Real Estate Agent Experienced With Neighborhood Needed

Question: My husband and I want to sell our Flagstaff home, which has appreciated significantly in value. My sister-in-law is a real estate agent in Prescott and has offered to list our Flagstaff home on MLS for a 4% commission, with only a 1% commission to her as the listing agent and a 3% commission to the buyer’s agent. I would like, however,  to hire a good Flagstaff real estate agent. My husband says that the buyer’s agent, not the listing agent, has to do all of the work regarding inspections, financing, etc., and he wants his sister to get the listing commission. Does my husband have the right idea?

Answer: Probably not. If your sister-in-law is not familiar with Flagstaff real estate, she cannot properly represent you. For example, if most Flagstaff real estate agents know about a significant landfill in your area, your sister-in-law would not be able to advise you to disclose to the buyer this significant landfill. You and your husband should interview three experienced Flagstaff real estate agents and select the one that you think would be able to best represent you in the sale of your Flagstaff home.

Note: We rarely see problems with the sale of a home if there are good, experienced real estate agents on both sides that are familiar with the area. These real estate agents generally make sure that there are not any problems in the sale of the home, and if there are any problems, they generally get these problems resolved without lawyers.