5 questions to ask before hiring a real estate agent
A great real estate agent can be a godsend when you’re on the hunt for your new home. The last thing you want is to sign a contract with an agent only to find out down the line that they don’t know anything about the neighborhoods where you want to live, are unresponsive to your requests, or just don’t have the experience you expected. This is a huge life decision, after all, and you need the right person to shepherd you through it. So how do you find “the one?”
The first step is to just ask around, whether it’s friends, family or coworkers. “Pretty much all of our business is by referrals,” says real estate agent Carrie Gross. If you’re in a new city where you don’t know anyone, just try going to open houses and see if there’s an agent you vibe with. “Agents at open houses are trying to find buyers that they can work with and just have a relationship with,” Gross says. “That’s a really good way to just kind of educate yourself on different styles of agents, different approaches.” If you really connect with someone, set up a follow-up meeting with them.
When you’re chatting with agents, you’ll want to ask them a series of questions to really understand their experience.
“It’s really important because when you’re in the nitty-gritty of negotiations and inspections, you need a real level of trust,” says Christine Tomlinson, a retired real estate agent who counsels first-time homebuyers. “Realtors are used to being interviewed. So you’re not going to offend anybody if you interview three people and don’t pick them.”
These are some of the questions you should be asking, she says:
What is your experience with first-time buyers?
Some realtors prefer to work with more experienced clientele, so you’ll want to know this upfront and find someone who’d like to work with you.
What neighborhoods are you familiar with?
Some realtors are focused on a particular area, so you’ll want to make sure they have experience with the neighborhoods you’re thinking about.
What are your numbers?
Ask about how many houses your agent has sold, whether they are a buyers agent only or also working with sellers. Overall, you want to know about their history.
What is your availability?
It’s important to know how responsive the agent will be.
How do you best like to communicate?
You may prefer emails, but the agent may prefer phone calls. You want to make sure you are on the same page about the method and frequency of communication, as this will become critical down the road.
This is just a taste of what you need to know to be a smart homebuyer. Check out Knowable’s Buy Your First Home course and learn from experts in all aspects of the homebuying process.
