Do you know the value of a REALTOR®?
What’s your opinion of real estate professionals? How about REALTORS®? Did you know there’s a difference?
Throughout my experience in the real estate field, I’ve encountered buyers and sellers with a wide variety of opinions on this topic, from delight and trust, to (unfortunately) avoidance and distrust. I would have to say that much of the distrust is probably due to lack of knowledge or understanding of the value we provide.
The National Association of REALTORS® has been working to improve public opinion, and understanding, of REALTORS® through public awareness campaigns. For 2006, they will be running TV, radio, and print campaigns that highlight a few things that many consumers may not know:
- A REALTOR® is a member of the National Association of REALTORS®, a trade association with members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
- REALTORS® bring honesty and integrity to every transaction; we pledge to adhere to a REALTOR® Code of Ethics and must complete quadrennial ethics training.
- Homes sold by a real estate professional sell on average for up to 16% higher than those sold by the owner. (Source: NAR 2005 Home Buyers and Sellers Study [more])
Keep an eye out for ads running on popular primetime shows such as 20/20, 60 Minutes, Without a Trace, CSI Miami, and ABC’s Extreme Makeover, Home Edition. You’ll also see spots thoughout the NCAA’s March basketball playoffs, and on cable channels such as HGTV and Discovery Home.
I’ve had some extremely delighted customers, who recommend me to their friends and relatives. I’m sure many of my fellow REALTORS® have similarly happy customers. But personally, I’m disappointed every time I encounter home buyers who appear to be driving around and calling on every interesting listing, but are not willing to take a few minutes to understand the value I can provide in their home search, or won’t allow me to earn their trust. Or sellers who believe that putting a sign in their yard and handling everything themselves will truly save them money. What’s disappointing is that these people, who are invariably friendly and nice folks, simply have no idea what they are missing.
By the way, if this is you, here’s a suggestion: invest an hour of time to find out more about what we can help you with, and spend some time interviewing agents. Choose the one you’re most comfortable with (and when you tell the others you’ve got an agent, they will leave you alone). You’ll be glad you did, I promise you. Oh, and one final important point: Ask if your agent is a REALTOR®, a member of the National Association of REALTORS®.