To find prospective agents, start with your network. Ask friends, relatives, neighbors, and colleagues for recommendations. Word-of-mouth endorsements, as always, can be priceless. You’ll want to interview at least 3 agents before making your decision. We’ve come up with 10 questions that you can ask your prospective agent to determine if he or she is the right fit for you.
Your average sold-to-list price? This can help you figure out whether the agent is a solid marketer and negotiator. These are real estate stats that the agent can pull from your local multiple listing service, or MLS.
Whether you’re working with one agent or a team, ask how responsive they can be to you, your timeline, and your goals.
Some agents lead or work as part of a sales team. The lead listing agent shares client responsibilities with other agents. Where one agent may handle private showings for a listing, another may host open houses. A benefit is that for the same fee, you get many people working for you. But if you want the sole attention of the listing agent, you may want to stick to a one-on-one arrangement.
You don’t want to hire someone who’s just going to stick a For Sale sign in your yard and call it a day. The agent should present a comprehensive marketing plan for your listing. This should include strategies for staging your home, taking professional photographs of your home, promoting the listing on social media, marketing to other brokers, and scheduling open houses.
An agent should be able to articulate their value and explain their commission rate.
Most agents work across multiple price points, but you don’t want an agent who has never sold a home in your range.
You don’t need to find an agent who specializes only in your community, though that would be ideal. You do want someone who has recently sold at least a few homes in your neighborhood and knows the local and hyper-local inventory.
Generally, the more experience an agent has, the more they’re tapped into the local market.
As in most professions, work experience doesn’t guarantee skill. That said, much of real estate is learned on the job.
The person you’re interested in hiring is (hopefully) more than just a real estate agent. You might also find out that they’re a loving parent and / or an involved member in their community.
Whatever your realtor does outside of work should give you an idea of their core values. As a kind, honest and hard-working person, wouldn’t you want the person selling your home to share those same traits?
