In a bustling and expansive market like Toronto, there’s no shortage of real estate agents for home sellers to choose from. That being said, no two agents are the same and if you’re looking to get the most out of your sale it’s imperative that you do your best to find the right one for you.
If you’re looking for a real estate agent to sell your home, knowing where to start can feel like a challenge – but it doesn’t have to! Here are our top tips for finding and interviewing agents before your home sale.
Preparing to sell your home? Visit these blog posts to learn more about finding the right agent for you.
- How to Read Between the Lines of Agent Reviews
- Why You Should Listen to Real Estate Referrals
- Rightsizing With Agents: How it Works
Why Selecting the Right Agent Matters
Real estate is a growing business. Each year hundreds of enthusiastic new agents enter the Toronto market. That’s all great, but as a seller, it makes the most sense to work with someone who has decades of experience working in the industry. For many years Toronto was a hyper-active seller’s market. Today it’s cooled off significantly and many agents in the city have no experience selling in these kinds of market conditions.
Beyond industry experience, you’ll want to work with an agent who has a strategic and well-defined approach to preparations and marketing. Undertaking thoughtful preparations (such as staging) before you list is one of the most effective ways to increase your home’s market value. Therefore it’s imperative that you ask each potential agent about their approach to getting homes market-ready. The same goes for marketing. Every day new homes enter the Toronto market. It’s your agent’s job to ensure your home stands out from the crowd in the eyes of buyers.
At the end of the day, choosing the wrong agent for your home sale could mean a more stressful process, a longer sale, and money left on the table.
Torontoism’s Richard Silver talks about the importance of opening the “Pandora’s box” when considering an agent for hire and better understanding their recipe for a successful sale.
Interview Tips
The best way to prepare for interviewing real estate agents is by making a personalized list of interview questions based on your specific needs, expectations, and worries. Then when it comes time to start your search, you’ll already have a good idea of what you’re looking for.
After discussing any unique concerns you have, there are also some standardized questions you should ask any potential agent. Based on our decades of experience, here are a few of those must-asks:
- How long have you been in business?
- How many homes have you sold in my neighbourhood?
- Tell me about your pricing strategies.
- Will I be working with you directly, or with another member of your team?
- What is your approach to preparing and staging homes?
- How will you market my home?
- Can you offer me a rough timeline for getting my home on the market?
Getting Started
With hundreds of real estate agents working in Toronto, beginning the search process and narrowing down your choices can seem overwhelming. Luckily, we’ve got tips for that too.
A great place to start in your search for the right agent is through referrals. Do you have a family member or friend in Toronto who sold their home in the past few years? Ask them about the agent they choose to work with, what they liked about them, and where they feel things could’ve been better.
Next, perform a web search. There are a lot of real estate agents in Toronto, so the broader your search is, the more results you’ll need to sift through. For a more refined approach, be as specific as possible. Include the name of your neighbourhood in your search, and any other unique elements you may be looking for in an agent such as a specialty in downsizing, condos, or investment properties.
Beyond managing the listing process of your Toronto home, some real estate agents offer above-and-beyond services to support the unique goals of clients. Explore these blog posts to learn more.
- How Toronto Real Estate Experts Collaborate (and Why it Matters!)
- Buying or Selling Outside of Canada? Read This First
- REALM: Next-Level Luxury Real Estate Technology
The Magic Number
So how many agents should you interview before selling your home? After conducting your own research and speaking with friends and family, narrow down your search to just your top three choices.
Once you’ve got your top three, reach out to each agent for a seller’s interview. Ask as many questions as you can. When it comes to selling something as significant as your home, there’s no such thing as a silly question.
After you’ve interviewed each real estate agent, go with your gut. Each agent will have their unique pros and cons, but you know what you’re looking for better than anyone.
Looking for an experienced, industry-leading real estate team that can maximize the sale of your Toronto home? Silver Burtnick & Associates can ensure you find success on the market. Click here to call us.
