Ideally, ask for the names and phone numbers of three of the most recent clients. You want to know whether people are happy with the real estate agent's work now, not five or 10 years ago. When you talk to former clients, ask how easy it was to reach the agent when they had questions, and whether they felt well supported and advised throughout the process.
2. What selling price do you think I can achieve?
Prospective agents will give you a sale price they think they can achieve for your property. The most important question to ask is "What are you basing that on?" They should then support this with recent sales in your area of similar properties - both from their agency and others.
Make sure they can support the suggested sale price with evidence - you don't want to fall for the trap of securing the agent who simply says they can get the best price for you!
Inspections are a very common contingency in contracts when buying a home. A great question to ask a potential buyers agent is whether or not they attend their inspections. There are some buyers agents who will attend and some who will not. Most top producing agents will agree that attending inspections is important, for many reasons.
4. Are you a broker or a sales agent?
This is a minor concern, but you want to know the answer so that you can make sure a broker has sufficient time to represent you effectively. If he is too busy managing the office or keeping tabs on associates, he might be too much of an administrator to meet your day-to-day demands.
5. What is your standard commission?
You MUST ask. Enough said.
6. What haven't I asked you that I need to know?
This is the best way to ask for references. You may even be lucky enough to actually know the homeowner. Be sure to ask the homeowner lots of questions related to likes, dislikes, and the agent's performance compared to what he/she promised.
7. Do I need a "reality check"?
A reality check is where an agent puts you in the car and drives you around to look at other properties. As a seller, she is showing you that your expectations are unreasonable compared to similar homes in similar neighborhoods. For buyers, a reality check may be to prove that you have too little money to afford the neighborhood and that perhaps you need to adjust your hopes and dreams down to the size of your wallet.
8. What can I do to make myself a better buyer?
If you are buying a home, there are ways to make bids more attractive, such as being preapproved for a mortgage so that the deal can be written without a mortgage contingency. This question will give you insight into the kinds of strategies a buyer broker thinks will work, both with lenders and sellers.
9. Have any of your showings or sales included homes in my neighborhood?
Just because someone is the top agent at his firm does not make him the best for you. If he is not familiar with your neighborhood, if he can't describe it knowledgeably to a seller, you may be better off with someone else.
10. Do you have a personal website?
You maybe asking yourself, Why is a website important for a buyers agent to have? Simple. A website is hopefully a great place to learn about not only the potential buyers agent but also about the local neighborhoods, schools, and also find some helpful testimonials.
11. How do you provide the information of these possible homes?
This is a critical question to ask a buyers agent. Do they send just the address of the potential home? Do they send information? You should expect a great buyers agent to send lots of detailed information and photos about the possible homes.
12. What areas of town do you specialize in?
Ideally, they should be familiar with your area. However, it may not be the only area they specialize in. If they say they specialize in the entire DFW area, remember that the DFW metroplex is an area of 9,286 square miles, making it larger in area than Rhode Island and Connecticut combined according to Wikipedia.com. Have them narrow it down a bit.
13. How many years have you been involved in real estate?
Ideally you want a career real estate agent that has been in the industry for at least 2 or 3 years. Or at least you want to make sure that they are under the direct supervision of someone with 3 to 5 years of experience.
14. How long have you been a licensed real estate agent?
This question is one that cannot be missed. Experience in the real estate industry is important. The longer a real estate agent has been selling real estate, the more transactions they have likely completed. It's not impossible, however, that a real estate agent who has been in the business for two or three years and has done enough transactions to fall into that 20% group!
15. How long have you been a Real Estate Agent for?
In this industry, experience definitely counts - but that doesn't mean that the agent who has been around the longest is the best one for you. What you are looking for is someone who has had enough experience to handle all aspects of the sale, combined with the enthusiasm and motivation required to secure a buyer for you.
16. How accessible are you and how often will you contact me?
One of the biggest criticisms about agents is a lack of communication. Make sure your agent knows what you think is an appropriate level of communication and that you want as many contact numbers as possible. If they do give you their home number, please be considerate of how you use it.
17. What makes you a better choice for me than your competition?
Use this question to discover how competitive they are and how well they have researched the market and their competition, especially in your area. Their answers can also reveal their level of experience too.
18. Do you have a feedback system and if so, how does it work?
Anyone that I know that has ever sold a home will want to find out how potential buyers feel about the house. The Realtor you hire should be prepared to call the buyers agent after the showing to find out if the buyer has any interest and if not what their impression were both positive and negative.
19. Do you just work with sellers, or do you represent buyers too?
There's nothing wrong with working with both as long as they don't spread their time too thin. Buyers take up a lot of an agent's time when showing homes. Find out their ratio of buyers to sellers.
20. What type of support staff or resources do you have?
This could include anything from technology help for creating a beautiful website for your home to an in-house real estate attorney.
21. Is real estate your full-time career or a part-time career?
You only want a professional full-time real estate agent to sell your house. To do it right, real estate is a full-time job. You shouldn't hire an agent that only spends a few hours a week on the job.
22. The most important question you need to ask is the question you must ask yourself?
Do I think this agent will do a good job selling my home and can I work with him/her to achieve this goal?
23. Do you work on your own or as part of a team?
If the agent you are interviewing heads up a large office, it may be that he or she will not be the one doing business with you the entire time. If that's the case, you should know up front exactly how the agent will be involved, and you should be able to meet the other agents who will be working with you.
