Everyone knows someone in real estate. An aunt or an uncle, a cousin or maybe a brother or a sister of a very close friend. There are many ways to find a real estate agents, but today we are going to discuss “Why its Hard to Find a Great Real Estate Agent in Sacramento” or better yet why the average seller may not even bother?
Let’s start with the first 8,456 reasons, because that is exactly the number of active real estate agents in Sacramento. That is not even counting the other 4,713 in Elk Grove or the 2,732 active real estate agents in Rancho Cordova CA. You get the point… So what are the chances that you are going to pick up the phone and get one of the top 5% on the first, second or third try? Hell, what are the chances that you are going to get an up and coming, top of their game, soon to be heavy hitter if you are not willing to do any homework? You might as well buy a scratch-er because the research is in. If you do not select the best real estate agent in Sacramento the cost of selling your house just increased by 13%.
There is no doubt about it, there are a lot of real estate agents in every market, but what most sellers don’t understand is that when selling a house the success or failure, begins with themselves and their houses. Most homeowners don’t realize that they are the real drivers for the success or failure in selling a house. If more sellers understood their role, they would actively set the tone, look at the data and detail their priorities regarding price, budgets, repairs, upgrades, time frames, etc. Once that is done, the seller needs to pick the right real estate agent that is capable of the task, otherwise your house may be one of the 38% of the homes that just sits and eventually expires from the multiple listing service without receiving an offer.
No one talks about the numbers and I make it a point to, because if you really need to sell your house fast in Sacramento you owe it to yourself and your family to know how the real numbers work and start using them to your advantage. The real problem is that sellers are making massive assumptions about the skills, education and qualifications of all real estate agents in Sacramento and that quite frankly is not going to sell a house. Sellers need to realize that not all real estate agents are marketing specialists, digital marketing gurus or even top notch salespeople. The ugly truth is that many have never even sold a single house.
Think I don’t know what I am talking about? How about this statistic… 87% of all real estate agents quit within their first 5 years. Why is that? Shouldn’t you know if the agent you are hiring is in their first month or last month? Shouldn’t you know whether or not your agent has ever dealt with a bad lender, bad home inspection or a bad appraisal? Shouldn’t you know whether or not your real estate agent has a college degree or even owns a house themselves? Why is it that when selling the largest asset that we have most sellers just want to rush to offload the entire responsibility onto a complete stranger and declare all real estate agents equal? There are so many questions that I have for homeowners, especially the 72% that just hire the first real estate agent they talk to, almost like they were checking off an item on a grocery list. To do… Sell house… Hire any ole real estate agent TODAY. Seriously?
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What Does it take to become a Real Estate Agent?
It’s so easy to confuse the topic of today’s article, with what does it take to become a great real estate agent? Unfortunately they are not the same. The two maybe loosely linked but only in the sense that if you are a great real estate agent you are also a real estate agent. I make the distinction because becoming a real estate agent has very few barriers and is not very complicated. In fact, it requires the applicant to take a single test and pass with 70%. That is a C-.
Aside from the test, there is no formal training and I was shocked to find out that the education to become a real estate agent had more to do with understanding real estate contracts and disclosures than any real marketing. Here is the thing… while understanding contracts is important when selling a house, what real estate agents use is a 15 page form that is designed to be easy. It has to be if any C Minus student can fill it out. This isn’t a pot shot at great real estate agents, this is a warning to all sellers that you are paying a portion of your equity to a real estate agent. Shouldn’t you at least hire the best one available? Shouldn’t you hire the one that has a proven real estate marketing plan?
Why It’s Hard to Find a Great Real Estate Agent in Sacramento?
Finding a great real estate agent is about finding out who has the most experience in getting homes sold. It is about finding that person that can create a great marketing plan to get the greatest number of eyeballs viewing your house from the very first day. Real estate agents want you to believe it doesn’t matter, because the rank and file do NOT KNOW HOW to Differentiate themselves and that is why almost every presentation that sellers receive look the same. It is why sellers become so frustrated and just throw their hands in the air.
Here is the final thought. Real estate is a business that is structured to sell houses, shouldn’t the priority in that process be about “Selling” the house? Shouldn’t your real estate agent understand its own business model as it relates to selling your house. Are you under the impression that because a broker gave your real estate agent a chair that they are qualified and capable. Passing a test is just one qualification, getting your house sold is another and every seller should understand that each real estate agent is an independent contractor, with their own background, baggage, work ethic, dreams and aspirations.
I think that I just uncovered the real answer. Real estate is a business and yet more than 87% of real estate agents dont fully appreciate or understand the business that they are in or the training that they lack. That would also mean that the homeowners that hire them don’t either.
You have an incentive to bash agents as it is in your business model to buy low and sell high. Yes agents add to the cost and reduce a seller’s return. But they also expose a seller’s home to a larger pool of buyers which is the primary reason for the price increase. They also protect a seller and ensure the transaction is well accomplished. It likely is not in your interest for a seller to know what their house is worth or to have someone compete with you on the sale price.
Randy, I am not sure that you read my article at all. I was not bashing all real estate agents. My article’s title is “Why it’s Hard to Find a Great Real Estate Agent in Sacramento”. The article is about the difficulty in finding a great real estate agent and I was merely pointing out that in Sacramento alone there are over 8,400 active real estate agents. I point out that nearly 87% of them fail within the first 5 years. That is an indictment of the industry for setting the bar too low to get in and another for no training on how to run a business once a real estate agent is given a chair.
Hiring anyone comes with pitfalls, but in real estate it is particularly burdensome for homeowners that don’t even know the right questions to ask. I am not a foe of all real estate agents and contrary to your opinion of my business model, I rarely buy low. I buy at fair market minus the cost of repairs and some holding cost. I don’t order inspections and I don’t need a bank to approve my purchases. I offer homeowners an alternative to traditionally selling a house that needs a lot of repairs that will not pass inspections or appraisals.
Real estate is a numbers game and there are a lot more statistics that the real estate industry would like to bury;
87% of all real estate agents wash out or quit
38% of all listings represented by a real estate agent expire
30% of financing gets declined and the sales fall out of escrow (seller must start over)
The Average Days on the Market is Increasing from 45 to 90 days
The Number of Houses on the Market is still less than a buyers market
Home Prices while level are very high making the buyers very anxious
5% of the real estate agents do 95% of the business
Asking Price and Sales Price are different animals
New Discount Real Estate Firms are popping up every day and undercut commissions and service
The cost of fixing and updating a house is getting more expensive and does not always pay off
Thank you for you input