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Author: Seeff, 02 March 2018,
News

How to help your agent sell better

The relationship between you, as the seller, and your agent is an important one. Communication and honesty are important - and it goes both ways, says Steve van Wyk, Seeff’s MD in Centurion.

Find out how providing your agent with the right information will help them sell better:

-          It is very important for sellers to let agents guide them in determining the selling price of a property. Many sellers are tempted to overprice their property, but buyers are savvy and don’t buy overpriced properties as they have access to the internet to compare properties and prices and visit show houses in the area. An agent will do a comparative market analysis whereby your property will be compared to other properties that have been sold in the area as well as properties for sale. It is important to trust your agent and to let the findings of this analysis guide you in determining the selling price.

-          Grant a sole mandate to one agent. Agents who have a sole mandate will invest more time, effort and marketing expenditure in selling your property. If you trust an agent enough to grant a sole mandate and the selling price is right you are almost guaranteed of a sale.

-          Sellers should disclose all latent defects they are aware of to an agent. If you as a seller don’t disclose this and it is picked up during a home inspection at a later stage this could impact on the relationship between you and the agent and it might lead to the matter being settled in court.

-          As a seller you should try to give the agent access to your home when they request it. Equally important of course is for agents to respect the privacy of the seller and to be reasonable, but an agent can’t sell your home if they can’t show it to buyers.

-          Equip the agent with all the knowledge they need about the property and then leave the property on show days if possible. Buyers aren’t always comfortable asking all the questions they want to when a seller is present, but you should trust your agent to give truthful answers in your absence.