How To Select The Best Real Estate Agent In Oxnard
When most people are looking to buy or sell a home in Oxnard, one of the first things that they do is search for a real estate agent. Although there are plenty of people who already know a real estate agent either through a family member or a friend, there are still those who many not know one or who haven’t worked with one in the past. With one of the highest realtor to non-realtor ratios in the country, there is no shortage of real estate agents for Ventura County residents to choose from. However, just like in any industry, not all real estate professionals are created equal. So how do you know what to look for in your search for a local real estate agent to either sell your home or help you buy a new home? Below are some tips that should get you started down the right path and show you how to select the best real estate agent in Oxnard. If you have any questions about selecting a realtor in Oxnard, Ainslee Charles is a licensed real estate agent (CA License # 01969612) and would be happy to answer any of your questions. Feel free to give her a call at 805-232-8503, send us an email to AinsleeCharles@Gmail.com, or fill out one of the forms on this page.
What to Look For In A Real Estate Agent In Oxnard
Personality: In order to increase your chances of having the best experience possible, you should look for a realtor that has a personality that meshes well with yours. Depending on the real estate market conditions at the time, you could possibly be working with this person for weeks or months. Although it may slowly be going out of style, you could also be carpooling with this person to view Oxnard homes of interest. If you have difficulty relating to someone in normal everyday conversations, it may prove very difficult to be on the same page with this person when it comes to your home buying/selling needs. With as many realtors as there are in Oxnard, there should be no reason to select an agent that you do not get along well with.
Experience: Although not a deal breaker, you should take a little bit of time to learn about the experience that the real estate agent has. Ideally, if an agent has never done a transaction, their broker should be there to guide them through the process and help with any issues that may arise. Although all agents have to start somewhere, you may want to select someone who has done more than one or two transactions. On the flip side, highly successful agents may have too much business and may not have the time to give you the attention that you deserve. When gauging experience, we like to look at the number of transactions the realtor has been involved in vice the number of years. Just because someone has been an Oxnard realtor for 30 years, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they have done much business over those 30 years. A new agent who has been completely active over their first 3 years may well have just as much, or more experience than the 30 year veteran.
Communication: Above all, this trait may be the most important. Having an agent who has great communication skills is a must. This person should take the time to explain things to you every step of the process. They should also be able to answer all of your questions and respond back to you in a timely manner. Just as important as communicating with you, they also need to be able to communicate with the other agent, title company, your lender, escrow, etc. It is their main job to make sure the transaction is completed on time and that involves active communication with all parties.
What to Avoid In A Real Estate Agent In Oxnard
Asking for payments in cash: I find it hard to believe that this is even an issue in this day and age, but I have read that it still sometimes comes up. My guess is that this more applies to agents that help people looking for rentals. In any case, there should not be any reasons to give a real estate agent any type of payment in cash. As with most industries, the better paper trail you have, the higher chance you have of protecting yourself in case of fraud. In your normal house buying/selling process, all of the payments should be distributed via the escrow company, so you should not be paying the realtor directly anyway. As a best practice, avoid using cash wherever possible.
Changing their story everyday/blaming someone else: No one is perfect, but you want to work with a real estate agent who takes responsibility for their actions. Not every transaction goes smoothly, but you want to work with someone who rolls with the punches and finds solutions to every obstacle. They should keep you updated with any facts and statuses, no matter if they are positive ones or not. If you have a realtor who is constantly changing their story or blaming others every step of the way, you may want to consider working with someone else. A professional realtor will be completely transparent and do everything in their power to make sure you know what’s going on.
Making guarantees: This last one is probably my biggest pet peeve. Watch out for realtors who make guarantees, especially when they try to “guarantee” how quickly they can sell your Oxnard house and/or how much they can sell your house for. Most of the time, real estate agents have very little control over this. All else being equal, the real estate market at the time will determine how much you can sell your house for. The most they can do is market your house properly to help you get the best price possible. Some realtors will even go as far as making homeowners these “guarantees” so that they can lock you up in a listing contract, even if they know that they aren’t going to be able to get you the price they are “guaranteeing”. I would be more comfortable with an agent who shows you what the comparable homes are selling for and suggests a price that you should list your house for.
Hopefully, these tips provided enough information to help you in your search for selecting the best Oxnard realtor. If you have any questions about the home buying or selling process, or about Oxnard real estate in general, feel free to contact me at any time. My #1 goal is to help Ventura County residents with any and all of your real estate needs. As mentioned above, I can be reached at AinsleeCharles@Gmail.com, 805-232-8503, or any of the forms on our website.