How sellers interview agents

Your agent should communicate well, be technically adept, familiar with prices in your area and know how to market your home to its best advantage. Working with someone who is not proficient in all these skills can end up costing you in many ways.

As I elaborated in a previous article, Protecting Sellers, most sellers consider marketing the property and getting it sold as the most important functions of their agent. Although obviously essential, effective marketing without commensurate protection of the seller is not enough. It is how an agent handles the entire process that differentiates the skilled professional from the rest.

One key difference between how buyers and sellers select agents is that, whereas buyers often stumble into a relationship with an agent, sellers tend to interview more than one. In the trade, this is known as a “listing presentation.” Interestingly, agents give sellers a “presentation,” while buyers get an “interview.”

I have heard of sellers interviewing eight or nine different Realtors, including more than one from the same office. I believe this is an ineffective use of everyone’s time and energy. Interviewing three agents from different, respected local companies should be more than sufficient. If you are not satisfied with the first three, you can always continue interviewing.

Whom to interview

Ask friends, family and people in the neighborhood if they know a good, experienced agent. Make sure the agent is local, i.e., knows and works in your area. One of the best ways to get agent names is to check your mail. If you are like most homeowners, you receive a plethora of mail from local Realtors. They take the time and spend the money in the hopes you will call when you are ready to sell.

If you have not been doing so already, save all the real estate mailouts you receive for a three or four month period before you put your home on the market. Separate the pieces by company and agent.

Who sends you information every month or more and has been doing so for years? Those agents are “farming” for your listing. Choose those who not only contact you consistently, but who send you a quality product.

Are the materials well-written or sloppy? Graphically pleasing or haphazard? Is the paper or postcard stock substantial or shabby? If the agent has a photograph, does it look professional? There are abundant clues to how seriously an agent takes his or her business.

Open houses are another excellent way for sellers to meet agents. Watch how the agent greets (or doesn’t greet) you when you enter. Is he or she friendly and personable or distant and aloof? Although an appealing personality does not necessarily mean the agent is competent, this is a good start. Eliminate all grouches. Life is too short.

Between asking for referrals from people you know, reviewing your real estate mailings over a period of time and meeting agents at open houses, you should have no trouble finding three candidates willing to come to your home for a chat.

The listing presentation

You have invited three agents to apply for the position of your listing agent. To minimize stress on you, I suggest you meet the agents on different days. Ask each one to come prepared with comparable sales information. Assuming they have not been in your home, it will be helpful if you describe the property to them.

Bear in mind that, in most cases, it will be difficult for the agent to come up with an accurate price without having seen the home in advance and given it thought. Some will ask for a second appointment to discuss pricing. If you are not under time constraints to list, I recommend you agree to second appointments for pricing with those agents who request it.

They may also ask to bring a few associates from their office to get their opinions. This, too, is common and can be very useful. Do not, however, be impressed if an agent brings thirty or forty people from his or her office. This has nothing to do with the quality of the agent, and that is what you are deciding.

Being prepared with questions will make it easier and will also give you a basis for comparing the agents (see parts one and two of this series). I advise you to allow the agent to control the agenda. This can be quite interesting. Notice whether the agent has some “plan” or “pattern,” as opposed to being random and disorganized. Top professionals know exactly what they are doing. They come prepared, and rarely “wing it.”

Each agent will have a distinctive style. Some will ask you to show him or her around the house at the beginning. Others will want to sit down and make “small talk” first and then see the home. Most will have presentation books.

At some point, you will have an opportunity to ask your questions. Concentrate on the agent’s communication skills, including his or her ability to develop a positive rapport with you. An important reminder — the agent should commit to staying in touch with you on a regular basis, at least once a week. This is not done by all agents.

As is the case with buyers, it is critical for the agent to learn why you are selling. If you do not volunteer this information immediately, the agent should be asking you questions to uncover your reasons. The best Realtors will focus on this quickly. If the agent does not knife through this within the first fifteen to twenty minutes, eliminate that individual. Successful professionals do not want to waste their time with people who are not serious and are just “testing the market.”

Question: What is different about representing sellers, as opposed to buyers? Inexperienced listing (seller’s) agents have a limited concept of how many things can go wrong for a seller in a transaction. This runs the gamut from pest control problems to contract compliance, from issues with the buyer’s lender to fouled-up payoff paperwork on the seller’s loan. Although this question will elicit technical knowledge, you are looking for the agent’s ability to communicate the differences in a way you can understand.

Question:What is your listing philosophy? Alternatively, you might ask, “What is your approach to working with sellers?” Responses can be a real eye-opener. Not all agents have given this question their consideration. Those who haven’t, would not be good candidates.

My philosophy, for example, is that I work only with sellers who have a strong reason to sell. In order for me to be willing to invest my time, effort and money on a listing, the seller must be committed to the process and be willing and able to accept the verdict of the market regarding price.

I do not take a listing just to have my sign in front of the house and my name in a newspaper ad. A current example is a listing I would not take several months ago because the seller insisted on a minimum selling price that was $20,000 higher than the maximum value the market dictated. The home was listed with another agent. It sits unsold with no offers.

Finally, and most importantly, I put the seller’s best interests before my desire to earn a commission.

Question:If you were to represent both the buyer and myself in the sale of my property, how would you handle it? Ostensibly, the reply could be a primer on agency law, particularly “dual agency.” The thrust of the question, however, is how the agent will explain the delicate balancing act of representing both buyer and seller (dual agency).

My emphasis is on making sure in advance that all parties are comfortable with this arrangement. If not, I would not write the offer for the buyer. Rather, before the buyer gave me specifics of an offer he wanted to write, I would refer him to another agent. However, referring may also result in complications.

If the agent minimizes the implications of dual agency, he or she should be disqualified. In the end, whether or not you are at ease with dual agency will be a matter of trust in your agent. This question should shed some light on his or her approach to representing you.

Paying attention to the an agent’s communications capabilities is fundamental to your choice of a high quality professional. Unfortunately, sometimes the best communicators are not the ones who will put your interests first.

Technical ability plus market familiarity and marketing know-how are other parts of the agent equation. I will cover those in part four, the concluding article of this series.

Related Articles: How to Interview Agents, Part 1, Part 2, Part 4; Use Local Agent; Clarifying Reality; Another New Contract, Part 1 and Part 2; Not Just Termites, Part 1 and Part 2; Are Permits Important?; Check Drainage; What Is A Bedroom?; Understanding The Market; Protecting Sellers; Why Expireds Expire