I don't intend for this to be a lecture, just information for anyone thinking of a real estate transaction.
Realtors are well.. Realtors.. and Realtors are in the business of sales. No malice towards Realtors, for the most part they are very well trained, held to a strict level of law and ethics, and are professional.
Think about how the process works when selecting a Listing Agent. And keep in mind that a Listing Agent rarely sells your property. A different Agent from another Broker will likely sell your property.
When you decide to sell you contact a listing agent, or you go the usually very stressful route of being the dreaded FSBO (For Sale By Owner). And while on the subject of FSBO, in many cases a Realtor actually can negotiate a sale of your property that nets you enough to pay the Realtor fees, ie. the Realtor service ends up being free!! And, you do not have to worry about ending up in a legal mess... it's the Realtors fault!!!
The Agent does a market analysis on your house and recommends a listing price. You may or may not agree, but a listing price is established. The danger here is not listening to the Listing Agent about a realistic price. Prices that are too high for the market usually result in a property sitting on the market for a long time. This is a red flag for Buyers and other Agents who may have a client interested in a property similar to yours. And even if you do find a Buyer who is willing to pay your price, the deal frequently falls through when the Lender will not appraise the property at your price. You then have two choices, start over or lower your price to the appraised value.
The market analysis is relatively straight forward, The Listing Agent looks at other properties in the area and see what they have sold for, how big your house is, what amenities it might have that impact value, etc.
The listing goes in the multiple databases accessible to not only every Realtor in the country, but many of the databases are available to the general public, eg. Realtor.com.
Your listing is picked up by many Realtors who also advertise your property on their websites. It's OK for them to advertise your property even though they did not list it. All Realtors can sell your property. Point is, we all want the best Agent we can find hoping they will get us a quick sale, but the fact is our "best" agent usually does not sell the property.
The good news is the original Listing Agent therefore has a gazillion other people out there trying to sell your property. The only time a Listing Agent can be of immediate "value" is if they already have a client looking for a house just like yours.
Anyhow, don't fret too much over trying to find the "best" Agent in the area. Any Agent who has been in the business for a while and is in good standing will provide virtually the same level of service. Probably the best criteria is how well you can get along with this person. Do you like them? Do you communicate well??
The process of buying and selling a home can be a really stressful process for most people. It is important to be working with an Agent that you like and trust.
I would recommend staying with a full service Broker/Realtor. Some Sellers rebel at the notion of paying 5-6% to a Listing Broker when they see signs and ads for lower Listing fees. In my personal view, just like many things in life, you get what you pay for. And keep in mind that your Agent does not get that 6%. That commission is usually split four ways.. Listing Broker, Selling Broker, Listing Agent, and Selling Agent. Keep that in mind when you insist that your Listing Agent take out a full page ad in the Washington Post trying to sell your $200K property. And also remember that unlike most jobs, Realtors make no money unless they sell something.
Good Luck in the sale of your property and your search for a Realtor.
PS, I know many excellent Realtors, in fact I am married to one!!