“Personal service and sound advice are still the factors most likely to leave a seller feeling satisfied that the price achieved is the best possible within a given time. Personal recommendation seems to carry the most weight but that should not take precedence over matching a property with a particular firm.”
“Nothing can compensate for good communications down to the smallest detail, such as sending clients a clipping of every advertisement. Reputation is very important but even so, some people ask surprisingly little about how their property will be handled.”
“Our biggest mistake was to appoint an agent for emotional reasons. Knowing someone is not a good enough reason. The agent sold much cheaper houses and had no idea how to market ours. Nobody suitable came to see it in the space of five months. Her second mistake was to appoint a small company through a personal recommendation.” “You have to be hard — headed in the choice of agent; there is no room for any kind of personal stuff.”
“A criticism heard often from vendors whose properties sell quickly is that the agents have not worked hard enough for their fees. But this fails to take into account the work done behind the scenes. A good agent should not have to start cold when taking on a property.”
“The track record is crucial because it is the only way someone has of measuring and agent’s performance...” “Most people will instruct on the highest valuation and the lowest fee, but these two factors are not enough to base a decision on.”
“Everyone should ask hard questions of an agent. Case history is the best guarantee that anyone has.”