You have decided to sell your home. You realize that, in this market, you need the skills of a real estate professional. You are about to start interviewing. You know what your goals are:

• Get the house sold
• Get the best price possible
• Sell the house in a certain timeframe
• Sell it with the least amount of hassles
• Coordinate the move to your new home

You wonder – What is the most important skill I should be looking for in an agent in order to accomplish these goals? The answer is simple.

The number one skill an agent can possess is the ability to negotiate in today’s extremely volatile real estate environment.

Why, you may ask. Let’s list just some of the people and entities your agent may be required to negotiate with on your behalf:

• The buyers – Whether the buyers are represented by an agent or not, your agent must decipher their wants and needs to guarantee that you will get the best deal.
• The buyers’ agent – Obviously, your agent will negotiate the deal in coordination with the other agent.
• The bank or mortgage company – You want to make sure your buyers are qualified before entering into contract.
• The closing attorney – Things might come up at closing that need to be handled.
• The home inspector – Often the deal has to be renegotiated after this report.
• The appraiser – Even under the most recent appraisal rules, the agent may be able to help you contest an appraisal if necessary.
• The buyers’ buyer – If your buyer has trouble with the deal on the house they are selling, it might require renegotiating certain aspects of their sale.
• The seller of the home you are buying – If there are challenges on your sale it might require you renegotiating certain aspects of your purchase.

You can see how important negotiating is to the transaction. Make sure you hire a great negotiator.

Warning: If the agent buckles on commission rate or duration when negotiating the original listing with you, do not hire him/her. At that time, they were negotiating for THEMSELVES and THEIR families. If they didn’t negotiate well then, they will not negotiate well for you and your family when they are in front of the people mentioned above. If they were Clark Kent in front of you, they will not magically turn into Superman when you need them.