4 Secret Questions You Should Ask an Agent Before Hiring Them

Have you ever wondered which questions to ask an agent before signing up with them? Learn what they are here.

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Today I’ll share four secret questions you should be asking an agent before you work with them. No matter if you’re buying or selling, these questions are very important:

1. “How many homes have you personally sold?” All of us agents were new at some point, and there are some fantastic agents out there in the market who are working hard to sell real estate. The important question for YOU to consider, then, is whether you want your home to be the first your agent has ever sold. I’m not really sure that’s something you’d want to do or not. Frankly, I didn’t know what I was doing with the first home I sold. Now that I’ve sold nearly 4,000 houses, I know what I’m doing.

2. “What is your average days on market?” Some agents don’t know that number at all; it would worry me a little bit to see an agent who didn’t know how long it took for a house to sell on average. For the past 32 years, the average days on market for homes my team has sold has been 56 days!

Do you really want your home to be the first an agent has ever sold?

3. “Do you work as part of a team?” I’m a little biased on this front since I’ve had a team working with me for over 25 years. Having a team to assist you as a buyer or a seller is such a great tool to be sure that everything is done properly.

4. “Besides the MLS, how will you promote my home?” In real estate, agents sometimes say that there are three “P”s to selling a home: Put a sign in the yard, put it on the MLS, and pray. Those things are great, but there’s actually a fourth “P”: proactive. How will your agent be proactive about marketing your home? For every unique home, there’s a unique way to promote it, so choose an agent who knows how to market a home to the widest possible audience.

If you’re thinking of selling your home, the Charlotte Mabry Team would love to talk to you more about how we’ll help sell your home quickly and for the most money. Just reach out to us and we’ll show you what we can do.

Protect Your Home During Showings With These Tips

Today’s tips will give you peace of mind that your valuables are safe while you’re holding open houses and showings.

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search

Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation

Your home is on the market and you’ve got some showings, and maybe even an open house, lined up.

While buyers are coming and going, how can you be sure that everything in your home will be protected?

Your first priority should be to pack up all of your valuables. To illustrate my point, years ago, I received a phone call from a friend whose home was on the market. She had some bad news: Following her open house, she discovered that her wedding rings had vanished! As it turned out, her children had snatched the rings and stored them in their toybox.

This was a false alarm, but it makes you realize that, if left in plain sight, your jewelry, heirlooms, and items with liability associated with them (e.g., firearms) are all up for grabs for a thief. Your valuables should be locked up, put away for safekeeping, and if possible, off the premises.

On the subject of open houses, it’s an unfortunate reality, but some people posing as buyers attend open houses to search for and steal prescription drugs. Just as you would with your valuables, hide your prescriptions and consider finding a place for them off-site.

In my 32 years as an agent, I’ve never had one seller lose their possessions to a thief, and my team and I will work to make sure you aren’t the first.

As homeowners, many of us hang our lives on our refrigerator doors—pictures of our kids, our bills, our monthly calendars, etc. That’s a lot of personal information that could be tempting for a thief. Play it safe and clear everything off your refrigerator doors.

Lastly, if you have them, you might turn on your security cameras during showings and open houses. However, I’d recommend you err on the side of caution and let buyers know ahead of time that you plan to do this. Having a sign in your front yard that reads “This property is under video surveillance” will not only give buyers a heads up, but it might deter a would-be thief.  

In my 32 years as an agent, I’ve never had one seller lose their possessions to a thief, and my team and I will work to make sure you aren’t the first.

If you have any questions or you’d like more information about selling your home, feel free to send me a personal email at Charlotte@CharlotteMabryTeam.com or give us a call at 423-593-5588. I hope to hear from you soon!