Question to ask your realtor before you hire them.

Not all realtors are created equal.

How do you, as a client identify a good one from the bunch? Here are 5 questions you can ask a realtor and what you should be looking for in an answer!

#1 What makes them unique?

Ask them what their three unique service offerings are. Now, keep in mind there aren't that many things that realtors do differently, so you're going to get a lot of overlapping answers, but the combination of those answers is really going to give you an idea of what working with that person is going to feel like, and you want to hire a realtor that matches your vibe. That matches your feel.

Let me give you an example. One of the uniques that we do on our team is that we start with lifestyle first. So our entire consultation process with our clients starts with lifestyle. Where are you growing? What do you do for fun? What's your family situation, friend situation, or hobby situation?

From there, we can provide recommendations of locations within the city and property types that fit. Now, that's just one unique. Figure out the uniques are of the different realtors and put them in combination. Red flag, a realtor can't rattle off their three uniques. When you ask them what makes you different, what are three things that you do that make working with you special?

#2 What is their availability?

Number two, the second question you should ask a realtor is what their availability looks like. Great question. You would not believe how many part-time realtors are out there. You really want to find out if you're dealing with a part-timer or someone that is a dedicated professional real estate agent.

Be very wary of part-timers, because especially if they have a day job and you have a property you want to see as a buyer comes up during the day, they might not be able to show it to. Or if they're representing you as a seller and they've got commitments during the day, well, what happens when a very interested party calls to see your property?

They might not be able to do that as well. There are some realtors that protect their evenings because it's family time. There are some realtors that don't work on Sundays because that's their family time. So really figure out how available the realtor is going to be for you because real estate happens at off hours.

Evenings and weekends are primetime for realtors because that's when most people are available. That's when most showings happen. So, figure out what that realtor's availability is like and confirm whether they are a full-time dedicated professional agent or a part-timer.

#3 What support do they have?

The third thing you should be asking a realtor about if you're considering hiring them is what kind of support they have/offer.

Are they a full-on solo agent? They do it all in the restaurant. They're the hostess, they're the server, they're the buser and they're in the back cooking. Are they doing it all or are they part of a team, or do they have a team of people that support them in providing you with great service?

There isn't anything wrong with a solo agent but know they're are going to be stretched thinner because they're doing it all. Whereas someone with an assistant or a licensed showing agent, or buyer's agent, they might be a team of specialists, where the primary realtor's role is to focus on you and your needs. They have to have support around them to get the rest of the job done.

This is really important to understand. What the client experience looks like for you as their client, as their customer, and ultimately, what kind of an experience do you want to have? Understanding what kind of an experience that you want to have will help answer that question for you.

#4 Completing Paperwork

The fourth thing to ask a realtor is how does the paperwork get completed.

Who? If you're working with a solo agent, they're probably doing the paperwork themselves and knowing what I know about solo agents, chances are they're doing that paperwork very early in the morning or late at night because during the day they're scrambling. Usually, the best realtors have at least a paperwork administrative assistant.

That being said, there are a lot of great solo agents that do their own paperwork but understand how the paperwork gets done. Why? Errors in paperwork can quite literally cost you the deal. I've seen a ton of contracts fall apart because of minor errors on contract paperwork or delays in getting paperwork to the right place can put your deal in jeopardy.

Sending the contract a couple of days late to that mortgage broker could be the thing that causes your financing condition to not get approved because you run out of time. So make sure that that realtor has a tight, paperwork system that you can count on and rely on, because quite literally, your deal depends on it.

#5 How many clients do they currently have?

The fifth question to ask your realtor is, how many clients do they currently have? There's no right answer here but know that if you're working with an elite-level top performer, best of the best. They might have 15, 20, 25, 30 active clients of which you are one. If you're okay with that because you like the idea of working with a top performer, great.

The best doctors are in high demand. The best lawyers are in high demand. The best accountants are in high demand. It's not unusual, and chances are these in high demand, people will have a great team to support your customer experience.

On the flip side of the coin, if they're solo, A solo agent can really only handle so many clients. So if they're solo and if they're dealing with more than five or six active clients without any help, they're going to be stretched pretty thin. Talk to your realtor about how much attention you're going to get as a client and how they plan on giving you that attention. Because ultimately, this is a big sale, this is a big purchase, and you want to be well taken care of.