Beware of Sheep in Wolves clothing… What to look out for when choosing your next real estate agent

There is a lot of competition in real estate. It seems that everyone is getting their real estate license and there are a lot more agents compared to 5 years ago. The throws a curve ball into the mix as many or these agents are part time agents and they sometimes do things that hurt full time agents as they don’t depend on their real estate income to support them. So how does a buyer or seller actually choose a real estate agent to represent them? Let’s go into detail…
 
I recently spoke to a past client that bought and sold their Whitby property with me and he said “I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t know you, there are so many agents out there and you can tell that many of them are not honest and they just play the part”. I actually said to him that he didn’t know the half of it! His comments are what inspired me to write this blog post as it’s a very important topic for any buyer or seller (especially first time buyers & sellers).
 
Real estate agents usually all the say the same thing: I’ll get you top dollar, I have tons of experience, I’ll sell your home faster than anyone, I’ll go above and beyond and my personal favourite, I’m honest! What are buyers and sellers to believe? I really feel for them. Many agents really look the part but in reality it’s hard to tell at first who the “sheep” really are. ASKING QUESTIONS IS KEY! Here are some questions to ask:
 
1)How many years have you been licensed? And are you a full time agent?
2)Can you show me the last 5 listings you’ve had in my area to see how much the property sold for and in how much time?
3)Can I talk to some of your past clients so they can personally tell me their experience with you?
4)Why should I use you over another agent?
5)What are your going to do to sell my home faster that another agent won’t do?
6)Have you ever had complications during the process of a deal? If so, what were they and how did you solve the situation?
 
These are 6 key questions that should be asked when interviewing an agent. I would love to be there to see how 80% of them answer these! How can you say you have lots of experience when you’ve done 2-3 deals and you’ve been in the business for less than a year? I understand you may know a lot of theory but there is no substitute for real world experience. This is the real teacher. An agent should never have to tell a client that they are honest, that they’ll go above and beyond, etc. These are attributes that should be demonstrated not talked about, this is how a client will trust you. If I was a seller and I had to pay an agent I would make sure they were one of the best agents available to sell my home. If I was a buyer, even though technically they would not have to pay anything I’d want the best agent possible to get me a home for the lowest price and cover me in the event of a problem happening.
 
Be very careful as many agents talk the talk but do not walk the walk. Do not get short changed by a sheep in wolves clothing!

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comments about this blog post: marioarmani@rogers.com