Local agent vs non local

Discussion in 'The Buying & Selling Process' started by ibizzle, 3rd Sep, 2015.

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  1. ibizzle

    ibizzle Member

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    Hi guys,
    I am in the process of meeting some real estate agents and listening to their marketing pitches, understanding fees etc.

    Would it be preferable to pick an agent that is dominant in that local area? Do they have an advantage in this day and age given everyone is looking online etc.

    The group which I saw recently isn't local, but they pitched the idea of having 80 + sales agents all around Melbourne which can reach a 'wider buyer' net.

    Property is in the northern suburbs of Melbourne.

    Cheers
     
  2. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

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    I like a local agent because they "should" have more of a clue about where your house sits compared to other local houses. I would think most buyers are coming off the internet, and not from "80+ sales agents" around the city so from that perspective, it doesn't matter much.

    Also, if the agent is 20 minutes away, do you think they are happy to drop everything and meet a prospective purchaser at short notice?
     
  3. Perthguy

    Perthguy Well-Known Member

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    It depends if they have a good sales track record. I am currently looking for an agent in the Heidelberg area. I have analysed recent sales in the area and picked agents who have run good campaigns and have good results in the area. Personally, I'm not really interested in an out of area agent.
     
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  4. Big Will

    Big Will Well-Known Member

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    the local REA, an out of area one will not know the market as well, will not have the same database as the local one but also how can the service your house properly? Lets say the REA is based 30 mins away from you now lets work out the maths of open houses.

    open houses usually last for 30 minutes however the agent needs to be there before and is the last one to leave as he needs to lock up etc etc so lets pretend 45 mins the agent is there.

    This allows the local agent 15 mins to get to the next open house. If your agent has to drive 30 mins to get to you and 30 mins back that is 1 extra open house he could of done.

    This would mean your open house will most likely be the last one (3:00 maybe 4:00 or 5:00?) or the very first one like 9:00.

    They cannot put it in the peak time as he could run 2 properties in the same time as your one.
     
  5. headsonbeds

    headsonbeds Well-Known Member

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    If I'm looking to buy I always try to find listings with out of suburb agents! That says it all. I try to use one of the top agents for your product (house or unit) in the local area. It's good if you like them a little and trust them a little as well
    Out of interest what commission do you guys pay in Melbourne? Where about 2.5% in Bris.
     
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  6. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

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    Son's recent purchase was with an out of area agent, listed as two bedrooms when simply putting a door back onto what was a bedroom made it three bedrooms again. The photos were bad, tenants made open house difficult.

    I jumped on it quickly.
     
  7. ibizzle

    ibizzle Member

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    These are all great points. I raised the issue of leaning towards a local agent, and he was like it doesn't make any difference of local vs non local given the internet, their network of existing contacts all over melbourne and having the agents share in any commission if they can land a buyer.
     
  8. Perthguy

    Perthguy Well-Known Member

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    This is true as long as they run a good marketing campaign and price the property correctly. In my experience, out of area agents often under price properties. A good database of buyers is a consideration, although since everyone is looking on the internet anyway, are they as valuable as they used to be?
     
  9. ibizzle

    ibizzle Member

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    agreed on the points above. my initial feeling was to pick a local agent that 'dominates' the market so-to-speak. Will they get the highest price? i'm not 100% sure. I guess it ends up being a self fulfilling prophecy where existing presence = more sales in the future.
     
  10. Sackie

    Sackie Well-Known Member

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    I agree. I absolutely adore OOTA. Love em, love em! love em!! ;)
     
  11. Perthguy

    Perthguy Well-Known Member

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    If you are thinking about selling via auction, maybe try to go to some of the auctions. I know a good auctioneer seems to be able to get a better price. But is that just an illusion? I'm not sure. The market will pay what the market will pay I guess. Still, I wouldn't hire an auctioneer that seemed to struggle at running auctions. There is one like that in Perth. Completely hopeless.
     
