Even in a hot market, selling a home can be stressful and time consuming. There’s a lot of money on the line, too — both in the sale price and in the up-front costs of tradespeople, lawyers and other professionals. A good real estate agent can help with all of it, and save you thousands of dollars in the process.

One obvious cost is real estate commissions. Since they’re calculated as a percentage of the sale price, rising house prices have meant rising costs for most sellers. But not for everybody.

“Traditionally, listing commissions are seven per cent on the first $100,000 and three and a half per cent on the rest. But we just didn’t feel right charging our clients that much, so we created our own company model,” says Paula Skladan-Roughton, Co-owner, Managing Broker and Realtor at Value Plus 3% Real Estate Inc (VP3).

VP3 operates with only three per cent commissions, which translates to significant savings for their clients — $5,500 to $6,500, on average.

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3 ways the right real estate broker keeps cash in your pocket

VP3 may have low commissions, but they certainly don’t skimp on services. And the value of that experience, knowledge and top-tier service makes a big difference to home sellers’ finances.

• Setting the list price:

You want a final sale price that reflects the modern market value of your home, but your list price still needs to entice buyers to make offers. Sometimes delayed offers are a great way to encourage bidding competition, but not always. How do you decide? “The sheer volume that our real estate agents are involved in helps sellers make informed decisions. Our agents do more transactions than any other brokerage in the area, so we’re in tune with what’s going on at each price point in the market,” says Nik Roughton, Realtor and Co-owner of VP3. “We don’t dabble in real estate part-time. We have a busy brokerage filled with people who consider real estate a full time passion.”

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• Preparing the home for market:

With historically low inventory, some sellers have decided not to put in the effort of painting, repairs or staging. A good real estate agent will help you decide what work will have the greatest effect on your sale price. “We recently took on a home that had been listed with another company — their listing had expired without any offers. Our professional photographer took sparkling photos, and then we had the empty rooms virtually staged with digital furniture. The results were amazing! The stunning photos drew in much more traffic,” Paula says. VP3 also has excellent relationships with tradespeople who can help your home fly through inspections.

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• Spreading the word:

Buyers search for homes in many ways, and VP3 makes sure your home is listed everywhere buyers look. That includes online listings enhanced with virtual tours, print advertising, and a reach that goes far beyond the Okanagan. “People from all around the world are looking to live in the Okanagan, and we have marketing tools to help your home get noticed.”

Original image.	Image virtually staged with digital furniture.

Article originally appeared in The Vernon Morning Star.