Recently I had the pleasure of being interviewed by a prospective client that was doing her diligence and trying to find a Realtor to market her house properly.
This prospective client found me on the internet, which is almost as much as a rush to me as a referral is. She proceeded to ask me questions, quite a few of them and then apologized for doing so, I told her, no worries you are doing the right thing.
So, to make it easier for the home seller to interview their new Realtor®, I will outline a few points and questions that you should probably ask, along with your own.
These are the most important issues I would have, maybe not in order, but here are a few for you to think about.
•1. Are you a full time Realtor®? I AM a full time Realtor®, but when I first started I was part time and I found it very difficult to handle all the calls and give proper attention to my clients. I have a 60 minute rule, if I don't answer the phone and if I am able, I will call my client back within 60 mins, I'm not certain a part time Realtor® can do the same. This is your house they are selling.
•2. What kind of EXPOSURE will my house get? The more internet coverage the better.
Simply sticking a sign on the lawn and putting the house on the MLS just doesn't cut it anymore. The NAR says that 85% of ALL home searches start on the internet, I'm going to go further and say about 95% start on the internet. Make sure that the prospective Realtor® outlines a strong internet marketing plan, this could include, a website with your home address as the web address, major website exposure, like Century21.com. Ask them to give you examples of their work on the internet. Ask the Realtor you are interviewing if they are a showcase/feature agent on Realtor.com. This website gets tremendous traffic and you want your house to stand out. Ask them if they also provide print advertising. Print advertising is STILL effective.
•3. Photography- Ask to see some pictures of their recent homes that they are marketing. You would not believe how important this is. It could simply be the deciding factor for having a prospective home buyer passing up your house. A Realtor should take approx 12 pictures of your house.
•4. Do you do Open Houses?- Not all Realtors® believe in Open Houses, some feel they are useless, some do them for their clients and some Realtors do their best to make them work. Be careful here, not all open houses get traffic and it's probably not the Realtors® fault.
•5. Can you give me a reference or two? Simple, ask for a reference.
•6. Do you have a Team? I'm not on a team and I will never have one. When I list your house, you call me, and you will speak to me, ALWAYS. I'm the one you hired. This is your choice here, there are pros and cons of a team, I like to know my client and speak to them regularly.
•7. Will you contact me at least once a week? The Realtor you are talking to should answer this by saying, "At minimum once a week, unless you prefer differently".
•8. Do you provide monthly updates? - I give my clients printouts of how many hits they get on Realtor.com, however you must be a showcased agent to do so. This is very effective to show how many people are looking at your house. If the number is moderate to high, and you have received no offers or showings, it is a good indicator to change things up whether it be price, etc. Talk to your Realtor and they should already have a plan in place for this.
Here are some questions I get asked....
•1. This is the question I get asked most- HOW MANY HOUSES HAVE YOU SOLD? This has nothing to do with your house. I was just asked this and I told the person asking this, I had 5 closings in the past 30 days....sounds good but what does it have to do with selling your house? ALSO, if someone has a very high number of sold houses, you may ask if they are on a TEAM. Every house that is sold within a team goes to the lead on the team. If they have a 5 person team and each person sells only 10 houses per year that is 50 houses that goes towards the TEAM.
•2. How long have you been selling houses?...Great Question to ask.
•3. Do you have a buyer for my house right now?- I have lost listing appointments because of this question, I simply state the truth, "you are hiring me to find a buyer and that is what I'm going to do". The chance that ANY Realtor® has a buyer for your house is very slim before they start to market your home.
Some things to watch out for.
Let's say your house just expired or was withdrawn and your phone rings, it's a realtor that says, I may have a buyer for your house, allow me to list it and let's see if they like it. Your answer should be, OK, bring them around and if they like it, we will sign a ONE day listing agreement to get the deal done, you'll know very quickly if they are being true to you. (this goes for FSBO's too).
These are just some of the thoughts you could gather when talking to a prospective Realtor that you are looking to sell your valuable asset. I hope this helps.
About me- My previous career was in computers. I was a network engineer for a large defense contractor in Mt. Laurel. I have been involved in Real Estate now for 5 years both in investing and selling. I have created a large internet following with my listings and from people emailing me and asking me for advice on certain real estate issues. I approach every client with the goal of them telling 10 friends how well I have treated them. Referrals are a very important part of my business. I am an amateur photographer, I will do a good job photographing and/or taking video of your home. I offer ALL of my clients, whether they are buying or selling a great tool called "Market Snapshot" you can sign up for it on my home page. This shows what is selling and sold or on the market in real time with pictures and a graphs. If I can be of assistance, please call or email me.
Dave Sulvetta Realtor-Assoc.
Century 21 Hearst Realty Inc.
5021 Rt 42
Turnersville, NJ 08012
Cell; 856 889-8163
Email; dave@davesulvetta.com
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