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  12. Sackie

    Sackie Well-Known Member

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    I don't know.. but I've seen some really good auctioneers that seem to get great prices and some others seem to give in too quick... I do think it will make a difference
     
  13. 738

    738 Well-Known Member

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    It depends on what area. What suburb are you in?
     
  14. Esh

    Esh Well-Known Member

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    I think the biggest thing to factor is the agent themselves. How motivated and enthusiastic are they. Do they have a good strategy. Follow your gut too, if you can have a good flowing conversation with them, this will happen with buyers. If you don't trust them, neither will the buyers.

    Local agent database is important but internet does reach about 95% of buyers. (Never hurts to get more) at the same time, no matter how big anyone's database is, if they are not talking to their buyers everyday it's useless. In some circumstances I think out of area agent can work positively. For example, an agent from an area (not too far from yours) who's median house price in their market is more than yours. If they have a database of buyers looking to purchase something for e.g $700,000 range and your property is only 15 mins away, matches their criteria but they can buy for $650,000. This will be a bargain and if that agent has a database of buyers who are cashed up and may not have considered your area, this could work in your favour
     
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  15. ibizzle

    ibizzle Member

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    Apologies for late response. Northern suburbs in Melbourne - Council of Whittlesea area

    I will definitely watch a few auctions over next coming weeks.
     
  16. Perthguy

    Perthguy Well-Known Member

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    @ibizzle, what are you asking your agents? I am just about to contact agents now and I was thinking of this:
    1) how much do you think the property will sell for?
    2) what price would you list the property at?
    3) what type of sale would you recommend for this property?
    4) how would you market the property?
    5) what are your costs for selling the property?

    EDIT: also, some examples of recent sales in the area.
     
    Last edited: 7th Sep, 2015
  17. ibizzle

    ibizzle Member

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    Hi Perthguy, You've pretty much covered everything I would have asked..
    I've met with two agents and have asked the following qn's in no particular order:

    -marketing strategy,
    -realistic price range
    -recommendation of private vs auction sale
    -marketing method, printed newspaper, online etc
    -how does the sales team interact with each other given you have a number of offices, do they split the commission with whoever can introduce a buyer?
    - proposed fee structure, flat vs accelerated to provide incentives to the agent
    -next steps

    I keep an eagle eye on current historical sales in the area but am always keen to see what they selectively show as precedent sales.
     
  18. Perthguy

    Perthguy Well-Known Member

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    @ibizzle. I contacted my short list of agents today. I caught all but 2 and one of those has called me back. It was actually 5 but I had to add one because one agent has already jumped to another agency! :eek:

    Something I picked up when talking to them was that many auctioneers have videos available to view. Also, some have staff in the crowd to "encourage" buyers to keep bidding. Anyway, here is a list of the questions I sent them.

    1) how much do you think the property will sell for?

    2) what price would you list the property at?

    3) what type of sale would you recommend for this property?

    4) how would you market the property?

    5) between now and December, when do you think would be a good time to sell?

    6) could you please provide some of your recent sales in the area

    7) if your recommendation is to sell via auction, who would be the auctioneer? And could you please provide some examples of recent auctions the auctioneer has conducted.

    8) what would be your total costs for selling the property?
    9) if the auctioneer charges separately how much do they charge?
     
  19. TMNT

    TMNT Well-Known Member

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    ive never sold but from a objective perspective, I see very little upside of using a out of town agents, here is what I can see

    pros
    very little, maybe if they are keen to get into the area, they will try harder or if the existing agent is complaceant or arrogant becasue they have the market covered

    cons
    they dont know the area
    getting to the site will be harder so more work for the agent
    they dont know the streets or the good or bad areas
    they have less local contacts to refer any other potential buyers
    face to face is harder

    anyone disagree?
     
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  20. Perthguy

    Perthguy Well-Known Member

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    Depends how far the office is away from the property you are selling. I contacted an area agent for my Melbourne property who has moved offices to a neighouring suburb. It's pretty much a half hour drive from the house to his office. Personally, I think that is too far and I will be selecting an agent that is closer.
     

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