This “specialist” may try to assert that you should work with them because they know the local buyers, have a big local database, and they know the local market better which will lead to a better result. This is an outdated concept. If an agent is truly an expert at what they do, selling in other suburbs is not a difficult transition. Similar sales, marketing and negotiation strategies still apply, and detailed local market research can be done in within an hour. Furthermore, a significant portion of enquiries for every listing come from out of area and all active buyers are looking on realestate.com.au, so there’s limited to no benefit of that big local database. Having local knowledge can always help save the agent some time, however the elite agent will outperform the local one 9 times out of 10 – sales processes, marketing strategy and negotiations skills are still the most important factors.

So, we get back to the key take-away; Do some research. Meet with a few agents, be prepared with your questions, and you will inevitably find an agent who can demonstrate the most knowledge around property, buyer trends and marketing. If they can show you some of their previous sales and explain how their process achieved a greater price than a comparable property sold by another agent, this should give you the confidence that they have the knowledge needed to help you achieve the best price for the sale of your home.