{"id":11363,"date":"2018-08-31T16:24:15","date_gmt":"2018-08-31T22:24:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.virtuance.com\/?p=11363"},"modified":"2019-03-19T16:44:17","modified_gmt":"2019-03-19T22:44:17","slug":"5-questions-ask-real-estate-agent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/blog\/5-questions-ask-real-estate-agent\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Surprising questions you’d never think to ask a real estate agent, but really should"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Cathie Ericson | Source Realtor.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Before signing on to work with a particular real estate agent, it’s par for the course to suss out how this pro will meet your needs by asking some questions<\/h2>\n

For example: How many homes have you sold? What neighborhoods do you specialize in?<\/p>\n

While these are all perfectly fine questions to ask, they’ll take you only so far.<\/p>\n

To\u00a0really<\/em>\u00a0know which real estate agent is right for you, you’ll need to throw a few curveballs and dig beneath the surface.\u00a0To get you started, here are some more surprising questions you probably never thought to ask a real estate agent but totally should\u2014because they can shed a whole new light on this professional’s abilities, weaknesses, and personality.<\/p>\n

1. Who has been your most challenging client, and how did you handle it?<\/h2>\n

This is a great question because it sheds light not only on an agent’s biggest horror story, but also on how the agent\u00a0deals with the inevitable challenges and tensions that crop up when buying a home.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny potential client who sees their prospective agent trashing a former client should immediately wonder what the agent might eventually say about them,” points out\u00a0Kevin Deselms<\/strong>\u00a0with Re\/Max Alliance in Golden, CO.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

All in all, you want an agent who shows he has patience with all personality types, and who is happy to teach his clients what he knows. In particular, \u201cFirst-time home buyers tend to be skittish and cautious about every item, but an agent’s job is to reassure and educate them,\u201d Deselms says.<\/p>\n

2. If you were looking to buy a place, where would you move and why?<\/h2>\n

This can give you some insight into what neighborhoods are being buzzed about as \u201cup-and-coming.\u201d But you also want to consider the source: Do your agent\u2019s needs necessarily align with yours? Having an agent with a similar lifestyle can make it easier for the pro to pinpoint factors that might matter to you, too, says\u00a0Brian Simmons<\/strong>, CEO of Ask a Lender.<\/p>\n

For example, if your agent has kids<\/a><\/span>, she’ll be clued in to which neighborhoods have the best parks and schools, or if she’s outdoorsy, she can point you to locations with hiking trails and bike paths.<\/p>\n

Another way to get a more personal viewpoint is to ask, “If I were a friend or family member, where would you recommend I live?”\u00a0This question is telling because it prompts the agent to put his loved ones in your shoes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s liable to lead to more detailed observations and maybe a more specific pro\/con list than an agent might initially have offered,” says\u00a0Michael Edlen<\/strong>, a real estate agent\u00a0with Coldwell Banker.<\/p>\n

3. How can you help me narrow down my choices and fit house hunting into my busy schedule?<\/h2>\n

Visiting house after house is not only exhausting but also time-consuming.\u00a0So\u00a0it’s smart to find out if\u2014and how\u2014your agent is willing to do some of the legwork for you, suggests\u00a0real estate agent\u00a0Kerri O\u2019Hara<\/strong>, relocation specialist and new construction specialist with BHGRE 43 Degrees North.<\/p>\n

“I\u2019ll\u00a0go to a new listing when my buyers are at work and shoot a video, then give my honest opinion on any positive or negative features, which can help us eliminate a visit to a home that doesn\u2019t work from the start,\u201d O\u2019Hara says.<\/p>\n

See if your agent is able to help you whittle down your options and save you time. If all he says is, “Why don’t you just look through listings and tell me what you’d like to see,” that could be a sign he won’t go the extra mile.<\/p>\n

4. What are some ways to make my\u00a0offer more attractive besides just increasing the price?<\/h2>\n

If you want to nab a house in a hot market, money talks, of course, but home buyers should expect their agent to have more tricks up her sleeve than just upping the offer, says Deselms.<\/p>\n

For instance, your agent should be able to ask the right questions that can give you an advantage, such as whether the sellers need a quick closing because they\u2019re relocating, or conversely if they want to wait until the school year is over before moving their kids.<\/p>\n

All in all, Deselms points out,\u00a0\u201cGood agents will have a laundry list of possibilities, based on the information they can get.”<\/p>\n

5. How do you help buyers come to a decision?<\/h2>\n

A list of pros and cons can take you only so far sometimes. What you may need is some professional input from a third party, so make sure your agent is someone you will feel comfortable using as a sounding board, O\u2019Hara says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you see a lot of homes, it\u2019s easy to get distracted by the pretty fixtures or the great backyard,” O’Hara explains, “so you want agents who help their clients focus on what they\u00a0really<\/em>\u00a0need.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Cathie Ericson | Source Realtor.com Before signing on to work with a particular real estate agent, it’s par for the course to suss out how this pro will meet your needs by asking some questions For example: How many homes have you sold? What neighborhoods do you specialize in? While these are all perfectly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14503,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4,47],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11363"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14503"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11363"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11363\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11364,"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11363\/revisions\/11364"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11363"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11363"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.virtuance.com\/member\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}