Can I let you in on a little secret? You don’t absolutely HAVE TO HAVE a REALTOR® to buy or sell a house. You can find sellers or buyers on your own. I did it before I was a REALTOR®. And I lived to tell the tale.
Now, you may ask, why would I–a real estate agent–tell you that you don’t have to use me to buy or sell a home? Two reasons: First off, it’s the truth. And I want you to know that I’ll give you the straight scoop. Second, if you’ve ever done it, you know how much work it is and the ungodly amount of stress you will have. If you really want to do it all yourself, I’ll gladly refer you to some of my blog posts. And know that I’ll do my best to give you the best information I can. If you have success–GREAT! But if you decide you want someone on your side to help, I want you to consider why it’s a good idea to call me.
I’m sure you’ve heard horror stories about real estate agents who gave lousy service or just plain dropped the ball. And their clients got the shaft. Maybe you’ve even had an experience with an agent who was less than honest. Or maybe you just had the feeling they only cared about making the sale–so they could get a commission. Unfortunately we’ve had too many REALTORS® who lived by the motto, “Find ‘em. Fleece ‘em. Forget ‘em”.
You’ll be glad to know that very few real estate agents are blatantly dishonest. You could probably pick someone out of the Yellow Pages and have a good chance of getting decent service. But the truth is most agents have to spend a lot of time and money trying to find new clients. And the more time they have to spend on finding clients, the less time they have for serving their clients–YOU. I’ve chosen to do the bulk of my business by referral only. This way I can spend my time and energy on giving you the best service possible.
As you know, there’s stress if you want to buy or sell a home. You don’t want to add more stress because you chose just a run-of-the-mill real estate agent. You want someone who knows how to keep the main thing THE MAIN THING–but still works to take care of all the other details. You don’t need your blood pressure spiraling out of control. You want a professional real estate agent who will beat back any challenge and put YOU and your best interest as his first priority.
Now you know, every REALTOR® says he’s great and he’s the best thing since sliced bread. So how do you really know if he’s the real deal or just blowing smoke? When someone says “Trust me!”, I’m all the more likely to think he’s shifty. And if they have “Integrity” as part of their business name then I really get nervous. My best advice is to listen to your gut. Sit down eyeball-to-eyeball and ask questions. You’ll get a good idea if the guy across the table is on the level. Most of all, you want someone who listens but who still gives you honest and straight talk.
And when you call me, I’ll want to take time to get to know you as well. If I believe I can do a good job for you, I’ll be honored to work hard to give you the best real estate transaction you’ve ever had. But neither of us will be able
to tell much from a brochure or a website or by email. So if you’re ready to get started on buying or selling your home, give me a call and we can talk and find out if I can help you get to where you want to be.
