Overcoming REALTOR Phobia--12 Tips for Interviewing a Real Estate Agent

 
I’ll admit it. From time to time I have had trust issues when I first meet a salesperson. Perhaps I have been burned one too many times when an overzealous salesman makes a promise and doesn't deliver.  Maybe it is because I have read too many “scripts” in my own sales career that I am have become cynical to the process. Of course there are good products and sometimes the sales pitch is as genuine as is the person delivering it. But it's tiresome weeding out the good from the bad.  I don’t think I am alone feeling this way. As a REALTOR® I have discovered home buyers and sellers can be afraid of real estate salespeople.
 
Several years ago my teenagers were into reading the melodramatic and very snarky books, A Series of Unfortunate Events.  One of the characters, Aunt Josephine was deathly afraid of nearly everything in her house but she was particularly terrified of the huge picture window with a panoramic view of a cliff, rocks and lake below. Petrified as she was, Aunt Josephine couldn’t bring herself to sell her home as she feared REALTORS® even more.

I found this funny but also very eye-opening. If someone could actually write a humorous novel about a person with “real estate agent phobia”, there probably is more than one person who feels this way. And this could be a clue as to why so many home buyers and sellers trying to go it alone when moving.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Not all REALTORS® work the same way. Being conscious of what potential clients might feel, I try to be open, honest and treat everyone as I would like to be treated. I don’t sell houses; I assist people in the process of finding a home or a buyer for their home. 

Trust is a huge obstacle for many people when choosing someone to work with on a home purchase or sale. The best way to decide whether or not you can work with someone is to spend some time talking with them.  INTERVIEW potential agents prior to signing a contract for buyer or seller representation. If in the interview, you don’t develop a good rapport or "click" with this particular person, move on to the next. The home buying/selling process takes time and it is a more pleasant experience if you like and trust the person you have representing your interests.  But don’t avoid signing a contract and try to go it alone without any representation. Your best protection against a hard-sell sale pitch is having a REALTOR® working with you every through every step of the transaction.  Home buyers are especially vulnerable but once you commit to working with a single trusted agent, the process of buying a home is truly simplified.

12 Questions Interview for a Potential REALTOR®
 
1.     How long have you been selling residential real estate?

2.      Is this your full-time job? Do you have another part-time job or business in addition to real estate sales?

3.      Do you represent buyers or sellers exclusively or will the transaction be a dual agency?

4.      Tell me more about how you work and your business philosophy.

5.     Can you help recommend service providers who can help with financing, inspections, repairs, etc.?

6.     How will you communicate with me? Via text, email, phone or a combination? How frequently can I call you? Do you answer your own phone?

7.     Will I work with you directly or an assistant/team member?

8.     Can I speak with some of the home buyers (or sellers) you worked with most recently?

Additional questions to ask when selling a home: 

9.     How many homes did you sell last year?

10.    On average, how many days does it take you to sell an average home?

11.    How did the final sales prices compare to the initial asking prices of the homes you sold most recently?

12.   How do you plan to market my home? 

 
Copyright 2014 www.terieckholm.com

How Invested are YOU in Selling Your Home?

When a home owners contact a REALTOR® for a market analysis, they often have a myriad of questions to ask me as their potential agent about what I can do to get their home sold. They want a person with a good, solid track record of getting a home sold quickly and for the best price possible. This is what I want too and it does take a good strong marketing plan. One key to the process is when I work with a motivated home seller who is on the same page with me and who asks, “What can I do to make my home appealing to a buyer?” And even if the home seller doesn't ask, I will work the topic into the conversation. There is nothing worse than trying to represent an apathetic or reluctant home seller.

If a homeowner doesn’t want to do the work and partner with me to get there home sold, it will be an uphill battle to the closing table. It is imperative for a home seller to be totally invested in the home selling process. And this starts even before the home is listed on the market.

Steps to being an INVESTED Home Seller!

• Preparation—Having the home freshly painted, cleaned and staged are essential before the home is listed. Special touches really do add a welcoming touch like a seasonal wreath on the front door. Dust free vents, spotless floors, cobweb-free ceilings and light fixtures do make a difference.
• Pricing—Listen to the advice of experts when it comes to setting the price. Don’t go by an old appraised value or what your dad said he would ask for your home. Unless Pops is a real estate professional, it is best to stick to the market statistics to come up with your list price.
• Presentation—Interior and exterior appeal should be optimized for each and every showing.  Beyond clean and staged, light a fire in the fireplace, place a plate of warm cookies on the counter and make a potential homebuyer feel welcome!
• Availability—Allow buyers in! Don’t say no to a showing unless it is absolutely necessary. Sometimes relocation homebuyers are just in town for a limited time and make their decision based on the homes they see that day. If you refuse a showing, you might miss out.

A potential home seller really wants and needs for their listing agent to be invested in getting their home sold quickly. But all the marketing in the world cannot get a home sold if the homeowner isn’t invested in getting the home sold too!

