The Selling Process

Choose your listing agent. See Listing With An Agent for more information on how to choose an agent, what agreements you'll fill out with them and what services you can expect from real estate agents. For more information on my services, see My Listing Services.
A Listing is when you create a written agreement with a real estate agent to represent you in the sale of your home. The Listing Agent then has the task of marketing your home, putting it on the MLS, being your advisor and advocate, negotiating on your behalf, completing Purchase & Sale contracts with you and walking the sales transaction through to closing. In exchange for their services, you agree in a Listing Agreement to pay the Listing Agent a specific commission if they bring you an offer from a "ready, willing and able" buyer. Commissions are paid at closing from the proceeds of the sale.
A very powerful tool that is available to real estate agents is the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). It is essentially an online database of thousands of properties for sale all across the country. Agents working with buyers scan it daily for new listings that meet the needs of their clients. When your Listing Agent lists your home on the MLS they essentially multiply your sales force. Now you don't just have your Listing Agent working to get your home sold, you have hundreds of agents in the area doing it. If one of those agents represents the buyer in purchasing your home your Listing Agent will generally split their commission with the buyer's agent.So, you're thinking of selling your home? Determining its value is one of the early steps in the selling process. And it is VERY important to get right. There is a narrow margin between getting the most for your property without asking too much and getting what's appropriate for your property without asking too little. Agents assist sellers in determining where to price their home with a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA)
A CMA is an estimate of market value performed by a real estate agent based on similar homes' sale prices. Other factors such as how long it took similar homes to sell, originally-listed-price to actual-sale-price ratios, condition and asking price history will all be taken into consideration when preparing a CMA and determining an asking price for your home. A good agent will spend several hours working on your CMA. If you are interested in obtaining a free CMA I would be happy to provide you one.