"I'm totally stressed out because we've been on the market for eight weeks and we haven't even had an offer." Such were the words of a woman who called me to complain about her real estate agent, who led her to believe that she would have multiple offers after the first week. After listening to her until she sounded exhausted, she took a deep breath and allowed me to say, "Tell me what you think your agent should be doing that she has not." Her answer, as expected, was, "I have no idea."

After speaking further, I learned that her agent had not been communicating with her regularly, had not kept her informed about three new listings within a 1/4 mile of her home and had not informed her of two price reductions of homes similar to hers, which put her home at the highest price per foot among the four properties in the neighborhood. The agent had been delegating the open houses to a new agent with less experience and not even personally reporting feedback from the open houses. The agent had vanished, using a lock box for showings and never even scheduling a follow-up caravan or twilight open house for agents who may have missed the first broker's preview.

The open-house signs being used were tattered and should have been trashed long before. The agent was offering a low level of care, given that she specializes in selling estate properties above $4 million and this home was not even one-third of that price. One would think an agent selling $4 million to $6 million properties would employ an outstanding photographer and videographer, but the photos were mediocre at best.

I never knock my competitors, but here is a case where the agent is blatantly at fault. The agent had come recommended from the woman's colleague who had owned and sold an estate property with the agent quite successfully but, in retrospect, at slightly below the true market value. Common sense tells me that anyone can sell a property below value, so why would you hire an agent to do that?

It is not always the agent's fault. Sometimes an agent is very upfront and the owner just gets stubborn, defensive or unwilling to make pricing adjustments for things such as a poor floor plan, lack of usable yard, dysfunctional kitchen, old and undersized bathrooms, or lack of a master suite. Perhaps the home is on a busy street, near a freeway or adjacent to a three-story apartment building.

Perhaps they come to the market overpriced and then either wait too long to reduce or reduce too little and need to do a second price reduction to cover the first two mistakes. By then, the home becomes stale and everyone starts to keep their distance, thinking there must be something wrong with it. Maybe interest rates start jumping the week you go on the market, or a big stock market blip follows just days you go on the market. That would be unfortunate timing, but things happen.

Not every house gets multiple offers or sells in the first 10 days. My advice is to do your homework in advance and find yourself an outstanding agent.

Here are some additional guidelines to keep in mind:

1. Interview for a top agent with experience in your neighborhood and your price range.

2. Review all comparable sales and be realistic about how your property stacks up, making proper adjustments for condition, floor plan, upgrades and location.

3. Price your home competitively.

4. Review every new listing, price reduction and sale nearby, and stay totally informed.

5. Communicate regularly with your agent.

6. Have a cancelation/escape clause in your contract for if your agent fails to adequately perform.

7. Take your time making decisions, and don't let yourself be pushed.

8. Follow your intuition, because your intuition is generally right.

For more information, please call Ron Wynn at 310-963-9944, or email him at [email protected]. To find out more about Ron and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.