1. What makes you different? Why should I list my home with you?

It’s a much tougher real estate market than it was a decade ago.

What unique marketing plans and programs does this agent have in

place to make sure that your home stands out favorably versus

other competing homes? What things does this agent offer you that

others don’t to help you sell your home in the least amount of

time with the least amount of hassle and for the most amount of

money?

2. What is your company’s track record and reputation in the

market place?

It may seem like everywhere you look, real estate agents are

boasting about being #1 for this or that, or quoting you the

number of homes they’ve sold. If you’re like many homeowners,

you’ve probably become immune to much of this information. After

all, you ask, "Why should I care about how many homes one agent

sold over another. The only thing I care about is whether they

can sell my home quickly for the most amount of money."

Well, because you want your home sold fast and for top dollar,

you should be asking the agents you interview how many homes they

have sold. I’m sure you will agree that success in real estate

is selling homes. If one agent is selling a lot of homes while

another is selling only a handful, ask yourself why this might

be? What things are these two agents doing differently?

You may be surprised to know that many agents sell fewer than 10

homes a year. This volume makes it difficult for them to do full

impact marketing on your home, because they can’t raise the money

it takes to afford the advertising and special programs to give

your home a high profile. Also, at this low level, they probably

can’t afford to hire an assistant, which means that they’re

running around trying to do all the components of the job

themselves, which means service may suffer.

3. What are your marketing plans for my home?

How much money does this agent spend in advertising the homes

s/he lists versus the other agents you are interviewing? In what

media (newspaper, magazine, TV etc.) does this agent advertise?

What does s/he know about the effectiveness of one medium over

the other?

4. What has your company sold in my area?

Agents should bring you a complete listing of both their own, and

other comparable sales in your area.

5. Does your Broker control your advertising or do you?

If your agent is not in control of their own advertising, then

your home will be competing for advertising space not only with

this agent’s other listings, but also with the listings of every

other agent in the brokerage.

6. On average, when your listings sell, how close is the selling

price to the asking price?

This information is available from the Real Estate Board. Is

this agent’s performance higher or lower than the board average?

Their performance on this measurement will help you predict how

high a price you will get for the sale of your home.

7. On average, how long does it take for your listings to sell?

This information is also available from the Real Estate Board.

Does this agent tend to sell faster or slower than the board

average? Their performance on this measurement will help you

predict how long your home will be on the market before it sells.

8. How many Buyers are you currently working with?

Obviously, the more buyers your agent is working with, the better

your chances are of selling your home quickly. It will also

impact price because an agent with many buyers can set up an

auction-like atmosphere where many buyers bid on your home at the

same time. Ask them to describe the system they have for

attracting buyers.

9. Do you have a reference list of clients I could contact?

Ask to see this list, and then proceed to spot check some of the

names.

10. What happens if I’m not happy with the job you are doing to

get my home sold? Can I cancel my listing contract?

Be wary of agents that lock you into a lengthy listing contract

which they can get out of (by ceasing to effectively market your

home) but you can’t. There are usually penalties and broker

protection periods which safeguard the agent’s interests, but not

yours. How confident is your agent in the service s/he will

provide you? Will s/he allow you to cancel your contract without

penalty if you’re not satisfied with the

service provided?

Evaluate each agent’s responses to these 10 questions carefully

and objectively. Who will do the best job for you? These

questions will help you decide.