{"id":183592,"date":"2025-06-30T13:36:14","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T19:36:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/?p=183592"},"modified":"2025-06-30T13:36:17","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T19:36:17","slug":"five-questions-to-ask-to-find-an-investor-friendly-agent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/five-questions-to-ask-to-find-an-investor-friendly-agent","title":{"rendered":"Find an Investor-Friendly Agent With These Five Simple Questions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019ve been around real estate investing long enough, you\u2019ve heard: \u201cOh yeah, I work with tons of investors.\u201d Most of the time, that just means they once helped someone buy a rental by accident. The truth is that a lot of agents don\u2019t understand what makes a good investment. And I know that because…I used to be one of them.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I first got my real estate license eight years ago, I had no idea what <\/span>cash flow<\/span><\/a> meant. They don\u2019t teach you anything about investing in real estate <\/span>school<\/span>. <\/span>I was <\/span>just<\/span> trying to learn the contracts, not how to run numbers or find deals with equity upside.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, one day, out of nowhere, I got an email from an investor asking if I worked with investors. I had no idea what that involved, but of course, I said yes. Spoiler: I had no idea what exactly investors needed from a real estate agent.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that one message opened my eyes. I went down the BiggerPockets rabbit hole and realized just how much I didn\u2019t know. So, I began learning everything I could about what makes a good deal, what investors need, and how I could become a more valuable resource.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m saying that to make this point: When an agent says they\u2019re investor-friendly, don\u2019t just take their word for it. Ask questions and dig a little bit. <\/span>Figure out if they\u2019ve really done this before or if they\u2019re <\/span>just<\/span> hoping you\u2019ll be their first shot.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The good news? You don\u2019t need a ton of questions to figure it out. Just five solid ones will do the trick.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. What\u2019s Your Strategy When Making Offers in Today\u2019s Market?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If their answer sounds like something they\u2019d say to a first-time homebuyer, that\u2019s not a good sign. A great agent should know how to structure offers that are effective in the current market climate. That might mean asking for seller credits, finding ways to negotiate favorable terms, or knowing how to act quickly when the right deal becomes available. If they freeze at the question, they probably haven\u2019t been doing much for investors lately.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Can You Walk Me Through a Recent Deal You Closed With an Investor?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This one separates the talkers from the doers. A solid agent will walk you through the numbers, explain the investor\u2019s strategy, and maybe even show you how the deal <\/span>penciled<\/span> out. If they can\u2019t name a recent example or they get weirdly vague, you might be their test case.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. What Neighborhoods or ZIP Codes Would You Recommend for My Strategy, and Why?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This question tells you how well they understand your goals. <\/span>Are they <\/span>giving<\/span> you trendy answers, or can they back <\/span>it<\/span> up with data?<\/span> You want to hear them discuss rental <\/span>comps<\/span><\/a>, zoning changes, or buyer demand in specific areas of the city. Bonus points if they mention something you haven\u2019t heard yet.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. How Do You Help Your Clients Find Deals With Cash Flow or Equity Upside?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Do they <\/span>just<\/span> send over MLS listings and say, \u201cLet me know if anything looks good\u201d?<\/span> Or do they dig deeper, run numbers, and help you spot opportunities that might be getting overlooked? If they\u2019re not at least doing some light analysis or showing you ways to add value, you might be doing all the work yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Have You Personally Invested in Real Estate?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Not a requirement, but it helps. Agents who have owned rentals, done a <\/span>flip<\/span><\/a>, or even <\/span>house hacked<\/span><\/a> understand the process in a way others don\u2019t. They\u2019ve lived the stress. They\u2019ve made the rookie mistakes. <\/span>And they <\/span>know<\/span> why you <\/span>care<\/span> about things like repair estimates and neighborhood turnover rates.<\/span> If they\u2019ve been in your shoes, they\u2019re way more likely to help you make smart decisions.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Thoughts<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s the bottom line: Some agents are investor-friendly. They\u2019ve done the homework, closed deals, and know how to bring real value to your investing journey. Others are just saying what they think you want to hear. These five questions will help you <\/span>tell the difference<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if you don\u2019t want to play 20 questions with every agent in your inbox, you can use the<\/span> BiggerPockets Agent Finder<\/span><\/a>. It\u2019s a quick, free tool that connects you with agents who already understand what you\u2019re trying to do\u2014no awkward explanations required.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The right agent doesn\u2019t just open doors. They help you build something. Make sure you\u2019ve got the right one in your corner.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \n

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Find the Right Agent, Close the Best Deal<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step #1: Use Agent Finder to match with top investor-friendly<\/strong><\/em> real estate agents to help you find, analyze, and close your next deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n Find an Agent<\/a>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/main>\n <\/div>\n\n
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Join the community<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ready to succeed in real estate investing? Create a free BiggerPockets account to learn about investment strategies; ask questions and get answers from our community of +2 million members; connect with investor-friendly agents; and so much more. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n Sign Up<\/a>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/main>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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If you\u2019ve been around real estate investing long enough, you\u2019ve heard: \u201cOh yeah, I work with tons of investors.\u201d Most of the time, that just means they once helped someone […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":613755,"featured_media":183590,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7400],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-183592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-building-team"],"acf":[],"comment_count":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/613755"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=183592"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183592\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/183590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=183592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=183592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=183592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}