Looking to Hire a Realtor? Here Are the Top Questions You Should Ask When Interviewing!

Buying or selling your home can be the largest financial decision made in your lifetime. Along with the financial aspects, the process can be filled with stressors. This is why a majority of folks chose to work with a real estate agent when buying or selling their home. It is important to find the right fit in an agent both personality wise and to best suit your needs. Asking the right questions is essential to making the right choice. Today, we’ll go over some of the must-ask questions when interviewing an agent and the questions you should hope they are asking in return. 

Before we get into the questions you should ask, it’s important to understand what an agent does for you. Real estate agents serve as a guide of sorts, navigating the transaction for you, providing their expertise on submitting competitive offers, and providing a vast knowledge of the area you are interested in. Working with the right person is essential to creating an easy and enjoyable home buying or selling experience.

Questions For Buyer’s Agents: 

As we’ve discussed before, buying a home, whether your first home or your 5th home,  is a monumental moment in your life. You’ll feel excitement, anxiety, stress, and many other emotions along the way. The last thing you need to stress about is knowing what to ask when interviewing your agent. That’s why we’re doing the work for you. 

• Do you work full-time or part-time as a real estate agent? For some, real estate is a part-time gig and they have another full or part-time salaried job. If you’re looking for an agent that is a real estate-focused 100% of their working hours, you’ll want to discern this early on. 

• How many homes have you gotten under contract this year? Most agents will have their yearly stats on them. You want to make sure whoever you work with has the track record and skills necessary to get you the best deal possible. 

• Do you have any testimonials or references? A good agent will likely have good reviews and past clients singing their praises. It’s worth looking over before signing on with anyone. 

• How many buyers have you helped find homes in my price range? You’ll want to work with someone who is well versed in making competitive offers for buyers in your specific range and has a solid track record. 

• Are you an independent agent or are you part of a team? Solo agents often do all of their own transaction coordination as well. If you work with an agent on a team with administrative support, you get the additional service their team can provide. 

• When are you most available for communications? What is your preferred method of communication? You’ll find most agents don’t work a typical 9-5 pm schedule due to their clients' availability. Still, you’ll want to ask what kind of schedule your agent has to ensure it meets your needs and you are respecting their time away from work once signed on. 

If you get through all of these questions and remain impressed with the realtor, you likely have a good one on your hands. 

Questions for List Agents: 

It’s not all about the buyers! We have plenty of advice for sellers as well looking for the right list agent to get their home sold at a great price. 

• How many homes have you sold in my area? This will help you determine if the agent is well versed in the area and pricing of similar homes nearby. You’ll want to determine if your home is in their usual range of expertise location and price wise.

• What marketing are you planning on doing for my home? Using social media and marketing tools to help get your home sold is a crucial part of the process. You’ll want to make sure the agent has a solid track record and marketing plans in place specific to your needs. 

• Again, you’ll want to ask are you a solo agent, or do you have administrative help? This is for the same reasons as the buy side of things. Agent support can go a long way in terms of the service you experience during the transaction. 
• Do you have any professionals that you partner with? Typically, a listing agent will have not only administrative assistance but photographers and stagers they are working with to put your home in the best position possible to sell. If a listing agent doesn’t have these professionals being offered up, you may want to look elsewhere. 

• What are the average days on market for your listings? How does that compare to the Vermont average? Days on market can be reflective of the agent's pricing and market knowledge. Comparing their stats to the Vermont average can be useful for seeing how your home may do under their expertise. 

• Lastly, you’ll again want to ask for their preferred methods of communication and availability for the exact same reasons you’d ask a buyer's agent. A good agent won’t just answer your questions but come equipped with some for you as well. Firstly, they'll likely want to know your timeline for either buying or selling. Are you just dipping your toes or looking for an immediate move? When buying a home, they’ll ask for your deal breakers – what features or areas are a must in order for you to buy? When selling a home, an agent will want to know any improvements or issues in your home that should be communicated to potential buyers. If you interview an agent, and they aren’t asking you questions like these, you may want to keep exploring your options.