You own a home and want to sell it? Not easy to choose among the multitude of real estate agents ... Follow the advice of LaVieImmo.com to sort and sign with the right partner, professional for your project to which you can delegate in peace.
A realtor, what is it?
Before you start, some small useful reminders. A real estate agent is an intermediary authorized by the owner of a property to find a tenant or buyer. The law of 2 July 1970 said Hoguet law, in particular that only holders of a business card are entitled to exercise the agent business.Issued by the prefecture for a period of ten years and renewable, the card specifies the scope its holder (transactions, property management ...). To obtain an agent must prove his professional competence, validated by a diploma or significant experience. It must also provide financial security certificate for the current year and insurance against the financial consequences of professional liability.
The first thing to look at before choosing a realtor, so his card, whose number should be displayed in the agency, as well as the fees and the amount of the financial guarantee. The number and place of issue of the card are also on the correspondence of the agent.
Independent or network?
Who says real estate agent often think network. Century 21 Real Estate Era , Foncia, Guy Hoquet, The Address, or Orpi Laforet, among others: the big names abound. The first advantage of networks, national or regional, that's the extent of the territory they cover: the property offered for sale through them will be seen by a large number of potential buyers. The other highlight of networked agents? They are well trained negotiators, able to adapt to all situations (divorce, inheritance, rental investment ...) and lapped the most effective sales techniques. Our advice: doing so to make contact directly with a manager rather than a younger employee. The often high staff turnover in the networks of agencies can sometimes disrupt customer relationships.
But all the agents are not organized in a network. Every city, every town has experienced professionals with deep knowledge of their local market peculiarities, have contacts with the right people ... but remaining fiercely attached to their independence. In this case, nothing like word of mouth to find one who will go that extra mile for you.
Our advice: To avoid disappointment, choose agencies that are long-established and have a storefront. Those who resisted the various crises that the sector has been through.
What mandate?
There are three types of mandates: exclusive, semi-exclusive or simple. It is you who set the type of mandate that will link to your or your agent (s) property (s).The exclusive mandate, most effective and most constraining
This is the most restrictive, but by far the most efficient. You sign with a realtor sole authority to negotiate the sale for a specified period - usually three months. You can still negotiate the length of time you are engaged with the agency. Although the intermediary make every effort to sell your property as quickly as possible and at the best price, it may be prudent to reduce this period to two months, which will allow you to save time if your home has not found buyer for x or y reasons.
Furthermore, we advise you to opt for a mandate revocable at any time and to focus on agencies that adhere to the Association of exclusive mandates of real estate professionals (AMEPI), born in May 2009 from the merger of French File real estate professionals (FFPE) and the Inter Service Agencies (SIA).
Good to know: If exclusive mandate, you can ask your agency to take over the cost of compulsory building diagnoses to perform before the sale. Indeed, these can be offered to you.
The semi-exclusive mandate or non-selection
By choosing this type of mandate, you guarantee the exclusivity of sale to a single real estate agent while reserving the possibility of finding a buyer yourself. You then pay the agency only 50% of his commission, instead of 100% as part of an exclusive.The simple mandate, the less restrictive but also the most risky
This mandate is one that leaves you more freedom. You can sell your own good and mandated several agencies simultaneously. If you opt for the simple mandate, we advise you to limit yourself to three agencies: beyond, you could "toast" your good. Prefer agencies who practice "intercabinet" and broadcast your ads from partners with whom they agree, if any, to share their commission.
Our advice: Each type of mandate has its advantages and disadvantages. You have to find the right balance between efficiency and freedom, based on the characteristics of the property you sell and market conditions, including.
How much it cost ... and who pays what?
agency commissions are justified by the cost of resources used by your intermediary for the transaction is (visits, estimates, advertising in newspapers or on the Internet ...). The amount is entirely free, and can even vary from one agency to another within the same network. In practice, the scale, declining, is between 5% and 8% of the property value. It is not uncommon that the agency agrees to make concessions - in reasonable limits! - to lower the price of the transaction, if the seller agrees to revise its claims downward.
Check the terms and conditions to find out who the buyer or seller should theoretically bear the fees of the agency. On arrival, it is most often the buyer who pay the bill. Taking transaction costs himself, he underestimates indeed the official price which is calculated notary fees and registration fees it must pay.
Our advice: Do not set anything before the actual completion of the transaction. The agency fees are payable only after the signing of the deed at the notary.