When you sell your home or want to buy a home, that’s the time to use an experienced California real estate agent. Let’s face it. An inexperienced real estate agent can cost you time and money.
Inexperienced agents often miss the ideal fit you seek in your new home. Plus, they don’t know how to negotiate effectively on your behalf when you sell or buy.
How to Gauge Real Estate Experience
Don’t bother with asking an agent how much experience he or she has. Salespersons tend to brag about their experience from the first day working.
Instead, ask the agent how many times he or she renewed their real estate license. California agents’ licenses get renewed every four years. [See the California Department of Real Estate (CDRE) Renewing Your License.]
Also, check out the CDRE website to verify a California agent’s license. And, see if the agent ever had ethical violations or any disciplinary actions by the State of California.
After knowing how many license renewals the agent experienced and verifying it with the CDRE, you will know the agent’s experience. Also, researching any ethical violations gives you an idea of the agent’s honesty.
Benefits of Using an Experienced California Real Estate Agent
Anyone can search for online homes for sale listings. Also, anyone can schedule a viewing of a home for sale.
Just visit the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Library’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS): Housing & Real Estate.
There you will find links to the Trulia Real Estate Search and the Zillow Real Estate Data Portal for current national real estate listings. Also, links to the U.S. Census Housing Data and the National Association of Realtors Housing Statistics for detailed data about locations across the country.
So, if you can search for home sale listings nationally and get useful data about their locations, do you still need a California real estate agent?
Yes, because agents perform other functions than locating homes for sale. Here are several ways an experienced agent offers you valuable advice.
Pulse on the local real estate market: An experienced agent identifies and predicts local market trends. Like an experienced stockbroker telling you what to buy and when to sell. Which neighborhoods are trending up or down? When should you sell and when to wait? Experienced agents know the local market prices and trends.
Networking with other agents: Experienced agents know buyer’s agents which helps you to sell faster. It’s all about finding the right fit. For instance, if you want to buy a certain type of home or in a specific neighborhood, your agent lets other agents know. One of them can recognize a perfect fit and contacts your agent. Experienced agents maintain a tight-knit group who share information.
Experience with negotiations: Negotiating the best price for sellers and buyers is an art. The more an agent negotiates, the art form gets better honed. Experienced agents get insights into sellers’ and buyers’ motivations. This experience separates the sellers motivated to sell quickly from those willing to wait for a better deal.
Community connections: Experienced agents maintain contacts at federal, state, and local government agencies. A friend at City Hall opens more doors. If a large national company intends to build a new local factory an experienced agent knows about it before the local media. Plus, how it affects the local market and specific neighborhoods. Experienced agents always know about changes or new developments in the community.
Good referrals: Selling or buying a home requires working with:
Title companies;
Escrow companies;
Mortgage lenders;
Appraisers;
Home inspectors;
Pest inspectors; and
General contractors.
Experienced agents know who to avoid and who to trust.
Use Experienced Close Friends and Relatives as Your California Real Estate Agent
It’s tempting to help out a relative or a close friend just newly licensed as your real estate agent.
But, use experienced relatives and close friends instead. That’s because selling or buying a home sometimes becomes the biggest economic decision in your life.
You will feel comfortable knowing friends and relatives act in your best interests while aware of your personal goals. There is no better person than an experienced agent who is a family member because they will help you navigate the process better.
Plenty of Inexperienced Real Estate Agents
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report, “Real Estate Brokers and Sales Agents: Job Outlook” expects jobs for real estate agents to grow 7% by 2028. More than 2% higher growth compared to other jobs.
A true test of a real estate agent occurs when the market is down, like during the past year’s COVID-19 pandemic. The experienced agents know how to weather the storm. While the inexperienced agents falter.
The biggest reason real estate agents quit the business is not making enough money. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Real Estate Brokers and Sales Agents: Pay,” the median income for U.S. real agents is around $48,000 per year. The lowest-paid earned less than $25,000. Not enough to pay the mortgage and raise a family.
So, inexperienced real estate agents won’t look out for your interests when it comes to earning larger commissions.
Besides asking about experience, look into these traits to help you know more about the agent:
Time management and organization: Experienced agents maintain many clients. The best ones manage their time and succeed as organized professionals. They keep appointments and reply to messages quickly.
Patience: Conflicts often occur during real estate transactions. Agents who calmly listen and think logically possess patience.
Communication: Experienced agents should project an outgoing personality. Good communication skills make an agent’s job easier. If you feel an agent is likable and communicates well, other sellers and buyers probably feel the same way. That’s what you want.
Marketing expertise: Ask yourself, would you buy anything from this person? If your answer is not a resounding “Yes”, don’t work with that agent.
Why You Need to Use an Experienced California Real Estate Agent - Conclusion
You just learned why you need to use an experienced California real estate agent. Asking a real estate agent about experience usually results in self-promotion. Research an agent yourself with the California Department of Real Estate website.
The benefits of using an experienced California real estate agent include:
Knowing the local market prices and trends;
Maintain a tight-knit group who share information;
Experienced with negotiations to your advantage;
Always know about changes or new developments in the community; and
Maintain good referrals with real estate professionals to benefit you.
If available, use experienced close friends and relatives as your California real estate agent. You know and trust them to always act in your best interests.
Many inexperienced real estate agents won’t look out for your interests when it comes to commissions.
An experienced California real estate agent possess these traits:
Organization and time management skills;
Patience to remain calm, listen to you, and think logically;
Communication skills; and
Marketing expertise to quickly sell listings and gets the trust of clients.
Want to Use an Experienced California Realtor?
All our experienced agents at SoCal Lifestyle Realty are Realtors too. Read about the benefits that Realtors offer over real estate agents, Is a Realtor Better Than a Real Estate Agent?
As a Realtor®, every one of our agents agrees to follow a Code of Ethics that the National Association of Realtors strictly enforces.
Realtors promise honesty and fairness to all parties we deal with. Also, we pledge to put the interests of our clients above our own.
Contact us for all your real estate sales and purchasing needs in the greater San Diego area.