Five Things to Have Handy for Your First Agent Meeting

The time has come to sell your Metro Atlanta Home.  You’ve done the research on the best listing agent in the area, made the call and the appointment is set.  Of course, thoughts of all kinds are passing through your mind with more expected as the appointment time approaches.  After all, as a first-time home seller, you’ve likely got far more questions than answers. 

“Gosh, let this first business date go smoothly so that I can start the process of moving on to my next chapter.” 

Sound familiar?

Guidance on preparing one’s home to sell is plentiful over the internet, news media, and other sources.  They often suggest the use of consumer tools to arrive at your home’s estimated home value, do-it-yourself-repairs, staging, and more, some in fairly rich details.  Planning an effective first business meeting with that all-star local agent, however, could use more coverage.  These five suggestions of things to have handy for that first appointment with your agent should apply to most markets, save valuable time and lighten some of the angst that homeowners may feel when considering a sale.

Proof of Identity

The importance of getting it right the first time with our busy home-selling clients is everything.   That includes ensuring that the names on the purchase and sale agreements properly match those on the property’s title to avoid costly change requests from all entities involved in selling a home that devalue their time.  Since most of the documents involved in a house sale will likely be signed electronically, have proper identification (ID) on-hand so that everyone’s identity is clear and their spellings confirmed at the start.

Proof of Authority

Listing a house for sale in GA MLS is pretty routine when the names of the properly-identified persons with whom I’m speaking match those shown in the public records as the property owners.  Upon the agreement of terms, it’s only a matter of signing the listing paperwork so that the next phase, finding the ideal buyer, may begin.  But there are often a number of challenges associated with proving one’s authority to sell a property.  For instance, the person before me may

• not be on the title, but is acting as an attorney-in-fact for a decedent without other documentation
• be on title along with others who are not present with proper ID
• be on title and have proper ID, but is not in the right state of mind
• be the owner, but seems to be under duress by others who are present  

Experienced real estate agents will have completed a thorough review of the public records for your property before ever meeting with you.  Still, ask about the documentation needed (warranty deeds, probated wills, letters of testamentary, powers-of-attorney, etc.) that will help smoothly move things along. 

Property Condition

At this point, you may be inclined to list all of the improvements made to the property over the years.  Wonderful!  Go ahead and create one to have handy for your first meeting.  Then think back over your time of ownership and write stories about what made your house both a home and, yes, a temporary money suck.  You see, there’s a place for both important descriptions somewhere in the listing documentation.    Owners will complete a rather detailed form that requests answers to questions regarding certain property features that also includes an empty field for use in disclosing anything that was missed.   The best agents will often use your written stories as inspiration when preparing the selling story of your property.

What is Included

While creating a list, be sure to have one of the items that are included in the home sale.  The form described above offers suggestions, but that open form field serves as a great place to describe those items to be included such as the fridge, washer, dryer, pool table, and/or gym equipment.  Are you taking the designer window treatments?  Be sure to also share that information.    

Area Highlights

You’re placing more than land and a structure on the market when listing your Metro Atlanta Home for sale.  In-deed, the entire area quality of life goes on display as an offering to the right buyer.  That is why the basics like dining, shopping, healthcare, worship, parks, gyms, and other venues of choice should be included in a formal write-up.  But many buyers look for fun pastimes and unique things to do around Metro Atlanta of interest.  What jazz artist did you see at Mable House Barnes Amphitheatre recently?  What band turned it out at the Oakhurst Porchfest this year?  Who bailed grandma out this time when she shook it a little too hard at the Lawrenceville Sip & Swine BBQ Festival?  We know about these things and places of interest around the metro, but no one can tell a story better than those who have been there.  Please inspire us with your stories so that we can sell the area from an owner’s point of view.

Bonus “Thing”

Where is that image of your property blanketed in the snow when the storm came through Metro Atlanta in 2020?  When did you take that photo of Benji chasing yet another squirrel in the manicured backyard with the freshly sealed fence?  How many images do you have of your property adorned with the golden tree leaves of Fall or the new blooms of Spring?  Since even the best photographers in Metro Atlanta are unable to recreate proof-of-life scenes like these that help tell the story of your home, have those images handy for use in MLS listings, storybooks, and more.

Thousands of real estate agents serve Metro Atlanta and knowing exactly how all of them work when assisting in the sale of one’s home is nearly impossible.  This list is certainly not all-inclusive and should not be taken as a replacement for a well-planned initial phone discussion prior to your meeting.  For some, however, it may serve as a good place to start, perhaps even a thought provoker, during the early planning stages for a productive first meeting with your Metro Atlanta Real Estate Agent.

Please follow me on Facebook, LinkedIn for new post updates and call (770) 271-2156 for a free consultation when the time comes to sell your Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia Home to learn just how committed I am to get you more.