Are you thinking of selling your home in Northern VA? Dreading having to deal with strangers walking through the house? Are you concerned about getting the paperwork correct?

Hiring a professional real estate agent can take away most of the challenges of selling your home in Northern VA. A great agent is always worth more than the commission they charge just like a great doctor or great accountant. Here is proof that a good listing agent is worth the commission, For Sale By Owners Make Less Money.

You want to deal with one of the best agents in Northern VA. To do this, you must be able to distinguish the average agent from the great one.

When selling your house your listing agent must do these 5 things:

1. Understand Your Needs and Timetable

You will be moving your family to a new home. Whether the move revolves around the start of a new school year or the start of a new job, you will be trying to put the move to a plan. If you haven’t yet picked your new home, make sure the agent is capable and willing to help you. The coordination of the move is crucial.

This can be very emotionally draining. Demand from your agent an appreciation for your needs and timetables you are setting. Your agent cannot pick the exact date of your move, but they should exert any influence they can, to make it work.

2. Tell the Truth About the Price

Too many agents just take the listing at any price and then try to the ‘work the seller’ for a price correction later. There are other agents who purposely recommend a higher price to “win” the listing, called ‘buying the listing’. Demand that the agent prove to you that they have a belief in the price they are suggesting. Make them show you their plan to sell the house at that price – TWICE! Every house in today’s market in Northern VA must be sold two times – first to a buyer and then to the bank.

The second sale may be more difficult than the first. The residential appraisal process has gotten tougher. Surveys show that there was a challenge with the appraisal on almost 20% of all residential real estate transactions. It has become more difficult to get the banks to agree on the contract price. A red flag should be raised if your agent is not discussing this with you at the time of the listing.

3. Remove as many of the challenges as possible

It is imperative that your agent knows how to handle the challenges that will arise. An agent’s ability to negotiate is critical in this market. These skills come from years of experience and negotiating many deals.

Remember: If you have an agent who was weak negotiating with you on the parts of the listing contract that were most important to them and their family (commission, length, etc.), don’t expect them to turn into a super hero when they are negotiating for you and your family with the buyer.4. Customized Strategic Online Marketing and Advertising

Fact: Northern VA homes don’t just sell themselves!

In order to maximize the chance of a successful sale at the highest price and best terms for you, online marketing and advertising is crucial. The best marketing starts with professional photos/3D Tour and exceptional copy of unique property benefits to create buyers sense of urgency.

Unfortunately there are many agents with no online strategy, they simply place a sign, send some post cards and cross their fingers. In order to get the most exposure to potential buyers, agents must advertise with multiple tools and on multiple sites. The tools should be property website, mobile website, Landing pages, video, retargeting, analytic tracking, rss feeds, and social media integration just name a few. Utilizing these tools and pushing ads to potential buyers using advertising platforms like Google Adwords, Adwerx, and Homesnap at minimum. This will advertise your listing on hundreds of websites potential buyers are visiting.

Keep in mind that successful online advertising is in the details and all is not equal. Leveraging big data and algorithums to pinpoint potential buyers and then marketing those specific buyers is a must.

5. Get to Settlement and SOLD!

Once your home is under contract, there are still many items to negotiate, contingencies to clear and challenges to overcome. You certainly do not want inexperience or laziness on your listing agents part to cause a deal to go bad.

There is a reason you are putting yourself and your family through the process of moving.

You are moving on with your life in some way. The reason is important or you wouldn’t be dealing with the headaches and challenges that come along with selling. Do not allow your agent to forget these motivations. Constantly remind them that selling the house is why you hired them. Make sure that they don’t worry about your feelings more than they worry about your family. If they discover something needs to be done to attain your goal (i.e. price correction, repair, removing clutter), insist they have the courage to inform you.

Good agents know how to deliver good news. Great agents know how to deliver tough news. In today’s market, YOU NEED A GREAT AGENT! Selling your home in Northern VA, get your listing in front of targeted potential buyers on over 1000 web sites.