One of the first steps you're going to take once deciding you're ready to buy a home is find a real estate agent. Not any real estate agent, but the best agent to fit your needs. You may be wondering, how does one go about finding a good real estate agent?
A great way to start is by asking your friends or family. Ask people who have purchased a home if they have a referral for anyone that they would recommend based on the service they received. Consulting a friend or family member first about an agent they've used is a great way to get an honest recommendation. It is important to keep in mind that everyone has different expectations and needs that need to be met when looking for a real estate agent. For example, if you're in the military it would be in your best interest to find a real estate agent who is familiar with the VA loan.
The next thing you're going to want to do, even if it is a referral, is do some vetting. The easiest way to do that is to go online and check out what this agent has been able to do in the past. Some useful tools for that are going to be Facebook, Google, as well as Zillow. By doing this research you will be able to see what their total review volume looks like and whether or not they've been able to receive five stars from previous clients.
After receiving any referrals from your friends or family you're going to want to do is understand if the agent is experienced. One simple benchmark you can use for that is the number of transactions they've had in the last 12 months on Zillow. An average agent that's a full-time agent is going to have between 8 to 12 per year. If you see far more than that, that's likely a good sign. Do understand that not all agents are going to be updating that Zillow profile with all of their transactions.
Last but not least, interview any agents you come across that you think may be a good fit for you. It's best to have a couple of agents in mind so that you can make sure you find one that will be a good fit for you professionally, as well as personally.
Now, if that sounds like a lot, we'll make it a lot easier for you as these steps are exactly what we at
Sentry Residential do when we are choosing agents to join our brokerage. If you are wanting to get in touch with a vetted Sentry Residential agent be sure to visit us at www.sentryresidential.com.
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