A real estate agent’s facilitator role means agents engage with various third-party vendors while representing buyer and seller interests. It takes many hands to bring a transaction to the closing table. Buyers and sellers rely on agent knowledge about which vendors are most trustworthy. Cultivating relationships with these vendors adds unforeseen value to your role and to your clients. Of special note are the partnerships with home inspectors, home appraisers, and home stagers.
Why partner with home inspectors
Real estate agents have a duty to communicate the home’s condition as clear as possible. Certified home inspectors give extra information necessary to form a more rounded picture of the home’s condition. Sellers rely on the inspections to identify issues before listing while buyers hope a general home inspection brings peace of mind.
Not all home inspectors are created equal. Nurturing a list of certified home inspection partners to offer clients is essential.
“An experienced agent and a skilled home inspector have a realistic perspective on homes in their respective markets. They know that almost every home has issues, and they know how to tell the difference between serious problems,” says Bill Gassett, Maximum Exposure Real Estate.
The best home inspectors provide detailed, factual information about the state of a home without exaggerating the findings or turning a reasonable home into a lemon. Some inspectors frequently suggest outside consultations for clear minor issues, like a foundation inspection for minor home settling. Other inspectors won’t actually get on the roof or enter the crawl space.
Homebuyers put a lot of trust in a home inspector’s report. Having trustworthy certified home inspection partners helps smooth the process while calming any fears clients may have.
Why partner with home appraisers
Real estate appraisers play a significant role in home sales. Mortgage lenders often hire this professional, but sometimes sellers want an appraisal before listing or the buyer wants a second opinion. Developing partnerships with quality home appraisers allows you to feel confident in your recommendations.
Real estate agents read thousands of appraisal reports during their careers. Read just a few and you’ll see appraisers range in quality. Nor should all appraisers assign a value to every property. Some homes don’t align with the appraiser’s experience. A luxury home and a condo need different approaches.
Determining home value isn’t as straightforward as laymen think. Home appraisers rely on real estate agents and vice versa. Both roles know what to look for when determining home value. A comparative market analysis shows how much other buyers are willing to pay for similar homes, but those numbers don’t complete the picture. Did the seller pay for the buyer’s closing costs? Where there any concessions that altered the price?
Appraisers often reach out to agents to ask for more information about their recent sales. Sometimes they ask for documentation about how the agent or seller arrived at their price. Note: it’s imperative to not influence the appraiser’s report. Many states have made it illegal to pressure an appraiser to arrive at a certain value.
Find and partner with the home appraisers qualified to assign a value to your client’s properties. Working together, you’ll keep refining your local home value knowledge to the betterment of your clients.
Why partner with home stagers
According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) 2019 Profile of Home Staging, buyer agents said 40 percent of the time home staging impacted how buyers viewed the home. Another 25 percent said staging increased the home’s perceived value 1 to 5 percent.
“Partnering with a professional home stager adds credibility to your business, tremendous value to your listing package and ultimately results in faster more profitable home sales,” says Home Staging Resources.
The key to adding value to home staging is to do it well. Stagers must know what makes a home attractive to current buyers. They must be skilled at bringing maximum value while working within a client’s budget.
Once you’ve found a stager whose work you like, creating a partnership will bring more value to your clients and your business.
Why real estate agents need partnerships
Homebuyers and sellers rely on an agent’s expertise on the housing market, but also on the other companies and vendors needed for a real estate transaction. Listing agents want the home sellers to get the maximum possible for their home. Buyer agents want to keep home buyers from overpaying or making a bad decision. Solid relationships with real estate home inspectors, home appraisers, and home stagers build a foundation for creating value and peace of mind with your clients.
