Here’s a List of Questions You Probably Didn’t Think to Ask When Hiring a Realtor (but You Should)
There are tens of thousands of professionals to choose from when it’s time to sell your home, and/or buy your next one. So how do you choose a Realtor?
It’s important to interview various Realtors and decide who is the best fit for you. Two questions regularly asked are “How Much” and “How Many”. As in, how much can you sell my home for and how many homes have you sold in this area?
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How many: Sometimes Realtors will call themselves an ‘area expert’. This often means they have used their marketing dollars to target a certain neighbourhood and only focus on buying and selling homes in that area.
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How much: Sometimes Realtors will tell you they sell everything for over-asking. But these numbers can be skewed. A common strategy used is to list homes lower than their market value and sell in multiple offers. Inevitably using this strategy will net the seller ‘over asking’. But it does not explain whether it sold higher than its market value.
The alternative question you could be asking is ‘how’ will you sell [your address] for XX amount?
Although these are helpful to have on your list of questions, the answers to these aren’t something to base hiring a Realtor on. So, we’ve created a list of questions that will be more valuable to you during the interviewing process. These questions will help unearth the Realtor’s character, tenacity, knowledge, quality of work, transparency, and ground-level experience.
1 Are You Full-time Realtor? (or Do They Dabble)
Is their main focus another job or something else 40 hours a week? If you want to see a property hours after it comes to market in the middle of the day, can they support you or are they restricted to another schedule? With reasonableness, your Realtor will work to accommodate your schedule & it shouldn’t be the other way around.
The second part to this is if they are up to date with what’s happening in the market or whether they have to play catch up. Real Estate trends change by the day. Make sure they have a pulse on what’s happening.
2 What Is Your Reputation as a Realtor?
What are their connections with others in the industry? Are they reputable? Respected? A Realtor with great relationships in their industry will give you the edge by being able to receive and share information fluidly with their networks.
Also, can you look them up on google? What are their google reviews? Do they have any?
Lastly – do they practice what they preach? Check them out on their social networks to see what they’re saying.
3 What Are Your Systems?
If this question throws them off, it might be a red flag. Good Realtors run their business using systems to ensure a smooth sail for both buyers and sellers alike. Systems include preparation & scheduling before listing a home and preparing in-depth custom market analysis for buyers (no, we don’t mean just sending a list of ‘comps’).
There are a lot of moving parts, especially when selling a home and you’ll be better-taken care of by a Realtor who runs their business using systems. Ask them if they have a signature process that they’ve created with the client in mind.
4 Do You Have Online Presence? Custom Marketing Strategies?
Now more than ever, Buyers are using the internet to search for homes prior to seeing them in person. Although MLS does cast a wide net to thousands of agents searching for their clients, you’ll want to know where else buyers will be able to find your home (syndication to the web). You have only mere seconds for a Buyer to decide whether to further into your listing or move on to the next.
Professional Photography comes in many different shapes and sizes. There is certainly a difference when it comes to the quality of photos, make sure you see examples of prior work as this term can be vague. Videography, Floor Plans, Staging, Online Advertising, Listing Webpage/ Landing Page, and 3D Tour Walk-throughs are all resources great Realtors will invest in to attract buyers and get you the most amount of money for your property.
5 What Was Your Hardest Sale and Why Was It Successful?
The Real Estate Market can change by the year, the season, the month, and the day. Timing is important. Despite popular belief, homes do not sell themselves, and weeks of preparation, understanding data, and buyer psychology go into the sale of a home. This question helps you discover the grit and character of your Realtor. It also filters out those who rely on MLS from the go-getters who get the job done.
6 What Makes You Stand Out as a Realtor?
Personally, I know exactly how to answer this question. And that is mainly based on the diverse experience we have as a team. Ask this question to see how your Realtor sells themselves. It’ll give you a good indication of their skills when it’s time to sell your home.
Conclusion
There are a lot of questions that will help you determine who is the best fit for you. But be prepared for them to ask you questions too. The interviewing process will go both ways with someone who values the relationship. (This is a good thing and something to be mindful of).
Now that you have all the questions you need before hiring a Realtor, learn how to win in Real Estate by clicking below.
