Interviewing a Realtor before you sell is not small talk. It is a job interview where the job pays more than most annual salaries ride on. Go in with the questions that separate a working listing agent from a good presenter: questions about their recent Amesbury sales, how they build a price, what they would have you fix and skip, how they market, and how they handle the deal after the offer. The answers matter. So does how directly they are given.
Questions About Their Record
How many homes did you sell last year, and how many in Amesbury? What was your average ratio of sale price to list price, and your average days on market? Can I see three recent sales near my home, and what did you do on each? An agent with a real record answers from memory and offers the printouts. An agent without one changes the subject to their brokerage, their awards, or their marketing promises.
Questions About Your House
What would you list my home for, and which sold homes support it? What is my home's biggest strength with buyers, and its biggest liability? What should I fix, what should I paint, and what should I leave alone, and what does each item return? If I am on septic, when do we do Title V? Amesbury homes split between the municipal sewer system and private septic systems, so that question comes up here whenever a home is on septic. If I am in a condo, how do we handle the 6D and association documents? These questions test local, property specific judgment, which is the actual product you are buying.
Questions About the Process
How will you market the home beyond the MLS? Who shows it, who gives me feedback, and how fast? How do you handle multiple offers, and how will you advise me at inspection and appraisal? What is your commission, what is the term, and what happens if I am unhappy? Ask every agent the same list, write the answers down, and compare them side by side.
My Answers, in Advance
I personally sell 100+ homes a year across Greater Lowell and the Merrimack Valley with 3,000+ career transactions, our Lowell office at 14 Jackson Street is southwest of Amesbury, and every seller I meet gets a written valuation and net sheet built from real Amesbury comparable sales, whether they hire me or not. Bring your list of questions. I will bring the numbers.
Call Doherty Properties at (978) 746-0124 and ask for me, Chris Doherty, to schedule the interview.
Chris Doherty is one of the top-producing agents in the Merrimack Valley. He personally sells 100+ homes a year across Greater Lowell and the Merrimack Valley, with 3,000+ career transactions, and Doherty Properties, the company he leads, has handled over $1 billion in real estate transactions.
Doherty Properties LLC, 14 Jackson Street, Lowell, MA 01852 | 160 Main Street, Unit 7, Haverhill, MA 01830 | 4 Courthouse Lane, Suite 2, Chelmsford, MA 01824 | (978) 746-0124 | [email protected]
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