As a seller with a property to sell as part of your relocation, you have a huge task ahead of you. Selling your current home in order to buy a new one is a big piece of this.

If you are like many folks, you NEED to sell in order to buy another home. And in many markets this is a challenging undertaking given inventory levels, competition, pricing shifts and more. So how does one accomplish this successfully.

Working with a REALTOR who has the CRS designation (is a Certified Residential Specialist) is one of the best decisions you can make. Here are some reasons a CRS will benefit YOU, the homeowner.

An agent with the CRS designation must complete a number of intensive 2-day classes on a variety of real estate topics to benefit consumers (a favorite class is the one on listing strategies - all the things that we can do to help you market and sell you home effectively; another is technology - kearning all about the many ways technology shuld be used to effectively makret a home, commununicate, and run a successful real estate business).

There is significant time commitment on the part of an individual who decides to gain this designation, and the training classes are some of the best available in the real estate world.

We must pass an exam for each class we take, so you can't just sit there pretending to learn but must demonstrate this before being awarded credit for the class toward the overall CRS designation.

Classes involve significant interaction among attendees so there is a huge opportunity to further learning from others in the business

All candidates for the CRS designation must meet certain production requirements, either a minimum specific number of transactions (the minimum is 25 transactions, or $8 million in production with a minimum of 10 transactions within a 2 year period). This means you MUST have substantial experience as a real estate agent in order to become a CRS. Another great benefit since you will be able to work with someone who has demonstrate significant real estate experience.

Having a CRS is likened to having a Ph.D., and it's considered to be THE most rigorous designation (only about 4% of all REALTORS posses this certification). And many CRS  agents continue to attend classes or to repeat classes as they are revised,  and to participate in the CRS organization either nationally or at the local level (as I do on the Board of Directors for the Southern California Chapter of CRS).

Don't you want someone who has the best knowledge and training, and can provide the competitive edge YOU need to sell your home?

One last thng to consider. You will need someone in your new location to help you BUY a home. A CRS can make the right connections to other CRS agents around the country and find you the best person with THE SAME training and experience.