24. Are you a member of a team and who would I be working with?
A team is a group of agents that service the same customers. Usually one agent does a specific task or works with a particular client or specific area. Find out how their team works. There are advantages to working with teams however their approach may seem less personal. Make sure you feel comfortable with the way their team operates and how they will service you. Also make sure that you have a list of teammates and their duties and contact information.
25. How do you deal with disclosed dual-agency?
Dual-agency is a tricky situation where the agent represents both the buyer and seller of the same transaction. When representing both sides, they in effect can not really represent either side well. If that sounds like an awkward explanation, I assure you the law is even more unclear. Read "Information about Brokerage Services" to learn about the law of agency. This is a standard form published by the Texas Real Estate Commission for agents licensed in Texas.
26. How will you communicate with me regarding your efforts?
One of the biggest complaints nationally towards Realtors is a lack of communication. You will want to find out how the Realtor will keep in contact with you. It it by phone, email, text? A Realtor should be flexible and work in the manner the client desires. Above all else there should be regular communication. Lack of communication is one of the biggest complaints nationally against real estate agents. Make sure how and how often you will be informed on what is going on in your sale.
27. How long do you think it will take to sell my property and why?
In asking this question, you don't expect the agent to give you an exact number of days that it will take to sell your property! You are looking for their understanding of the current market and the factors impacting your area, and how these will contribute to the selling process.
28. How do you determine which homes may match our wants and needs?
A great buyers agent will have a system or questionnaire in place to determine what homes may match your wants and needs. You should expect a great buyers agent to ask about your price range, desired square footage, number of bedrooms, type of heating system, and other specific questions. This will allow them to determine what homes may be a great fit.
Make sure they don't just list it in MLS and plant a sign in your yard. They may advertise in newspapers, magazines and other publications both in print and online. Open houses are also a way to promote your house, but their effectiveness is up for debate and in most cases only benefit the agent by attracting new buyer clients. Ask your agent about their views on open houses.
30. How will you determine the appropriate sales price for my home?
Usually this is done by comparing sales activity of similar houses. The big debate is how your house compares to other houses that have sold. They may be able to offer ideas to improve your house and make it sell for more. If done correctly, all of the agents you interview should price your home pretty close to the other agents. If an agent prices your house significantly higher or lower than the other agents' prices, find out why they priced it that way. Remember, if it's too good to be true then it usually is. Some agents promise to list your house at a high price knowing that once you've signed the agreement, they can make you lower it to a reasonable amount later on. That wastes time and the longer your house sits on the market, the less money you'll sell it for.
31. How often will you have weekend open houses?
This is both a marketing and lifestyle decision. For most busy people, there are only so many weekends in a month that they can disappear from home for five hours without falling behind on housework, yard work, or homework. You need to get people in the door and looking at the property, but too many open houses opening the doors every week or two smacks of desperation; too few, by contrast, may mean that you aren't bringing potential buyers through your doors. Find a happy medium; if you know the advisor's strategy on open houses in advance, you'll either be prepared to live with it later, or you will turn to an agent who is willing to follow the schedule you want to use.
32. What Is the Biggest Deal You Have Conducted?
The scope of the deal is the biggest differentiator between residential and commercial real estate. A $1 million transaction is considered a whale for a residential agent. Commercial real estate agents, by contrast, regularly broker transactions in the tens of millions. Presiding over deals this large requires almost a preternatural level of confidence and calm under pressure. Anyone can claim to possess these traits, but a proven track record of closing big deals provides proof you have what it takes to get it done.
Experienced agents should have no problem with this question. If you are newly trying to break into the business, you can still create a positive impression with your answer. Rather than evading the question, acknowledge that you are new to the field and have yet to close a big real estate deal. Next, highlight a big transaction you closed at a previous sales job or a major project you oversaw to completion that required a cool head under pressure.
33. Are you going to hold a broker's open house?
A broker's open house shows your home to other agents in town. Your agent sends a notice to every firm in the area, inviting interested agents to come for lunch and a look-see.
Don't kid yourself; there are plenty of agents who just come to eat, especially if your broker is known for putting out a good spread. Still, for a few hours on a weekday afternoon, you will get some agents in your home who could decide it is perfect for someone they are working with.
Many agents choose not to do a "broker's open," particularly if the customer doesn't request it; their reasons vary, but I have heard agents say they dislike a broker's event because there is no direct possibility of making a sale. If you think it will help your house move, ask for it.
Learn what they think is important for you to know. Remember, it's their job to help you understand and become comfortable with the process.
35. Tell Me What You Know About (Esoteric Industry Term)?
Interviewers love to test interviewees' knowledge by pulling out an arcane term that is specific to the industry and testing what you know about it. For example, do you know the difference between a triple net lease and a gross lease? (For reference, a triple net lease requires the tenant to pay taxes, insurance and building maintenance along with his rent, while a tenant with a gross lease pays only rent with the landlord covering the other expenses.)
Companies expect a learning curve for new hires; they do not expect you to know every intricate detail about the industry on your first day. These questions serve more as a gauge of your preparation and how serious you are about the job. Study as much as you can about the industry before you start interviewing, and prepare to put your knowledge on display.
