Hiring a real estate professional is a must in today’s unique market. More than ever, it is important to take advantage of the knowledge and expertise of realtors such as John K who know the business. Read on to learn more about hiring a realtor.

Employ an expert

A typical property owner does not have anywhere near the home-selling experience of a real-estate agent. Agents can recommend relatively simple improvements — painting, repairing, decluttering — that can help a home sell faster and for a better price. “The Realtor is the neighborhood expert,” Moore says. “We can walk through a property and see right away what needs to be done to [get the home sold].” Independent sellers might not be aware of these tricks of the trade.

Use better tools

Homeowners using agents can get their property listed on popular websites such as the MLS and Realtor.com, “which has more far-reaching access to market that property — with over 3 million properties on it — than the for-sale-by-owner sites, which have tens of thousands,” Moore says. Independent sellers do not have access to these services.

Sidestep lawsuits

Agents can also protect sellers from potential litigation. “There are all kinds of liability issues that a seller could potentially face when … dealing one-on-one with a buyer,” Moore says. A homeowner could, for example, tell a potential buyer that hardwood floors extend to all corners of the house underneath the wall-to-wall carpeting. But if even one room has concrete flooring, the homeowner could be sued, Moore says. Agents, who have experience dealing with these liability issues, can help homeowners dodge such scenarios.

Duck the riffraff

Independent sellers might not have any idea whom they are letting into their homes during open houses. These potential buyers might not have the credit to make the purchase — and would therefore be wasting the homeowner’s time — or could even “try to rob them later on,” Moore says. “It’s a very scary kind of thing.” She says that homeowners working with agents will have qualified buyers visiting their properties.

Avoid hardball tactics

It’s a buyer’s market out there. And with all the information available online, today’s well-informed buyers are tough negotiators. Real-estate agents have been through the home-selling process before and are trained in negotiating tactics, giving them a potential edge in hammering out a deal in the seller’s best interest. “It’s hard to do that with your own property, particularly if you are not a professional,” Moore says.

Originally Written By Luke Mullins, U.S. News & World Report