Our Lenders

Home Loan Information

Like This Site

Questions to Ask your Estate Agent

10 Questions you should ask when selecting an Estate Agent

A Professional is not necessarily professional by virtue of being titled a Professional at all. That is why most of us would never dream of hiring a lawyer or an accountant at face value, or base our decision purely on account of the certificate against his or her wall. We want to have the assurance that the he or she has all the credentials necessary to deliver on the services we require.

The same circumspect approach should apply, when you wish to appoint a real estate professional.

Selecting the best possible estate agent to manage your property transaction, will involve more than just asking around, it will also involve asking the right questions when you are conducting the interview:

1.Are you a paid-up, registered member of the Estate Agency Affairs Board?

The Estate Agency Affairs Board was established by Government to ensure that Estate Agents are appropriately trained and that you are safeguarded against unprincipled estate agency practices. If there are any issues, you have the right to approach the Board for assistance. Registered Estate Agents will have passed the Board Exams and will have committed to the Board’s code of ethics.

Ask to see the agent’s current registration card for proof and, if you are still in doubt, ask the Board whether the agent has any past record of misconducts against his or her name.

2.What is your experience of the area?

If an estate agent has been working in an area for longer than 18 months, they should know the neighbourhood well enough to do a credible job. A newbie will still be busy finding his or her feet, and you may not want them to do their teething on your property.

3.How good is your sales record?

You will need to do some probing here: start off by establishing how many properties were listed with the agency in the past twelve months, how many were sold during the year, and how many agents are employed by the agency. Then ask how many of the properties sold are attributable to him or her. This should give you a fair idea of how well both the agency and the particular agent are performing.

Finally, ask how many of the properties that he or she sold, were as the result of an MLS listing. The reason for this is that you don’t want one of those lazy agents who list, hoping that some other agent will sell it on their behalf. It boils down to minimal effort, rewarded by a cut of the commissions earned.

4.How long will you take to sell my house?

This is another one of those probing questions. Start off by asking how long the average house listed by the agency takes to be sold. Then ask how long the sales made by the agent over the past 12 months took to close from time of listing. At the moment, the national average is four months. Although this may differ from one region to the next, it could serve as a rule of thumb for benchmarking purposes.

5.What percentage of the sales that you make, fall through?

An important one. This question will give you an idea of how thorough the agent is in pre-qualifying buyers and how serious he or she is about meeting a buyer’s requirements. Most of the time, sales fall through because buyers change their minds and because suspensive conditions are not being met.

6.How much commission do you charge?

This needs to be clarified earlier rather than later. Ending up in a commission squabble when an Offer to Purchase is put on the table is a terrible idea. Negotiate if you think that the fee is too high, and don’t fall for the old “I’ll drop my commission percentage if you give me Sole Mandate” scheme. If you decide to give a sole mandate it should be based on more than just commission.

7.How do you intend marketing my house?

You will want the agent to tell you, upfront:

a·Where your home will be listed, i.e. at the agency, on MLS, with a referral service etc;
b·How, where and when advertising will take place;
c·The frequency of Show Days and who would typically host these;
d·How much notice you will be given if a prospective buyer wants to view your house;
e·How many buyers they have on their database at present
f·How frequently feedback on marketing progress will be provided; and
g·Whether prospective buyers will be financially pre-qualified.

8.Who handles the negotiations with prospective buyers?

If the buck is going to stop with you, think again. It is well known that if you are personally involved, it does not help but hinder effective negotiation. Ideally the agent or – at the very least – the agency should enter into negotiations on your behalf.

9.Who deals with all the sales- and legal documentation?

Good, reputable agencies have the necessary infrastructure to deal with both the sales and the legal documentation.

10.At what time do you withdraw your involvement?

What you want to hear is: “When transfer is complete.” Until then, there could be some small, niggling issues to resolve that should ideally be dealt with by the agency, not you.

To conclude

Check the agent’s demeanour during the interview. If the answers provided are either too slick or too evasive, it should be viewed as a danger sign. An honest agent will make eye contact, tell you if they don’t know the answer and, if they promise to find out, keep to their word.

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Online Application

More Estate Agent Info

Testimonial