90+% of homes sold are sold by the real estate industry. Now, there is a lot of rubbish talked about the industry. On the whole, like in any industry, most agents, or certainly the ones I meet, just want to do the right thing.

They are positive people, motivated, paid only on results. I talk in other videos about choosing an agent, but here I want to talk about you and your relationship with your agent of choice.

The big thing is, stay in the game. If you were going on holiday, you wouldn’t ring a travel agent and say, “Book us on a holiday. You choose where.” “You choose how much.” It’s the same with selling the house. There are decisions to make– timing decisions, budgeting decisions and end-game decisions. Your holiday; your choice. Your home; your choice. Don’t just hand it over. Get involved.

Knowing what is going on could make a difference of weeks and weeks of time and possibly…tens of thousands of dollars. In the end, an agent does just want to get you sold and on your way. So you need to stay in this transaction to make sure your objectives are met.

Bear in mind this idea, which Steven Covey teaches: “Those who do not have goals are at the mercy of those who do”. Now the thing that gets in the way of a great team, if you like, and a great sale, is emotion. An agent sees the sort of things we are talking about in this programme clearly. They want to get you there faster, but they are up against –– your emotions. Look for the logic here.

Factual stuff that, if paid attention to, will lead you to make commercially smart decisions. Get both of you on the same page – the agent understands where you are coming from, and you stay as logical as you can – and you will get an outcome you feel really good about at the end.

Share all information about your circumstances. I have heard it before: tell the agent nothing. It’s none of their business. If you tell them you are in a hurry, they will crunch the price! I say, tell the agent everything. If you are in a hurry, they need to know that. Otherwise, you may find yourself on the market for months because they thought you had all the time in the world. We all have different agendas in life and in selling our houses. And agents can help whatever that situation is.

If you still want to try for a price above market and don’t care how long you are on, tell them. If you need to get this pretty right from the start because you want to make a move fast, tell them. Then sit back and listen to their strategies of how they going to get you there.