How do you pick a realtor?

[Crankin]

Ask friends who they recommend. Interview more than one. Ask about their sales record. Do the pre-research on your own, and set realistic expectations. Use the web to see what's out there and go to lots of open houses. If you are selling, spruce up your house, get rid of knick nacks and personal stuff like pictures, religious items, etc.
We are on house #5. Three out of the four we sold were all sold in horrible markets, within 3 months because we had good agents and we didn't expect to become millionaires from the sale.

[malkin]

Last Sunday we went to open houses to check out the realtors.

House 1: Time listed on web site was wrong. Homeowner invited us in anyway, but we declined.

House 2: Signs indicated that the open house was at least happening.
We confidently walk in the open front door, to find an infant in a carrier sitting on the dining table next to a half eaten tuna sammich and an open can of diet coke. I was ready to bolt, but Brewer proceeded through the tiny house, to the yard where the owner/agent was praising her chickens to another prospective buyer.

House 3: We are greeted at the door by the realtor who professionally dressed, but barefooted. We all introduce ourselves, and I comment on her last name which is shared by an acquaintance. Indeed they are related, in fact, he has recently died, and she proceeds to tell us a little bit TMI about his memorial. We wander through the house and SURPRISE! downstairs, we meet the owner and her baby who are having a breastfeeding moment!

When did babies become an accessory to real estate sales?!

I was ready to just forget about it, and go on tormenting the downstairs people with my deplorable piano practicing....but now there's a new listing on a house around the corner!!

[Crankin]

OK, those agents suck. The homeowner is never supposed to be home during an open house and preferably not even during a showing.
I will never forget the house scouting trip we made a year before we moved back to MA. We saw: houses with unflushed toilets and underwear strewn around, houses with ironing boards set up in the family room, houses that were 200K over our price range with no central AC, on a 95 degree day, and finally, a house where when my DH went to go up the back steps to the deck, he fell through the step! Oh, and then there was the house where the garage door fell off as the agent was raising it... This was during the "boom" of the late 80s. People were selling houses for way more than the list price and the condition didn't matter at all. Of course, a year later, when we moved, things were quite different.
No wonder so many houses don't sell!

[Melalvai]

I kind of like the breastfeeding baby.
I think finding a realtor is like finding a spouse: largely a matter of luck. I prefer whenever possible to go with friends' recommendations, whether it is a mechanic, electrician, veterinarian, realtor, etc. That's not fool-proof either, though.
Good luck!

[malkin]

Two open houses today, better than last week.

1. Condo comparable to ours (sort of). Realtor was fully clothed and professional, although she did mention twice that because her "husband has a job" she doesn't have to work very hard. The condo was vacant, with new paint and carpet, which I was allergic to. Cough, cough, cough *sniffle.*

We determine that it would be better for us to move out and paint, etc. before trying to sell.

2. Craftsman style bungalow house. Brewer went to play poker, so I set off bravely to a different neighborhood, trying to imagine whether or not I could survive there. The house reminded me of a place I lived in Berkeley, except without the hippie & tap dancer roommates. I liked the realtor; she was realistic & nice. Maybe not bossy enough commandeer the situation. I think I'll send Brewer to talk to her.

I guess I'm nervous because while I don't like this place all that much, we've worked it out so it works for us; we could do a lot worse.

(My dad and step-mum have teased me that I am having the first known case of buyers remorse before even buying anything!)

[indysteel]

I would suggest getting your own realtor to attend open houses with you. If you end up interested in using a realtor you meet at an open house to buy that particular property, rememeber that the realtor will then be representing both you and the seller (assuming that's allowed in your state). I'm not a big fan of dual represenation because I think there are inherent and unavoidable conflicts.

Just my two cents.

[tiva]

To sell a place, interview 3 or 4 agents at your place (which should be in impeccable, showable condition for the interviews: spotless, freshly painted, with 2/3 of the junk in storage elsewhere.) Ask them each to run comps and give you a listing price. Begin to negotiate with them on their commission (which will depend on the location and the market). When you get each agent's offer, decide after a phone conversation with the one you liked the best. Don't choose on their suggested listing price alone, but rather on their marketing plan, how well you get along with them, and your conversations with their references. (Choose the 3 or 4 agents to invite for interviews by visiting open houses in your neighborhood and chatting with the agents, to get a sense of who is professional, reliable, courteous, and compatible. And, of course, ask for recommendations from trusted friends.)

To buy a place, sign a contract with a buyer's agent who represents you, and never the seller.

My sister, a broker, gave me this advice, and it has stood me on good stead for the various houses I've bought and sold.