The general public’s perception of real estate agents is that they make a fortune in commission and fees for very little effort. So it makes perfect sense that we shop around on fee and get the best deal for us. The lower the fee the better for me, sounds good... in theory. 

We are in a tougher market there’s no doubt and tough markets require tough agents, especially if they are to survive these tough times. So bear with me here for a minute I have to set the scene... (note: if you are on your smartphone any writing in green text is a link to another article)

For Agents to Survive

An average real estate office has overheads of approximately $60,000 or so per month and every month they fail to cover these costs they are one step closer to closing their doors. An agents ‘job’ within the office is to find sellers and sign them up, the more sellers they have the more buyers will come. But as the markets gets tougher so does the agent. Now you might be thinking who cares if the agent is struggling, not my problem, but it is! Keep reading...

A Problem- 2 Types of Tough Agents

Tough agents will survive by doing what ever is necessary to pay the bills. Problem is there are 2 types of tough agents: - the one that knuckles down and works their behind off, tenaciously hunting down every buyer lead like a sniffer dog then skilfully working that buyer until they extract the maximum price they can, for you, their vendor. A great result. The other, well, they are tough as well and they do get the result but usually at the expense of YOU, their vendor. Rather than working harder on buyers to extract their maximum price, they skilfully work on YOU until they extract your lowest price. 

A quick interjection... now you are probably thinking who are these guys, why are they sharing this and what's the catch, what's it going to cost me- let's get that out into the open right now... for independent, impartial advice and guidance with your sale in most cases it will cost you $0 worse case scenario under $500. Want to have a complimentary chat? Now let's get back to those agents...

Epic Fail

Another general public perception is that all agents are the same and they all do the same thing so it really doesn’t matter who we use… let’s just find the lowest fee. (Enter comparison websites) Now at this point most sellers do not know which agent they have in front of them they are mainly focussed on the selling fee percentage, and how low they can get it.

The Conditioning Process Agents Use on YOU

How conditioning works- once the agent has your signature on an agency agreement, they immediately go to work telling you about the poor state of the market and how few sales are being made and how there are no buyers around etc etc. This generally takes place the first 1-2 weeks you are on the market. These messages become more obvious and direct and you find yourself being pressured to drop your price or you’ll never get a sale, finally you give in to the pressure and a sale is made, and the agent gets paid.

The Low Fee Sting

It’s about now that you start to feel like you have been taken for a ride!  After all it was the agent who advised you on pricing in the first place, they only told you the price a week ago… how could that change within a week? You were so happy that their commission and fees were lower than you expected, lower than what the other agents were quoting you, or were happy to charge you but, now that it’s all done you can see exactly what the agent was doing all along… making sure that they stitched you up so they can keep their job, keep their doors open, pay the bills and keep driving around in their nice car looking very successful. The old adage kicks in… you get what you pay for.

How to Differentiate Between the 2 Types of Tough Agents

So how can you tell which type of “tough” agent you have sitting in front of you pedalling their wares. You need to ask the type of questions that only a skilled, ethical, hardworking agent focused on doing the best for their sellers will be able to answer correctly, the imitator’s will fail miserably here! If you are about to meet and grill a few agents about selling your property I have some hard-hitting questions that you can ask them which will help you to sort them out.

Why Do You Need Hard Hitting Interview Questions

SAD Fact:  Most home sellers are un-aware their agent is a bad one until they reach the point of a sale and by then it’s too late. Find out how to choose the best agent and still get the best fee / commission rate.

Fact:  If home sellers knew how to really question a real estate agent, they would reject nine out of ten of them. 

Fact:  Some Real Estate Agents will knowingly inflate your property’s ‘worth’ just to get you to sign an agency agreement

VERY SAD Fact: Most home sellers have no idea how to test the agent to see if they are inflating the price.

Fact:  A Real Estate Agents fee and/or commission is negotiable even after you have signed an agency agreement.

Fact:  Most home sellers are attracted to a Real Estate Agent who quotes a low fee / commission.

Fact:  Real Estate Agents know that home sellers are commission / fee driven or sensitive and they use this knowledge to lock you into a listing agreement. 

BOTTOM LINE Fact:

Most home sellers have no idea that when a real estate agent tells you their fee / commission rate, you can still negotiate a better one! In fact, once you negotiate that rate, and if you have the know-how, you can get yourself an even lower one!  

What Are The Questions

Remember the idea of meeting a few agents is to put them in a pressure cooker so that YOU can understand who they will be “looking after” when the negotiations begin i.e. you (the person that is paying them) or the buyer.

As most agents these days can read, the questions are not posted on this site anywhere because if they were, agents would see them, and be able to have pre-prepared, perfect answers for you. This list of questions has been compiled by Real Estate Agents with 30+ years’ experience and are the toughest questions that agents fear being asked by home sellers.  

Note: these are not basic questions such as How long have you been an agent?  or What marketing and advertising would you recommend?  or How many properties did you sell last month? They are questions that will make your decision simple as to which stranger you should hand the keys to your home to, and who you can trust to look after your family’s safety, their financial security, their future.

"... it was your list of questions that was 100% responsible for enabling me..." It took all the stress out of my decision making and I found what it exposed, fascinating!!" - Kerri, Nundah QLD click here for more client comments >

If you would like the questions feel free to hit the green button "Get in touch with us today” (it's at the bottom of the page) or by all means drop me an email robert@irec.com.au (and I’ll even give you the answers you should expect in return as well

Agent Comparison Websites

Focus on the skill of the agent first and then focus on the fees and commission and don’t let comparison websites tell you who you should or shouldn’t talk to. Comparison websites only have access to specific salespeople that have entered into a blanket agreement to pay them for seller leads. They certainly don’t mention or recommend or suggest agents who won’t pay them for their leads… even if those agents are the best in your area!

iREC's Fee Structure

If you would like some independent, impartial advice and guidance with your sale or advice on identifying the right type of tough agent for you, I can help! What will it cost you… under $500 And in most cases $0. Sounds too good to be true... call me on 1300 886359 for an obligation free and cost-free chat.  read more about what iREC can do for you 

Robert Williams.     

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