT, PERIOD! I'll tell you a story...
Just yesterday, I received a call from a past seller client who moved out of state, and she called me to get a referral for an agent in her area to sell her home. So I looked on the internet for local real estate sites, I checked realtor.com to see which company was listing what, and what that company's average listing prices were until I had found a few that could be in the running.
As you know, I am affiliated with RE/MAX, and there was a RE/MAX office in her area, but I didn't see that to be a good match for her needs. That's rare, but it happens. After reviewing the company websites, I found one firm that stood out to me, so I called, spoke with the Office manager, and described the type of agent that I was looking for to assist my past client. Well she gave me somebody alright, WHOA! The agent called me up, Ms. Gum-chomper, and a baby was crying in the background. That agent bragged about how wonderful she was, and all I could think of is that the only person she's trying to convince of how good she is, is HERSELF!
That was a BIG no-no in my book. So I called the manager and said, (in a very pleasant manner) that the agent did not seem like a good fit for my client, and could she please have someone else call me. The manager did ask why I felt that way, and I was frank- I told her that the agent sounded a bit brash, there was a baby crying in the background, and it just didn't seem professional to me. The agent called me back to tell me that the child wasn't hers, but in fact, it was her clients, and she was out showing a client around when she called me. THREE wrong things with that picture. Out with a client and not giving full attention to that client, calling someone else in front of that client, and driving and talking with a BABY in the car. Ok, fast forward...
I got another agent that was just perfect! and for that I am happy. Now, after that long story (sorry) it leads me to this survey taken by the National Association of REALTORS (NAR). NAR recently published their annual Profile of Buyers and Sellers. In it, there was a survey about what buyers and sellers deemed important skills that their agent ought to have. The results may surprise you, depending on how you look at that figures compiled. If you look at the chart below, it represents the percentage of importance placed by the respondents on a particular aspect of real estate. Just to be clear, this is an excerpt, and not the entire poll, which was broken down further by marriage status and gender, although the numbers are still similar.
The numbers that surprised me most were negotiation skills, people skills, and technology skills, because as a Realtor I think that these skills are also very important.
That agent had poor people skills, evidenced by her disrespect to her client, and for me, for that matter. She didn't have a personal website, either. That doesn't cut the mustard with me, and it shouldn't with a buyer or seller either. I think that a lot of these skillsets mentioned should rate a lot higher, and buyers and sellers hould expect more from their agent. When I put my name on something, it BETTER be good, period, and all agents should set the highest standard for themselves and their clients as possible.