What questions to ask a realtor?

[retiredby50]

Hi All,

I`ve been looking through my "REIN Gear," and I haven`t come across this one:

So let`s say I`ll be interviewing realtors to begin to build a team of good people, to our mutual benefit, with respect to my real estate investing. I`m wondering what questions I should be asking?

The two I`ve come up with so far are:

Are you a member of REIN? (Not a deal killer, but it needs to be asked)

How many properties do you own, and what kind are they? (If they say `none,` as a realtor answered me on the REIN field trip last week, I waste no more time with them)



So? I`m sure there are 10 or 15 really good ones that ought to always be asked.

Thanks for your time
Keith

 

[RedlineBrett]

Some other ones:

- How many investors do you typically work with? This gives you an idea of how much business they do with investors.
- When was the last time you sold an investment property? This lets you know how on top of their game they are)
- What can you tell me about the rental market in the area I`m considering? If they sell rental property or own some themselves they should know what rents are like in the area.
- If I were a landlord in this area what things could I market to my tenants? You want to hear things like "one bus route to this employment center, 10 min walk to C-train, good school nearby etc. Shows if a realtor is "plugged in" to the area.
- If you work with a lot of investors what do you do when two of your clients want the same property?
- What can you tell me about city infrastructure initiatives in this area?
- Tell me about some of the good deals you`ve negotiated for clients
- What are some of the reasons I should work with you rather than another agent?


QUOTE (retiredby50 @ Sep 1 2008, 06:52 PM) Hi All,

I`ve been looking through my "REIN Gear," and I haven`t come across this one:

So let`s say I`ll be interviewing realtors to begin to build a team of good people, to our mutual benefit, with respect to my real estate investing. I`m wondering what questions I should be asking?

The two I`ve come up with so far are:

Are you a member of REIN? (Not a deal killer, but it needs to be asked)

How many properties do you own, and what kind are they? (If they say `none,` as a realtor answered me on the REIN field trip last week, I waste no more time with them)



So? I`m sure there are 10 or 15 really good ones that ought to always be asked.

Thanks for your time
Keith

 

[Lucas]

Some really good questions there...A couple more:- Are you adverse to writing offers well below asking price?
- Will you "preview" properties for me? (If time leverage is your objective and you`ve established a good relationship with your Realtor, this can save you ALOT of time)
- If I "walk away" from a deal because I have a bad gut feeling about the property we are possibly buying, will you support me? Are you comfortable with me doing this more than once or twice? (This can be sticky because if a Realtor is not convinced that you are a serious buyer they will stop helping you...However, you should NEVER buy a property because the Realtor/Broker/Mortgage Broker really really wants you too.)
- How many deals do you do per year? (THis is sort of personal but if there is a good repoire it shouldn`t be a big deal. It is in your best interest to work with someone who does enough deals that they are finacially secure, allowing them the ability to support you if you decide to walk away from a deal. On the flipside, working with a Realtor that has too much business on his/her plate can be just as bad as they often may not have the time needed to help you personally analyze properties. REIN members often require alot of attention because they, for the most part, are VERY thorough when purchasing property. It is important to find a Realtor that WANTS to assist you in your due diligence. I personally enjoy working with REIN members for these reasons...It keeps me on my game and I learn alot form very savvy and intelligent individuals.)

Hopefully more people add to this as it really helps knowing specifically what investors want/expect/ and appreciate from a Realtor.

Hope all this helps,

Lucas


QUOTE (RedlineBrett @ Sep 1 2008, 07:48 PM) Some other ones:

- How many investors do you typically work with? This gives you an idea of how much business they do with investors.
- When was the last time you sold an investment property? This lets you know how on top of their game they are)
- What can you tell me about the rental market in the area I`m considering? If they sell rental property or own some themselves they should know what rents are like in the area.
- If I were a landlord in this area what things could I market to my tenants? You want to hear things like "one bus route to this employment center, 10 min walk to C-train, good school nearby etc. Shows if a realtor is "plugged in" to the area.
- If you work with a lot of investors what do you do when two of your clients want the same property?
- What can you tell me about city infrastructure initiatives in this area?
- Tell me about some of the good deals you`ve negotiated for clients
- What are some of the reasons I should work with you rather than another agent?