Copyright 2012 www.terieckholm.com

REALTOR® Selection 101—How to Choose the BEST REALTOR® for YOU! (Part Two of Two)

How does the average home buyer or seller find their REALTOR®? Did they meet a friendly person hosting an open house? Call their best friend's brother who just got licensed? Answer an ad on Craigslist? I don't know the percentages but I am certain that most home buyers don't spend any more time researching their real estate agent than they do their groceries. But a home is not an everyday purchase; it is too big of a decision to not have sound advice. So how does one select a good REALTOR® to work with?

The average American will buy or sell property only 2-3 times during their lifetime. It is imperative to have a logical process to select a real estate agent. Purchasing and selling a home for your family is a very emotional situation. If you chose an agent wisely, you will be confident that your REALTOR® is on your side through the entire purchase and/or sale even when your emotions are running high.

As a REALTOR® working in the Twin Cities north metro, I love assisting people to find the perfect home. Many of my clients come from the referrals of past clients but I also meet home buyers at open houses and through various marketing avenues. When I meet a potential client, I expect questions about myself and my business. I answer additional questions about living on acreage, wetlands and lakeshore. I field questions on properties in Anoka, Washington and Ramsey Counties. Sometime the questions are about specifics of homes the buyer is interested in and often the questions are about the real estate market in general. But unfortunately not all of these potential clients ask pertinent questions. Some are already be caught up in the emotional buying process of a major life change.

Here is a great step-by-step approach to selecting the perfect REALTOR® for you. This is Part two of a two part article. In Part One, I discussed how to mentally prepare yourself  for your meeting with potential real estate agents. (To read Part One, CLICK HERE.) in Part two I am going to outline specific questions you can ask of potential agents to help you make a better decision on which one will be the best partner in your home search.

Six questions to ask a potential agent

Do you have an introductory flyer or personal resume that you could send me prior to our meeting?
The way an agent promotes him/herself will give you a good idea of their professionalism. If you receive high quality, well thought out marketing materials in the mail within the next day or two (or immediately via email), the agent is on the ball. A well written, professional personal brochure should be part of a REALTOR®’s marketing materials. If you receive something of less quality or nothing at all, the agent might not be able to pay attention to detail throughout the transaction.

Do you work independently or as part of a team?

And, if the agent is part of a team, ask for more specifics, (i.e. If you are part of a team, who will I be working with most often?)

If you prefer to have someone who can immediately answer the phone and track down an answer, you might like working with an agent that is part of a team. But it is important to understand how the team operates. Some teams will operate with the agents being interchangeable where you will have one agent showing you homes to buy, one agent handling listing your home, and another holding the open houses. Often teams will have unlicensed assistance handling the incoming phone calls. An unlicensed assistant, while often friendly can't always answer specifics on a property or show a house.

If you want to work with the same person throughout the transaction, you may prefer an agent that works independently. Often when you call their office, the agent will pick up the phone. They handle all the details throughout the transaction and can answer your questions directly without waiting to contact another source.

Can you give me the names of past clients?

An experienced REALTOR® will have worked with any number of clients and will be able to provide you with a list of previous clients that you can contact as references. When talking with the references, it would be a good idea to ask if they had any problems during the transaction. If they did, ask how quickly and professionally they were resolved. Also ask how they met their agent. If the agent gives you only a list family members, a list of best friends from high school or no list at all, it may be concerning.

(For Buyers) Can You Help Me Understand My Financing Options?

If you are pre-approved for a mortgage but do not understand the financing paperwork after meeting with your loan officer, a good real estate agent should be able to peruse the documents to note any fees that do not seem correct. Sometimes a phone call by a REALTOR® to the loan officer on your behalf can resolve the issue. If not, most real estate agents have several good mortgage professionals that they have developed professional relationships with they can call upon. It could be in your best interest to visit with another loan officer to verify that all fees charged are necessary and that you are in the best type of loan program for your situation. Any real estate agent unable or unwilling to assist you in finding the tools to understanding your financing options might not be the best choice.

(For Sellers) What is your listings-to-sales ratio?

Some agents seem to have every house on the block or every house in a neighborhood listed. You see their signs in yards throughout the town. Their ads are in your local newspaper and in your mailbox. This is may be an indication of a successful REALTOR®. But the big question is “Did the homes sell?” In this slower buyer’s market, there are many more homes on the market than buyers. Do you want an agent that can successfully get you to list your home or one who will actually help you price and market it properly to get the home sold? If the agent is unsure of their ratio, you can figure it out for them. Ask how many homes they listed last year. Then ask how many listings they sold. (Make sure that the agent doesn’t include sales of homes where they represented the buyers.) Divide the listings sold by the total number of listings to get the ratio. If the ratio of listings-to-sales is less than 30-40%, you might want to select a different agent. Successful agents won’t sell every home they list, but their success ratio will be over 50%, even in a slow year.

(For Sellers) How will you market my home?

A comprehensive marketing plan should be prepared for your specific home prior to signing any contract. Good agents establish a marketing plan for each home they list. Your REALTOR® should provide you with a list of how they intend to market your home. They should outline what websites your home will be promoted on and the timing schedule of updated online ads. If there is going to be a sign in your yard, your agent should tell you whether their will be a brochure box with flyers for potential buyers driving by. Anything from the number of pictures in the MLS or whether there will be a virtual tour, open house or print advertising should be discussed and outlined.

Copyright 2011www.terieckholm.com