KASS: How to find a broker

Dear Benny:     We plan to sell our house this spring and want to use a real estate broker. However, there are a number of brokers and agents who would love to list our house and we don’t know how to decide between all of them.

– Karen.

Dear Karen. At the very least, you have to personally interview every agent/broker you are considering. A broker friend has prepared a list of questions to ask, and here are some of them:(1) do you know our neighborhood? What about schools, stores and transportation? I would give each prospective broker a test question– such as where is the nearest library, to see if this agent really knows the area;(2) how many homes/condos/cooperatives did you sell last year? (3) how long were the houses you listed on the market? And how will you market our house? Will there be open houses, and will you –or an associate–personally attend? Will you be “staging”our house (that basically means cleaning up your messy house and rearranging (or replacing) the furniture, and (4) what’s a ballpark of the market value of our house and how did you make that determination?

Dear Benny: We are looking to sell our house. There is one other house for sale on our block. Should we use the same broker who is selling the other house or should we consider getting our own real estate broker to sell our house?

– Peg.

Dear Peg: That’s a difficult question to answer without knowing a lot of facts, including responses to the questions I suggested in the earlier column.

In general, however, I would be reluctant to use the same broker. If, for example, a couple were interested in both houses, how would that broker be able to properly represent you? Could that broker praise only your house? Don’t you think your neighbor would be upset, or vice versa?

Even if that other broker does not get both listings, he/she will still be trying to market both houses, so that a commission can be earned.

Accordingly, I would think long and hard about using that same broker? I know my real estate professional friends may disagree and I welcome any input.

RESPONSES FROM A READER:

I was reading the column where you have a household complaining about a neighbor’s tree. The complaining party mentioned the other homeowner apparently had no money, with the house being in extreme disrepair. In your response, I did not see any mention of trying to help the woman. She might have dementia; she might need help from local groups that donate time and building materials to help in situations such as this one. With broken windows and holes, this lady might need help, not condemnation. Gail.

MY RESPONSE:

Gail, you are absolutely correct; I should have been more compassionate, more sensitive. We often forget we are human beings, and while the complaining neighbor had a tree problem, the other homeowner probably had more problems. I received several emails complaining that I was ignoring the other homeowner and apologize for my insensitivity.