Choosing a Realtor

I think it's important for a realtor to know the area, but it's also important to keep family peace!
Realtors list and sell houses all the time in different areas. If she does her homework, it should be fine.

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When I had my real estate license, I had the painful experience of family members choosing another agent for the purchase of their home. Their reason was my lack of experience by they had no idea how much experience the agents they did end up using actually had. It was very hurtful to me to see two family members and one friend close and no one choose me to represent them even though I took each of them out and did my homework and was very attentive to each of them. Their decision to close with someone else was money out of my family's mouths. At the time I was going through a very difficult financial time and those commissions would have helped.

I'm still in a financial rough patch because the money you earn from a 9-5 isn't the same as three commissions that would have happened within three weeks of each other. Another big ouch.

I would recommend interview her about your concerns, and interview others and then go with your gut. You have no way of knowing what she is capable of if you never give her a chance.

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Call her and talk to her. She can tell you if she feels comfortable selling in that area. If not, she can refer you to someone who can. Or if you don't feel comfortable with her answer, then ask her to refer you to someone who does specialize in your area. When she does a referral she still gets a check, just smaller.

Business is business...and she should be able to recognize that this is a big transaction for you and she needs to represent you well. If she can't, it's just as fair for you/her to say so and pass you along.

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I would go with someone familiar with the area. This is a big purchase and you want the best person helping you. If it comes up, just explain that you wanted someone with intimate knowledge of the area. Any professional should understand.

If she were a realtor in your area, or the area in which you are buying, then yes. But in this market, you really need someone who knows your area. It would be a very foolish economic decision to go with someone who doesn't--an expensive one that could cost you thousands and time. If you have plenty of both to blow, then by all means hire her. But this situation calls for practicality, not sentimentality. You wouldn't hire your sister, the gastroenterologist, to do your brain surgery would you?

1) You will be much better off using Realtors who know the area(s) you are dealing with. The person helping you sell your house should be able to give you insight that will allow you to price and stage your current home so that it will sell as quickly as possible and maximize the price you receive for it. The person helping you buy a house should focus on finding what you are looking for in your price range.
2) Business relationships with family can be very tricky and lead to years of animosity if one or both parties feel like they got the short end of the stick.

Maybe ask your SIL if she can recommend a reputable firm to deal with for the areas you are looking into, ask her advice when possible, etc. I would explain to your brother that because of the locations you are looking at, you don't think it would be fair to ask your SIL to commute that far to show your house and that while you value her input and insight, these decisions are big enough that you feel you need a local expert.

It's not the area the person knows, it's what kind of real estate person she is. My mother sold real estate and didn't do very well. She was somewhat shy and not very pushy. And I noticed when I was house hunting that the ones who seem to do well find all sorts of little things about a particular house..."oh wouldn't that spot by the steps look great at Christmas time with the tree in front of it?" get my drift? Only you can assess what kind of person she is. From where I am looking unless you changed the name of your area for FB purposes, you really are closer to the western suburbs than the north shore anyway and there is so much good to talk about she might not be able to stop...Good luck and have fun in your new house.

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fr

Our first realtor didn't know the area we were looking in, and it didn't work out (she was also a family friend). We now have a realtor who lives in the area we're looking in, and it's working out much better. I recommend going with someone who knows the area - they can give you helpful hints, as they know from experience.

Good luck!

I think it is important to use a realtor that knows the area. I would imagine that if she is a good and fair realtor she would recognize this and not be offended that you didn't use her.

Are you looking far northern suburbs, or north side of the city? We were extremely happy with our realtor, Ryan Gossett (@Properties). We searched for 3 years for the perfect place, and finally bought in June. (The length of time we looked was due to our pickiness, having a baby, etc, so we kept stopping and starting.) He was very patient, extremely professional, and when we finally fell in love with a place he went ABOVE AND BEYOND to make it happen. I believe that if it were any other realtor we would not be living here right now.
I think you need a realtor in the area you're looking just because it's easier to show houses (travel time, etc). Other than that I think one should choose a realtor based on compatibility, ability to listen to your needs, etc. We first met Ryan when we were interviewing a couple of different realtors, and would now consider him a friend. He even bought us a baby gift when our son was born (and we were not at all in the looking stage right then.)

I've worked for real estate lawyers for nearly 15 years now. If nothing goes wrong and you know exactly what neighborhood you want to be in and the price point, sure, you could use anyone. But I do think someone who is familiar with the area will have a much better handle on trends which are of course changing so frequently lately. Some towns have had a bigger price-dip than others, some have not had much of a dip at all.

Tricky with a relative though, that's a bridge you don't want to burn. One thing you could suggest is that the relative REFER you to a realtor in the area of concentration. If she's with a company that has many offices throughout Chicagoland, that's not uncommon. Then your SIL would get a % for her referral and not be cut out altogether, and you'd the expertise you are looking for. You could also then feel comfortable to bounce things off of her and know she's still participating. Maybe that would be a good compromise. If she's a good realtor she'd understand the need for someone familiar with an area.

Good luck!

I agree w/ Chantal.

Selling your house is a financial decision, and since "location, location, location" is the motto, if the realtor doesn't know your location, how can she possibly sell it to its best potential?

Tell them that you'll happily recommend your SIL to anyone and everyone who needs a realtor who is in her area/areas she knows well (ask her for business cards as a gesture of good faith, if needed), but that you feel that it is in your family's best interest to keep family and business separate and for you to choose a realtor that knows your area very very well so they can sell the house at the best possible price.

I think for purchasing you should use someone in the area. I would highly recommend Barb Hibnick with ReMax. She specializes in the north side.
Her email is ____@____.com phone is ###-###-####. She has been in the industry for over 26 years and has the experience you need. Tell her that M. Hay recommended you.

M.

I am a Realtor also, and I understand the problem. But you need someone who is familiar with the area you are moving to....schools, neighborhoods, etc. Have your SIL refer you to someone in the area you want to look. She will get a referral fee. If you don't like the first area you look, she can keep referring you to other Realtors in areas you want to check out.

I suggest that YOU get very familiar with the area you want move into and do not completely trust the realtor whether it will be your relative or not. Realtors will search an MLS for you and come up with homes in your price range, but even if they are in the area they may not be familiar with really important details like what the school is exactly like or what are your future neighbors are like.

What I found helpful in the past is to have a good research in place before even talking to a realtor. For example, I researched and visited all schools in the area and went there during afterschool hours to see what the playgrounds look like and what is the behavior and racial make up of the students. That helped me to narrow down to sertain areas very quickly. Then I looked at communications, drowe down the streets, looked inside grocery stores, etc. After we chose the house, I drove past it and walked around it several times at the different times of the day to get the feel of the area and the neighbors. I also chatted up some neighbors and got their scoop on the weather, floods, dogs barking, any crazy teenagers in the area, etc.....No realtor will do that for you. It is something only you can do and to determine which home is right for your family.
Godd luck.