Most people do not realize the he difference between a real estate agent and a Realtor.  Only Realtors are members of the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Why does that matter to the many buyers and sellers who work will all kinds of agents every day? The biggest difference is Realtors are very closely monitored by the NAR to make sure they are adhering to the code of ethics they agreed to uphold. Agents in general are overseen by each state's Real Estate board which covers the whole state, they do NOT have to commit to the strict code of ethics required to be a part of the NAR.

REALTORS® Are Experts

Eighty-five percent of sellers were assisted by a real estate agent when selling their home, according to NAR's 2007 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, and 79 percent of buyers purchased their home through a real estate agent. Buying or selling a home is one of the biggest transactions in most people's life and there are too many ways the deal can go south to count. Having a qualified professional in your corner not only greatly increase you chance of a successful purchase or sale, you also get the huge amount of knowledge and expertise they bring to the table.

Many people start selling their homes themselves. Then after months on the market and the headache and heart ache that comes with that the eventually turn to Realtors.

Sellers realize the cost of hiring them is cheaper than trying to muddle through the process on their own. Realtors bring the expertise to price their home competitively with the market, organizing and conducting open houses and most of all they are connected with the largest group of professionals with over a million members strong. This connection enables Realtors to work together to get homes sold.

Remember only about half of all real estate agents are REALTORS® even though agents will cost you the same amount of money you are getting a professional who is not afraid to be judged for their conduct, their actions, and has committed to getting a successful close to your property.

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Read Also: Orlando Florida Relocation Resource Guide

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Read Also: Orlando Florida City - Everything You Need To Know!

If you want to sell your Seminole County or Orlando area home in the next 6 to12 months, now is the time to begin putting your plan into place while time is still on your side. Please contact us for any real estate assistance you may need.

We're experts at putting people together with homes they love and can afford. Contact us today for information on Orlando and Seminole County real estate, Orlando & Seminole County homes for sale, Orlando & Seminole County relocation information, a free market analysis of your Orlando area or Seminole County home or statistics on homes in Orlando & Seminole County Florida or the surrounding Central Florida area, including Seminole County, Orange County, Lake County and Volusia County. We're always available to answer your questions.

Orlando Florida Real Estate Resource

Orlando and Seminole County Home Buyers & Sellers - Keller Williams Offices shine on Real Estate Industry Surveys

RISMedia Power Broker Report and Survey

I often hear some potential Orlando Florida real estate clients say "I want a Realtor who's with a big company".  Although this isn't relevant at all, for the simple fact that there are some great Realtors at small companies and there are some horrible Realtors at large companies.  Remember, you're hiring the Realtor...not the company.  But, in case you're wondering...I thought I'd share the latest comprehensive real estate surveys which document how how Keller Williams is dominating the real estate industry.

Every year, RISMedia and REAL Trends release two of the real estate's most comprehensive surveys: the RISMedia Power Broker Report and the REAL Trends 500. Both surveys rank the largest residential real estate brokerages in the U.S. based on both transaction sides and sales-dollar volume, and these reports are frequently used as referral tools and are referenced by thousands. This year, Keller Williams stormed onto the lists with a very strong showing.

KW offices dominated the Power Broker Report - with more offices listed in their top 700 list than any other franchise brand.  The survey also named Keller Williams Realty as the industry leader in terms of number of agent teams.  And, 102 KW offices were listed in the Companies to Watch section - making up 55% of the total list!

As for the Real Trends 500, which lists the top 500 brokerages in the nation, Keller Williams Realty had the second highest amount of offices listed both transaction sides and sales volume, among the top franchise brands.

Read more »

There is only one thing we really hate about real estate, and that is the fact that we have to sell ourselves.  We may feel uncomfortable telling people why they should work with us rather than other agents, but were passionate about marketing and selling homes.  So, here is what some of our clients and colleagues have to say about us:

• My best one word description for Chris Myers is ‘PROFESSIONAL’. In every sense of the word, Chris embodies professionalism as well as anyone Ive ever done business with. He truly goes the ‘extra mile’ for his clients & his follow up is second to none. I only wish that more businessmen would remember that their customers dont care what they know until they know that they care”and that is where Chris leaves them in the dust. I would love nothing more than to do business with Chris again in the future and anyone with real estate needswill feel the same. Freddie & Toni Ann
  
