The 5th and last mistake to avoid when selling your Chicago Home is to “Not hiring a professional real estate agent” or perhaps hiring the wrong agent. We are currently in a buyers market so the FSBOs (For Sale By Owners) are at a real disadvantage. Ninety-five percent of today’s buyers are working with buyer agents, in the purchase of their new home, condo or loft. In this market only about 2% of successful Chicago Home sales are FSBO.

It may be unwise to hire an agent that doesn’t know the area very well or that doesn’t know the home values in your neighborhood. Word-of-mouth or referrals from friends and neighbors are usually a good place to start in selecting your agent. Look for someone who has an established track record that knows how to use state of the art technology. In this environment, experience isn’t expensive, it is priceless.

This is based on an article and an NBC News report as well as on my own experience. The NBC article by Marion Brooks can be found at www.nbcchicago.com/around_town/real_estate/5-Real-Estate-Mistakes-You-Dont-Want-to-Make.html .