I'm looking for some advice as to how best choose a real estate agent. We will be putting our Toronto home on the market early this summer. We've been in the house 20+ years and I'm looking to cash in on Toronto's crazy market. I think I should interview a few agents, but I'm just not sure what I should be looking for. I've already rejected the #1 seller in my neighborhood (I believe she sells the most because she convinces sellers to low-ball their house slightly - good for her, not the seller and I just didn't get a good vibe from her).
Questions I can think of:
1) marketing strategy
2) staging strategy (we plan to move out prior to listing - I don't want to cope with strangers in my house opening every drawer/cupboard in my kitchen since I can't sanitize them before they enter my home)
3) pricing strategy - price right or price low to encourage a bidding war (it's a 'thing' in Toronto)
Back story - I live in a desirable neighborhood, but not an 'it' neighborhood. I back on to a golf course and exactly one house has come up for sale in the last 5 years on our side of the street. Our house is still the 1960 bungalow floor plan, although we've updated the kitchen and bathrooms. Many houses on our side of the street have either been torn down and a two story mcmansion built or the roof is torn off and a second story is added. It's not a huge lot, 55x127, but a decent size for Toronto.
Call me greedy, but I want that bidding war. On the flip side, I don't want to own two homes for longer than necessary since there will be a hefty mortgage payment.
For those of you more familiar with buying and selling homes, any guidance you can give to as to how to pick the right agent, I'd really appreciate.