It’s important to know that each and every home sale has three distinct phases, the Listing Phase, the Selling Phase and the Negotiation Phase. Each of these phases has a very identifiable beginning, and end, so it's useful to examine each independently in order to determine the best manor in which to approach your home sale. The question you need to ask yourself is, which phase, if any, do you need a licensed REALTOR^® to help you with the sale of your home and which real estate brokerage offers those services.

The collective of all REALTORS^® in Canada owns the Multiple Listing Service^® (MLS^®) and in order for you to list your home for sale on the MLS^® System, you must hire a REALTOR^®. The vast majority of transactions conducted through the MLS^® System involve two real estate agents, a listing agent and a buyer’s agent. If you choose a For Sale By Owner (FSBO) listing and have REALTORS^® involved in your home sale, it begs the question of which agent actually “sells” your home, the listing agent, or the buyer’s agent?

Most home owners think it’s the listing agent that “sells” the home, however, the listing agent, plays virtually no part in the actual “selling” of the property. In fact, it is unlikely that the listing agent will ever speak to the eventual buyer of your home. Yes, the listing agent puts your home “for sale”, however, after the home is on the MLS^® System, it is the buyers’ agents that “sell” the features of both your home, and the community.

It is the MLS^® System that sells your home, not your listing agent, however, it is still very important to understand what services you need to look for when choosing a real estate brokerage to help with the sale of your home.

The Listing Phase

It is our opinion that in order to receive the highest possible sale price for your home, you must expose your property to the largest pool of qualified buyers available, which means you need to get your home into the MLS^® System. And, in order to get on the MLS^® System, you need to hire a REALTOR^®. No problem, in today’s real estate industry that’s easy. At rhinorealty, you can add an MLS^® Listing.

The most important variable in the sale of any home is the asking price. Residential REALTORS^® estimate the value of all potential listings by performing what is called a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA). Remember, neither REALTORS^®, real estate companies, nor real estate boards determine the value of your property, the market does. The good news is that some REALTORS^®, like those at rhinorealty, are extremely skilled at evaluating your property based on their experience and the most recent comparable sales data. The final item of concern in this phase is how well your listing is “presented” to the public. Unfortunately, many REALTORS^® simply do not have the experience, or the knowledge as to completing and presenting a home properly on the MLS^® System and/or the REALTOR^®/brokerage website. They make spelling mistakes, omit important information, and take lousy photos. And most often their website or the brokerage’s website is poorly done or nonexistent. At rhinorealty, hire professional companies to visit your property, takes professional grade photos and measurements. Your designated rhino agent will also visit the home and ensures that all the property specifications are correctly reflected in the MLS^® System. And, our listing display here at rhinorealty.com is the best in the industry. We ensure that your property is presented to its fullest potential because that’s what you deserve.

The Selling Phase

We believe that if you, as the homeowner, are willing to put in the time and attention that is necessary during this phase of your home sale, you do not necessarily need a REALTOR^® doing this for you. If, however, you’re not prepared to do this properly we strongly recommend you visit our Flat Fee Full Service area of this website, as it may be the more suitable program for you. The primary component of this phase is fielding all the inquiries on your property. These inquiries will come from potential buyers and/or their agents. Additionally, you must understand that they’re going to come 7 days a week and generally from about 9:00am to 9:00pm. In a fast paced real estate market like Alberta, a missed showing can sometimes amount to a missed sale. You need to be very diligent in returning showing requests, and making your home available for viewing. For this reason, we recommend adding a REALTOR^® Key Lockbox for only $199.95 to your For Sale By Owner Package. A REALTOR^® Key Lockbox will add the necessary convenience and security that you require during this phase of your home sale and it will also automatically, via email, request feedback from all the REALTORS^® that show your property.

It’s also important that you stay apprised of what is going on in the marketplace during the Selling Phase. You need to be aware of new listings that will compete with your property and also which competing properties have sold and for how much. Fortunately, included with our For Sale By Owner (FSBO) package you will receive automated email notifications which will include all this information. You just need to be prepared to pay attention to those emails and makes sense of the information. It is this information that will enable you to make informed decisions and/or adjustments to your listing.

The Negotiation Phase

Many homeowners have a misconception that listing REALTORS^® have some mysterious means of attracting offers. It is very important to understand that REALTORS^® don’t attract offers, houses do. When the market agrees with your list price, you will likely receive an offer on your property. The eventual outcome of that offer, good or bad, will largely depend on who is dealing with the negotiations and paperwork.

Offers may come to you from unrepresented buyers, however, the more likely occurrence will be that an offer comes through a buyer’s agent. There is much at stake during this phase and unless you feel that your skills and expertise are up to the task, we strongly recommend that you take advantage of rhinorealty’s Flat Fee Full Service program. Please remember that a buyer’s agent has fiduciary duties to represent the best interests of his or her client, the buyer. What this means is that the buyer’s agent must do everything and anything, within the law, to ensure that his client gets your property for the lowest possible price and that the contract terms and conditions are written most favorably for the buyer. The buyer’s agent legally owes you nothing more than honesty and reasonably care during negotiations, so make no mistake, he or she will be advocating on behalf of their client, likely to an adverse position to your own desired outcome.