Hiring the right realtor is crucial when listing your house for sale and it could save you a ton of headaches as well as thousands of dollars, so you don’t just want to hire the first agent that comes along. There are currently over 8,000 active real estate agents in Orlando and choosing the right one can get a bit confusing.
When interviewing an agent, you have to ask the right questions. The first question I would ask is, Do you work as a realtor full-time, or do you also have another job?
This is an easy one. If the agent tells you that they only work in real estate part-time, then you say “have a nice day…and move on to the next candidate. If they only work as a realtor part-time it means that selling your house won’t be a top priority for them.
The next question is actually a 3 part question
1- How many listings do you currently have?
2- How many of those listings are under contract?
3- How many houses have you sold in the past 6 months?
The answers to these questions will tell you how hard of a worker the agent is and what their average turnaround time is to sell a house.
If the agent only has a few listings or if they have listings that are several months old with no contract, then this is a sign of a lazy agent.
You want an agent that is a go-getter and someone who is determined to get the job done ASAP, NO MATTER WHAT.
Getting a clear picture of the realtor’s recent track record will give you a very good indication of what you can expect if they list your house.
Next question,…Do you have some references from past clients that I can call to ask about you?
This is absolutely one of the best ways to find out how you’ll be treated if you decide to list your house with them. A good agent will be happy to provide you with a list of past clients along with their contact info. If they have no references to present to you then something’s wrong.
In my 10 years in the Orlando Real estate business, I’ve never had a client who has told me not to use them as a reference. It’s simple, if you do a good job for someone, they’re always going to be happy to recommend you.
Next question,… Do you have a team or an assistant, or are you a one-person show?
A Top Orlando Realtor will always have a team or an assistant at the very least. There are a million details that a successful realtor has to deal with on a day-to-day basis and if they have to handle every tedious detail on their own, then they aren’t good at managing their time. Or they have too much time on their hands. Neither of these scenarios is a good one.
Next question,… How will you market my house other than putting it o the MLS?
The majority of Orlando real estate agents will list the house on the MLS and…that’s about it. They’re done! They wait for someone to submit a contract and if no one submits a contract then they just keep waiting until someone does.
There are soo many effective ways to market a house in addition to putting it on the MLS. Here are some examples of some of the things we do.
Video marketing [that’s where we create a professional video of the home], social media marketing, We blog about it, target marketing with postcards, email campaigns, press releases, Open houses… it goes on and on.
It’s important that a realtor use every single tool in their toolbox to get that house sold for top dollar in the least amount of time.
If you ask these questions when interviewing a realtor, then you will know exactly what they’re about by the answers that they give you. Also, don’t interview just one or two agents, I recommend that you interview at least 3 agents and pick the one that you feel the most comfortable with.
If you still have any questions or concerns about how to hire a top Orlando realtor or if you are just curious about how much your home will sell for, then… feel free to contact us at 407902-7750 or visit us on the web at https://orlandorealtyconsultants.com/
