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What makes a good sellers' agent? (dif. than post below)
We listed our house last year for a couple months before I got pregnant and decided to stay put.
Our agent lists/sells probably 80-90% of the townhomes in our subdivision and lives here as well, which is why we went with him. However, we redid the listing pictures and description (HELLO ALL CAPS LOCK!) and scheduled all the viewings directly with the buyer's agents. So besides doing the online listing, I feel like we did all the work and were ideal sellers except for being unable to drop our price further, which is another reason we took it off.
I'm a SAHM with two young kids and a dog, so I don't mind scheduling myself, but I also feel like I was doing all the footwork. He also discouraged me from watching listings myself and when I ran into him a couple months ago mentioning stuff on Redfin he kind of mocked me, "you and your internet". Um, it's not like I'm off being a Google doctor, I'm watching the real estate market. He seems like he doesn't want people getting info anywhere else but from him. Lame-o!
What do you feel constitutes a good agent? This time around we're definitely looking for somebody else. Although on the other hand, he really knows our specific market.
Next time we list we are going to start at a super competitive price so we can unload. It was stressful enough in those two months with only a toddler and a dog and now I've added another baby to the mix. Although our house looked awesome! 
Re: What makes a good sellers' agent? (dif. than post below)
We loved our agent, and while only you can decide what works for you personally, here were the things that were important to US:
There are a TON of things that can constitute a valuable Listing Agent, and they are all variables dependent on what you, the client, are seeking from them. With that said, I would say the first and foremost trait to seek in an agent is one who will work WITH you, not for you (you don't want a "yes" man/woman) or without you (you don't want someone that doesn't take your thoughts/emotion into consideration).
1. HONESTY - An agent needs to tell you the TRUE value of your home. Due to emotional attachment or an uneducated grasp of the market, a seller can have a "FOR SALE" attitude, and the agent should bring you back down to a "TO SELL" price. You also don't want them lying to get the listing. They are doing you a severe disservice at that point.
2. MARKETING - An agent should provide marketing on several levels. It's isn't about the 3 P's anymore (putting a sign in the yard, placing the home on the web & praying for a buyer). The agent should be active marketing your home. That's more than fancy print and web-driven traffic. He should be pro-actively marketing the property to his/her agent network because they are the ones with buyers!!
3. FULL SERVICE - This is debatable as necessary because there are a TON of great agents that are not full service, but I am a full service agent, and to be honest, I would have never let you in the back end of my MLS system. I write the descriptions, I get the photos, I market the property, I schedule open houses. The only thing you would do is approve the showings, make sure the home is straight and get outta there!
4. NEGOTIATE - You have to make sure your agent is representing you to the utmost. He/she works for you, and instead of talking you into giving up something in negotiation that is important to you, they should be figuring out a way to save your value item and negotiate in another direction. The agent should also make the contract paperwork and any hiccups during the process as seamless for you as possible!
5. UPDATE - I feel like I could go on for days, but I always make sure to give my seller clients a weekly update on the status of their listing. I typically give them information regarding web traffic as well as the number of visitors that week and what their comments might have been. I also provide them with information regarding how many people came through during open houses and inform them of their comments as well.
So these are a few things a SUPER agent would be doing. They are out there, and please remember your agent works for you. However, your relationship should be mutually respectful, understanding you hired them because they are an expert at this.
Hope this helps!!
Both very helpful responses, thanks!
That just reminded me of another pet peeve about dealing with him. I'm a huge emailer vs. phone person b/c of the kids and I'd shoot him an email and then he would call me even though I repeatedly told him email was best. He's in his late 30s, so I don't understand this. Is this normal?
He didn't let me into the back end of MLS, but I wasn't happy with his photos so retook them myself and his description was pretty lame and all caps. DH owns a top SEO firm in Chicago and I owned a successful e-commerce store for four years myself, so we know a thing or two about internet marketing and researching terms to use/avoid in listings.
He is very realistic about pricing to move, so that's not an issue. However, he does talk himself up all.the.time about his sales and stuff. Super arrogant, but I was willing to put my annoyance with his personality aside if it got our place sold. Now I'm not sure if he would have had our best interest in mind like pp mentioned. The last time I spoke with him he said he was doing a lot of dual agent sales since he was no longer working with the buyer's agent that he had paired up with due to lack of business.