SELLERS: Questions to Ask your Realtor
23 Mar2009
Filed Under Buying · Tagged: Cincinnati, Interview, Offer, real estate, seller · Print This Article
This is an extremely competitive time to sell your house. You need to find the best Realtor to represent you and meet your needs as a seller.
I often recommend interviewing multiple Realtors before you settle on a choice. If you are in the Cincinnati area and interview me, I have confidence that you will choose me to represent you. But it’s important that you find someone who meets your expectations. It’s important for the Realtor, too — if you and a Realtor have completely different ideas about the sale of your home, it might not be a good fit.
Beware of two important things. (1) Never choose a Realtor based on the price they tell you they can sell your house. No one can guarantee the purchase price. If they offer a list price that isn’t what you were hoping for, but they can provide good evidence on why they selected that price, then chances are they are being honest and upfront.(2) Beware, also, of Realtors who seem to tell you everything you want to hear or say they will let you price the house yourself. Chances are you will be disappointed in this choice, as it will likely be not what you thought you were getting. You’re hiring a Realtor for his or her expertise, not to just do everything you (think) you want.
A lot of people have asked me if I have a recommended list of questions to ask potential Realtors. Through my own experiences and a variety of references, I have cultivated this handy list of questions. If you were to sit down with me, I could answer them for you. Any Realtor you interview should have solid answers for these questions. I’ve included the list of questions below, as well as a downloadable print-out!
Good luck as you find the perfect Realtor for the sale of your home.
Realtor Q&A – For Sellers
- How long have you been in the real estate business?
- Are you a member of the National Association of Realtors?
- Do you have any accreditation’s?
- Do you work full-time on residential real estate?
- How many homes did you sell last year as a sellers’ agent? As a buyers’ agent?
- What is your average-days-on-market for your sellers’ listings?
- What is your average list-price to sales-price ratio?
- What is your experience in my area? Do you have an area you specialize in?
- What price range do you typically specialize in?
- Can you provide me with references and testimonials?
- How many sellers do you work with at one time? How many buyers?
- Of any homes you’ve listed that did not sell, what were the reasons?
- Will you have other listings in my area and price range?
- How will you market my home online? What other marketing will you do?
- Do you have a personal website on which my listing will appear?
- Do you have a blog?
- How quickly will you post photos of my home on my listing?
- How do you stay up on current trends?
- Do you take classes or frequently attend training?
- What is your communication style?
- How accessible are you? How often will we talk to you?
- Will you provide feedback after showings?
- What is the make up of your team?
- Do you have an assistant?
- Who will my potential buyers be talking to?
- How much time do you have to spend on our listing?
- Can we review all documents before we sign anything?
- Do you offer any sort of guarantee?
- What are your fees?
- How will you decide how to price my listing?
- Will you provide tips on how I can best prepare the property for listing?
- What are your negotiation techniques?
- How can you help me determine if an offer I get is a good one?
- Or if the buyer is trustworthy?
- Can you recommend other professionals you trust, such as inspectors, lenders, attorney if needed, etc.?
- If you recommend other professionals, do you receive compensation for any business I may do with them?
- What are possible hidden costs might I encounter?
- Am I obligated to use you to buy my new home?
- Are there advantages to using you as my buyers agent as well?
- Do you expect/allow us to look at homes on our own?
- What expectations do you have of me as the seller?
- What separates you from all the other Realtors?
- What questions did I not ask?
Cincinnati Commercial Real Estate
Amy, Great list of questions – thanks for sharing. Buying or selling real estate is a generally one of the biggest financial decisions that people will make. Make sure you select an agent that will work for you and represent your best interests. If an agent can not quickly answer the questions on Amy