Questions to Ask When Choosing a
REALTOR
1. How long have you been in residential real
estate sales? Is it your full-time job? (While
experience is no guarantee of skill, real estate,
like many other professions, is mostly learned
on the job.)
2. What designations do you hold? (Designations,
such as GRI and CRS?, which require that real
estate professionals take additional, specialized
real estate training, are held by only about
one-quarter of real estate practitioners.)
3. How many homes did you and your company
sell last year?
4. How many days did it take you to sell the
average home? How did that compare to the overall
market?
5. How close to the initial asking prices of
the homes you sold were the final sale prices?
6. What types of specific marketing systems
and approaches will you use to sell my home?
(Look for someone who has aggressive, innovative
approaches, not just someone who’s going
to put a sign in the yard and hope for the best.)
7. Will you represent me exclusively, or will
you represent both the buyer and the seller
in the transaction? (While it’s usually
legal to represent both parties in a transaction,
it’s important to understand where the
practitioner’s obligations lie. A good
practitioner will explain the agency relationship
to you and describe the rights of each party.
It’s also possible to insist that the
practitioner represent you exclusively.)
8. Can you recommend service providers who
can assist me in obtaining a mortgage, making
repairs on my home, and other things I need
done? (Keep in mind here that real estate professionals
should generally recommend more than one provider
and should tell you if they receive any compensation
from any provider.)
9. What type of support and supervision does
your brokerage office provide to you? (Having
resources, such as in-house support staff, access
to a real estate attorney, or assistance with
technology, can help a real estate professional
sell your home.)
10. What’s your business philosophy?
(While there’s no right answer to this
question, the response will help you assess
what’s important to the real estate practitioner—fast
sales, service, etc.—and determine how
closely the practitioner’s goals and business
emphasis mesh with your own.)
11. How will you keep me informed about the
progress of my transaction? How frequently?
Using what media? (Again, this is not a question
with a correct answer, but that one reflects
your desires. Do you want updates twice a week
or don’t want to be bothered unless there’s
a hot prospect? Do you prefer phone, e-mail,
or a personal visit?)
12. Could you please give me the names and
phone numbers of your three most recent clients?
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