Contributed by Gabby Adler:
Deciding which agent is right for you is very difficult and takes some research to get it right. Here is my advice to help you choose the right agent to sell your house quickly and get you the best price. You want to choose an agent that you feel comfortable working with as you will be giving them access to your home. One that you are confident will give you truthful feedback from viewing and one who is used to selling your type and price bracket of house.
For example, each agent will have a few types of houses that he usually get on his books and is therefore used to selling and will have a large contact book of people looking for that type of house from previous sales. For instance if you were selling a studio flat you would probably not choose to put it on the market with Savills as they tend to deal with large high value properties. So they would not have the right type of buyer contacts for your flat.
The first step is to get three agents to give you a valuation of your home in the current climate. This is how to pick those three agents:
• On your walk to the tube/train or bus look to see who the agents are that currently have houses for sale on your roads and the neighbouring roads. This will give you a good indication of who to look at first.
• Put the key property attributes of your current home in your area into Rightmove, i.e. if you have a three bedroom terraced cottage in Barnes, then search for that and see what agents have those type of properties for sale
• If there are many, have a look at how they present their houses, read through some of the descriptions and look at the pictures and see which you find most appealing. Good property details are key to getting people to view your house!
• Get a friend/partner or colleague to call your chosen three and inquire about a house and see what sort of customer service they get. Ask questions about the house to see if there sales negotiators have a good knowledge of their properties and wait and see if they ask for your contact details and try to book you in for a viewing. You could do this yourself if you wanted to. You need to know what a buyer experiences when they call to inquire about your house.
Gabby Adler is a independent property buying specialist that works exclusively with families looking to buy in Richmond-upon-Thames. She takes the hassle out of the house hunt and presents you with your top options based on your criteria.
