Buying or selling a home is a decision that will have an everlasting impact on your life.
If you’re purchasing your first home, you want to be sure it checks all the boxes, such as location, price, size, great schools, etc. On the other hand, if you’re selling your home—you want to maximize profits, close quickly, and avoid any pitfalls.
Whether you’re selling or buying a home, finding a qualified real estate agent is an essential part of the process. They’ll be able to guide you in the right direction and make the process much less stressful.
Thus, today we’re going to discuss three tips that’ll help you find a real estate agent that will meet or exceed your expectations!
Get Approved Beforehand
Before you begin hunting for a real estate agent, it’s important to get pre-qualified to purchase a home. You should be able to present a pre-qualification or pre-approval letter from a lender.
This is important because it will show a realtor that you’re serious about buying a home. It will also give them a good idea of your numbers and the price margins they need to consider.
It’s usually a red flag when a realtor is willing to work with someone that isn’t prequalified. More than likely, this is a strong indicator that they’re not doing a lot of business. The last thing any realtor wants to deal with is wasting time and resources on a client who cannot purchase a home.
Ask Around
More than likely, you have a friend or family member that has purchased or sold a home before. Therefore, it’s likely that they’ve dealt with a real estate agent.
Be sure to ask them about their experience with their realtor. Some good questions to bring up may include:
- What did they do that impressed them?
- Did they provide a satisfactory experience?
- Were they able to answer all your questions?
- Were they communicative throughout the process?
- How was their general demeanor?
Of course, many of these questions are subjective. Just because your friend or family member had a positive experience doesn’t mean you’ll receive the same. However, getting recommendations is a great place to start.
Interview the Top Real Estate Agents in Your Area
The last thing you want is to end up with a realtor that you have no interest in working with.
Fortunately, in the age of digital marketing, many realtors have an online presence. You can locate realtors through websites such as Zillow, Realtor, Remax, and Black Real Estate Agents.
These realtor directories will help you find the top real estate agents in your area. They also have filters that can help narrow down your search. For instance, if you have a condominium, you can filter to see agents that primarily deal with condos. If you own commercial property, you can use a filter to find a commercial real estate agent.
Once you find a few realtors you like, contact them and set up a short interview. Be sure to get a feel for their style of communication, their knowledge, and their marketing strategies. Once you’ve decided which realtor you’d like to go with, tell the other realtors that you appreciate their time, but you’ve decided to go with someone else.
The Top 3 Tips for Finding a Good Real Estate Agent
Buying or selling a home can feel like a tedious, time-consuming, and stress-inducing event.
However, with the help of a real estate agent, the job can become a lot easier. When searching for a realtor, there are a few vital tips that’ll make the process much easier.
Before all else, you should get prequalified through a lender. From there, you should ask for recommendations from friends or family, and interview the realtors that pique your interest.
We hope with the help of these tips—you’ll be on your way to finding a realtor that will exceed your expectations! If you found these tips helpful, be sure to check out our other real-estate-related guides!