Ways a REALTOR® can help you when buying or selling a home

Last week we talked about the fact that not all real estate agents are REALTORS® and that using a REALTOR® can provide a competitive edge when buying or selling a home.

Remember, REALTORS® have to adhere to the ethics set forth by the National Association of REALTORS®. And locally, as members of the Memphis Area Association of REALTORS®, they also have to abide by MAAR’S policies.

I won’t go over the same terrain as last week, but know this: The NAR Code of Ethics promises that when dealing with a REALTOR®, the public can expect honest and ethical treatment in all transaction-related matters.

Now, let’s move on to the specifics as to how a REALTOR® can assist sellers and buyers.

Let’s start with sellers. The NAR Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers found that one thing mattered above all else when sellers were selecting a real estate agent: reputation.

More than anything else in this world, reputation has to be earned. If honesty or integrity are compromised, reputation takes a hit. The NAR Profile found that 65 percent of sellers reported they would “definitely” use the same agent again. That’s a pretty good rate given all the variables.

So,howcanarealtor® helpaseller? Again, referring to the NAR Profile, about a quarter of people expected help marketing their home. Many also were looking for help in selling a home within a specific timeframe.

Providing competitive pricing was very important to about a fifth of all sellers and around 15 percent expected help in finding a buyer.

Truth is, a REALTOR® can be of valuable assistance in all these areas and take a lot of stress out of the process.

Now what about buyers? The process of finding a home is stressful, too. The NAR Profile reported more than 85 percent of buyers said they would probably use the same agent again. About the same number of buyers were very satisfied with their agent’s knowledge of the purchase process.

Buyers consistently looked to their REALTOR® to answer questions and help them understand the process in a step-by-step way. And most, approaching 90 percent, said they relied on an agent and/or broker to help them complete their transaction.

Last week, I promised some online resources. Here they are: WWW.REALTOR.COM. It’s the world’s largest database of homes for sale; meantime, WWW.REALTOR.ORG has national housing research and statistics.

And again, I encourage you to click on the link below that will take you to MAAR’S Web site and our area market statistics. You can find macro information about sales and pricing for the market as a whole, but also monthby-month and year-to-date sales and pricing information for more than 20 different submarkets. Here is that link: https://www.maar.org/news-events/ market-statistics/