The Importance of Finding the Right Realtor For You

Whether you are buying or selling a home, finding the right realtor to work with is crucial to success.

Many years ago when I was young and knew everything at the ripe old age of 26, I decided to purchase land and build my first home. I started scanning local papers for land on a daily basis. After a few months, I came across a piece of property in my price range and a location that I liked. I called the listing agent and set up a time to talk and officially view the property. I decided it was a good fit and made the decision to move forward. I had not looked into or met with a Lender or a builder.

Conveniently, the listing agent was also just starting out as a contractor and his cousin was a lender. Keep in mind, I knew everything so I had no need to ask any questions so I did not know that the property I was about to purchase was part of a bigger plan that involved the a payoff of the Sellers back taxes and mortgage payments. Had I listened to my instincts, I would have run away screaming but I didn’t. I relied solely on this listing agent / contractor that I didn’t know to help me with the biggest purchase in my life. My Realtor did not even talk with me about negotiating an offer price, I was on my own. I will admit, the lending part of the deal was uneventful. The land purchase and build on the other hand were somewhat of a nightmare but eventually I did get my house.

Evert putting the finishing touches on our new addition and garage.

Fast forward 15 years. My husband the Contractor and I decide to purchase a fixer and flip it. I knew that we were not going to use the same agent that I had used before. I decided to ask my neighbor who she had used to buy her home. I called her agent and after a taking the time to interview her, we were off and running. After a few months we did find a house and we purchased it. We spent time working with our agent discussing the updates we wanted to make and what changes made the most sense for us to do to give us the best return on our money spent. After four months of long days and blood sweat and tears we were ready to list our property. Because we had communicated with our agent through out the process and she had seen the house when we purchased it we felt that she could really appreciate and convey all of the hard work we had put into it.

Day one, the fun begins.

Ready for the market.

Although these are both very different examples, the moral of the story is clear. Whether you are buying or selling a home it is crucial to work with someone that you feel you can talk to and trust. Someone that understands your needs and concerns and will work for you. Whether you are buying or selling a house you can count on it being memorable. Working with the right Realtor will determine if you want to remember the experience or not.