• Chris & Sandra, we were worried about being transferred and finding a new home in such a short timeframe. You exceeded our expectations! We found your website and sent you an email. You called me back within one hour, sent me information about what to expect during our relocation. Two weeks later we visited and found the perfect home. Then, again, two weeks later we closed on our new home. You helped us find and close on our new home faster than some agents called us back. Seriously! We contacted 3 other agents the same day we contacted you and all three called me within one week after we closed on our new home. Thanks for your rapid response to our inquiry and your hard work in negotiating such a great deal on our new home! We love it! Jerry & Beatrice
  
• Thank you for helping us during such a stressful time in our lives! And thank you for being such a great filter as my stress and fears were dumped on you because of our situation. I know we had some drama. You were so professional through it all. You did a great job of not softening my remarks for both demanding banks and demanding buyers. After losing our jobs and income, you helped us successfully negotiate short sales with the banks on both of our homes. I honestly didnt think that was possible. We truly appreciate your help and are thankful that we can now get our lives back in order, and hopefully work with you in the future when were ready to purchase a home again. A. & E.
  
• I just want to take the time to thank you for meeting with my wife and I yesterday. Your honesty means a lot to us! When many agents are desperate for business, you were honest with us and advised us that due to our situation, wed be better off not selling our home right now, due to market conditions. Im sure others would have pushed us to sell now and put ourselves in a financial bind. Youre great advice and knowledge of the real estate market was important for us and we look forward to working with you once the timing is better for us. Antonio
  
• You made it so easy!!! Thank you! You helped me find a great lender who I now consider a great friend. You helped me sell my old house so quickly, and find my new dream home just as fast. You really listened to what I wanted and due to that I only had to look at 4 homes to know I had found my dream home! The timing was perfect too..you helped me time the sale of my home with the purchase of my new home so perfectly that I moved from one right into the other! It was so easy! It was flawless! Thank you! Linda
  
• When we contacted you about the trouble we had selling our house, you jumped right in and went to work. I knew after seeing your marketing plan for our house that we were in good hands. Our previous agent had our house listed for 6 months and nearly no one came to see it. Once we hired you, buyers flooded through our door and it was sold so quickly. We cant thank you enough for helping us move to our retirement home on the beach! Sally and Fred
  
• Although I couldnt possibly sell my house for the amount I wanted, I credit your honesty with me getting the most I possibly could. I was too stubborn to adjust the price of my home and would have hesitated even longer to lower the price, but you educated me on what was happening in the market¦when I was trying to bury my head in the sand. On your advice, I adjusted the price and sold the house rather quickly. I wasnt too happy at the time, but now I see what the same homes are selling, just 2 months later and cant thank you enough, as today I would be selling for about $40,000 less! You acted as a true consultant, telling me what I didnt want to hear, but it saved me so much money! Other agents actually tried to ‘buy’ my business by telling me the house was worth much more, but I see their listings still sitting on the market, now 2 months later, at even lower prices than ours sold for. Thank you for your honesty and integrity! Robert
  
• Now that were working with you for the third time, I thought Id take the time to thank you for all of your hard work for us. When the builders salesperson referred us to you she did us such a huge favor! She knew we were freaking out that our old house hadnt sold yet and told us to list it with you since our listing agreement was about to expire with the other agent. She said you had an aggressive marketing plan and would take great care of us. She was so right! We appreciate you selling it so quickly, and now, here we are again, with another fast sale happening right now! Sam & Sue
  
• Well, I told you I was analytical! I wasnt kidding, was I! Thanks for taking the time to make me comfortable with every little detail as we went through the process of buying our first home. It was important for me to find an agent that would not only be patient with me and answer my 200 questions, but I also needed an agent I felt I could trust. You did a great job of looking out for my familys interests. Thank you for making it a very comfortable process for us. Kurt
  
• We had a quick deadline and you helped us meet it. My wife still cant believe you were able to help us find the right home in only 4 days and close in just 3 days. Thank you! Bob

And, the one comment that and became our motto:

We now consider Chris and Sandra our ‘Personal Real Estate Consultants For Life!’

 From Realtors: 

• Thanks. I enjoyed working with you. You are so professional
  
• Sometimes, the agent youre working with can either make or break a difficult transaction. I dont think this would have happened without you on the other side to resolve some very critical issues caused by a complicated transaction. I look forward to working together again one day.
  
• I really appreciate your help, and I look forward to working with you again. It is always nice to work with professional people like you!
  
• Thanks for your help Chris. It’s a pleasure to have a true professional on the other side of the table. I’m glad you were involved with this transaction!  Your experience working with banks was invaluable.