Some are great negotiators - some aren't so great.
There are many areas that agents negotiate in but following are the two most important ways:
1. They negotiate with buyers on your behalf in order to get you the best possible price.
2. They negotiate their commission fee with you before they list your home for sale.
When your thinking of selling and you have a choice of agents keep these points in mind.
Q. Who's the better negotiator?
An agent who arrives at your door with a pre-arranged discounted fee below all other agents?
or
An agent who arrives at your door with the intention of negotiating with you on that fee?
Lets look at the discounting agent first
The agent who has a pre-arranged discounted fee does not have to negotiate at all with you about fees. This agent probably doesn't get much training on how to negotiate and probably feels relieved about not having to negotiate with you about the amount of commission they charge. Negotiation truly frightens these people.
- Is this person really demonstrating an ability to negotiate?
- Is this person really going to negotiate hard on buyers if they can't even do it with you?
- Is it really worth saving a couple of thousand dollars by employing this person if it means losing $10,000 on sale because they can't negotiate successfully?
Of course all the answers to these questions are no.
Now lets look at the negotiating agent
This person arrives at your door knowing full well that there is a discounting agent out there charging less than him/her up front. This person is prepared to negotiate with you and most importantly demonstrate to you that they can negotiate. This agent does not try to buy you by simply dropping the fee below everyone else. This agent shows you how they work.
- Is this person demonstrating true skill in negotiation?
- will this person work harder because they're getting paid more?
- will this person work to get a higer price for you?
Of course the answer to all of these questions is yes.
The most important point here is that you get what you pay for.There are many agents out there who simply undercut on fee because they're too lazy, poorly trained or complacent. These people do not truly understand the art of negotiation. Do you really want to employ someone like this to sell your home?
Make sure you're employing someone who is a seasoned campaigner. Someone who knows how to fight and knows how to cut a deal. These are the agents who can truly negotiate.
The "instant cut-price agent" is just watching from the sidelines & taking the easy route. They must be very envious of their skilled, negotiating peers.
When employing an agent to sell your home make sure you get to see first hand how they negotiate. Often this will be demonstrated in how they negotiate their fee.
Agents who fail to negotiate with you will fail to negotiate with buyers.
For advice buying or selling - Halliwell First National Real Estate
Director - Alan Halliwell
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