It’s no secret the Calgary real estate market has seen more prosperous days. Active listings are higher and total sales are lower than long-term averages. The market has been decreasing in some parts of Calgary for more than three years.
A key to selling your home or condo in Calgary is finding a realtor who has your best interests at heart – one with knowledge of the Calgary market. You are hiring a realtor to work for you and, you should be interviewing to find the best fit for the job.
The right Calgary realtor makes a big difference
Jesse Davies
“Now, more than ever, in today’s Calgary real estate market, it is imperative that home sellers and buyers choose the right real estate associate/team,” says Calgary realtor Jesse Davies from the Jesse Davies Team at Century 21 Elevate. “Over my years of experience, I have encountered a lot of great questions that I feel every seller and buyer should be asking their realtor.”
Jesse says the two most common and important questions he gets asked are: How many years have you been in real estate? And, How many real estate sales have you done this year?
“It is important for sellers and buyers to gauge the number of transactions a real estate agent in negotiating,” says Jesse. “Like most professions, the more experiences a professional has, the more experience and practice they have at their trade.
“This is why asking how many deals an agent has done in the last few years can go a long way in determining how much experience within the market and practise an agent has had in recent years.”
The Calgary Real Estate market changes on a monthly basis. Having a Calgary realtor who understands how the market is doing on a weekly, monthly and yearly basis is critical to ensure you make a wise business decision to either sell or buy your next home.
What to ask a Calgary realtor about the market
Sellers and buyers should ask their Calgary realtor how the market is doing.
“If I was their agent, I would look at the quadrant you live in – northwest, northeast, southwest, southeast or downtown – and see how your particular segment has been performing within the last few months,” says Jesse.
“Using current stats and comparing them with 2018 is a good benchmark, but knowing how it compares to long-term averages will give you a clearer picture,” he says.
“When clients ask us how long it will take to sell their homes, one metric that we use when assessing a market is the months of inventory. It’s a simple calculation where you take the current inventory of homes/condos for the month and divide by the total sales for the month. You will hopefully get a single-digit number. A rule of thumb is below four is a seller’s market, four to six months is balanced and six or higher is a buyer’s market.
“Knowing these stats about the quadrant, coupled with similar stats for the particular community you live in, is essential in making a strategic plan on pricing and how you are going to sell or buy a home,” Jesse says. ”A good realtor will take pride in educating clients with this information and helping them make an informed decision.”
If you are thinking of buying or selling a home or condo in Calgary, Jesse Davies and his team of agents would love to meet with you and work out a customized plan to help with your next move. Visit them online at www.jdrealestatecalgary.ca
The views, opinions and positions expressed by columnists and contributors are the author’s alone. They do not inherently or expressly reflect the views, opinions and/or positions of our publication.