 

[retiredby50]

Absolutely top drawer stuff! Thanks for the input so far.

This would make a good sticky once the list is complete. (HINT HINT)

much appreciate the feedback folks

Peace
Keith

 

[DonCampbell]

What you`ll like even more is the presentation from the REIN Workshops in August that detailed exactly what questions to ask, what answers you are expecting AND provided every REIN Member with a full one-page checklist (courtesy of veteran REIN Member Greg Habstritt)

If you weren`t at the event, don`t worry the full CD`s and Handouts will be on their way to you soon!

 

[Dan_Eisenhauer]

QUOTE (retiredby50 @ Sep 1 2008, 05:52 PM) Hi All,

I`ve been looking through my "REIN Gear," and I haven`t come across this one:

So let`s say I`ll be interviewing realtors to begin to build a team of good people, to our mutual benefit, with respect to my real estate investing. I`m wondering what questions I should be asking?

The two I`ve come up with so far are:

Are you a member of REIN? (Not a deal killer, but it needs to be asked)

How many properties do you own, and what kind are they? (If they say `none,` as a realtor answered me on the REIN field trip last week, I waste no more time with them)



So? I`m sure there are 10 or 15 really good ones that ought to always be asked.

Thanks for your time
Keith

When I was selling residential real estate, I prepared a number of "Special Reports" that were designed to answer questions buyers or seller had. One of them was "20 Questions You Must Ask Your Realtor". I just found a PDF copy of that report on my computer and uploaded to Google Docs. It may or may not be of use, but feel free to use it as you see fit.

Sorry... Google Documents cannot be viewed by the public at large at this time, unbeknownst to me. If you would like a copy of it, send me an email and I will send it along.

 

[realfortin]

QUOTE (Lucas @ Sep 1 2008, 09:23 PM) - How many deals do you do per year? (THis is sort of personal but if there is a good repoire it shouldn`t be a big deal. It is in your best interest to work with someone who does enough deals that they are finacially secure, allowing them the ability to support you if you decide to walk away from a deal. On the flipside, working with a Realtor that has too much business on his/her plate can be just as bad as they often may not have the time needed to help you personally analyze properties. REIN members often require alot of attention because they, for the most part, are VERY thorough when purchasing property. It is important to find a Realtor that WANTS to assist you in your due diligence. I personally enjoy working with REIN members for these reasons...It keeps me on my game and I learn alot form very savvy and intelligent individuals.)

I have recently used a realtor because everything seemed to fit in quite well. He owns a few rental properties, he deals with out of town clients a lot, he (and his office) have several multi family rental properties listed. I asked him a bunch of questions about cash flow, CAP rates, areas of the city, transition areas etc etc. He did quite well and all in all he was a great help in buying the properties. The one thing that prevents me from giving him a good recommendation is that he has way too much business and continues to take on more. As previously mentioned make sure the realtor doesn`t do too many deals because once they get overloaded they start forgetting a lot of little details and could possibly sway you towards an option for the simple fact it is less work on their part.

Real

 

[ShannonMurree]

And in my experience (I`m an Realtor in Ontario) it`s good to ask:

- how long the REALTOR has been in the industry (are they good at what they do or just starting out so perhaps not experienced and/or just "residential")

- do they work with a lot of buyers or do they just `hold` inventory and/or list properties?

- are they able to analyze a property and look at it as `numbers` for you or do they look at a property; think of it as a home and say `well it looks pretty`?

In my opinion, it`s all numbers. Properties either work for you or don`t. They have to fit into your systems and perimeters. If not, move on. Good luck in your search and perhaps ask others in your area for referrals. That`d be a really great place to start since studying the REIN systems and need a good REALTOR on your team.

 

[hamburg113]

Hi





This topic help me a lot in developing my project. I will contribute more when I finished it.

 

[Rickson9]

What financial metrics and values do you use to determine if an investment is worthwhile?



That answer alone would give me enough information to make a decision.



Speaking for myself, I don't care how long they've been in the industry, if they're a member of REIN, how many deals they've done, how butthurt they get if I reject a prospect or decide to lowball, or what they own. I can speak to a therapist for that kind of stuff, but that's just me.