Choosing a Calgary REALTOR ® should be something that you do with some research and consideration. Not every Calgary REALTOR ® is created equal.
Should you take the time to interview a Calgary REALTOR ®? Absolutely! By taking a little time up front you can save yourself a huge amount of headaches (been there and done that myself). Buying or selling your home and working with a professional who is willing to listen and to fully understand your needs as well as look after your best interests is essential.
When interviewing a Calgary REALTOR ® it is important to consider a few things.
- Are they full time?
Granted there are a number of Calgay REALTORS ® in our industry that would be considered part-time I strongly believe that you need to have someone who is dedicated and able to be available to help you during the day, evenings and weekends – basically whenever they are needed. It is often difficult for someone who does work another job to focus fully on the real estate side of things. It really is a full time business and I have never really understood how you could do anything else. From the perspective of working with other Calgary REALTORS ® it is important to be able to communicate in a timely manner in order for things to get completed within the time frames needed.
My full time business is Real Estate. Do I like to do other things? Of course but first and foremost I focus my energy and time on doing what I love to do and that is working with people to help them Sell or Buy Calgary Real Estate – Full Time.
- Is it all about them?
Do you notice a lot of the marketing out there these days seems to have a high number of No 1 Calgary REALTOR ® or talk about being a high producing Calgary REALTOR ® in the advertising? I have said it before and will say it again – How many number one of anything can there be? Do they drive over sized vehicles with their image pasted on the side? For sale signs with their image? If you see a Calgary REALTOR ® who seems to be more focused on their personal image rather than that of their listings or getting people to visit their website (which often is more about them than anything to do with Calgary Real Estate) then you may want to reconsider them as a choice.
My focus has been and always will be about you and your best interests. Communication is the key.
- Where do they focus their marketing?
I personally love nature and you won’t see me killing large numbers of trees just to produce annoying mailers that just end up in the recycling anyway. Do you really need to see me telling you I sold a house down the street in your mail? I tend to think people are a lot more intelligent than that. The overwhelming majority of both buyers and sellers are online – this is a fact. If you can’t find a Calgary REALTOR ® online then I would guess you might have some issues with the marketing they do as well.
With just over 600 website names and an ever-growing list of active websites related specifically to Calgary Real Estate, Calgary Homes and Calgary Condos I think I pretty much have most Calgary REALTORS ® beat in this regard.
- Do they work with both buyers and sellers?
In working with both buyers and sellers a Calgary REALTOR ® will be able to have a full understanding of both sides of the coin so to speak. Some Calgary REALTORS ® choose to only work with one or the other and have a ‘team’ member look after the other side of things. My question being is that if you don’t work with both buyers and sellers at the same time in the current market how can you fully understand what is going on in that market?
Being a Calgary REALTOR ® who does work with both buyers and sellers I find that it keeps things interesting and I am always learning how to be a better negotiator for either side.
- Do they focus on ‘double ending’ their deals?
One of the issues in the real estate industry is maintaining the best interests of our clients. When you focus on trying to represent both parties in the transaction I personally believe that it is very difficult (and often uncomfortable for everyone involved) to try to maintain both parties best interests while at the same time trying to remain neutral. I often think of this like hiring the prosecution’s lawyer to be your defense lawyer. It really does not make a lot of sense.
Representing one side only in a particular transaction is the focus of my business. I work hard for my clients best interests as a Calgary REALTOR ®.
In interviewing a Calgary REALTOR ® you should find that your potential choice asks you lots of questions and that you feel comfortable with what they are saying. If your gut tells you that there are going to be issues then I would suggest you run (or at least send them packing). Your choice in a Calgary REALTOR ® will ultimately determine how effectively you sell your home or how less likely you will run into problems when buying.
And for those of you that wonder and ask why do I have the word REALTOR ® is in all capital letters. It is a requirement of using the registered trademark – simple.
