Questions to ask when choosing a Realtor

Everyone either knows a realtor or knows someone who knows a realtor but besides just reference from your circle, how do you really choose the best realtor for you?

Here are some questions to ask when considering a realtor so you can pick the one that best fits your needs.

Questions to ask when choosing a realtor

How long have you been in residential real estate sales? Is it your full-time job?

Although experience is no guarantee of skill, much of real estate is learned on the job.

How many homes did you and your real estate brokerage sell last year?

This will help you figure out how much experience they have, and how up-to-date they are on the local market.

What designations or certifications do you hold?

There are many certification and qualifications available for Realtors to become more specialized professional in specific areas and fields. These designations are only obtainable through training and certification provided by the National Association of Realtors. Some of them included the Certified Residential Specialist, Military, Senior citizens, Short sale and many others.

How many days does it take you to sell a home? How does that compare to others?

Realtors should have information about their performance on hand and be able to present market statistics from their local MLS to provide a comparison.

What’s the average variation between your initial listing and final sales price?

This indicates how much pricing and negotiating skills a Realtor has.

What specific marketing systems and approaches will you use to sell my home?

Your agent should have an aggressive, innovative plan and understand how to market property online.

Will you represent me exclusively, or might you also choose to represent the buyer?

While it’s usually legal to represent both parties in a transaction, your REALTOR® should be able to explain his or her philosophy on client obligations and agency relationships.

Can you recommend service providers who can help me obtain a mortgage, make home repairs, and so on?

Agents should be able to recommend more than one provider and let you know if they have any special relationship with any of the providers.

How will you keep me informed about the progress of my transaction?

The best answer here is a question. A real estate agent who pays attention to the way you prefer to communicate and responds accordingly will make for the smoothest transaction.

You can also find out more about how the agent communicates on a daily basis by giving them a call in order to observe the following:

1 - Did they answer the phone?

2 - If they didn't answer the phone, did they get back to you?

3 - How long did it take for them to reach back to you?

4 - What method did they use to reach you? Did they text instead of calling you back as you requested in your voicemail message?

These details will help you arrive at a decision on whom is the best person to help your family sell or buy a property and relieve the stress instead of bringing more.

Could you please give me the contact information of your three most recent clients?

Ask their former customers if they would use the agent again in the future or you can also check their reviews on realtor.com or google.com. There are many websites, even facebook pages may be a good idea to take a look at.

By checking out their social media you can actually determine whether they have a presence and an audience.

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