Interview Questions to Ask Re Agents as Investor

Hartford, Connecticut
Multi-Family and Apartment Investing
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Interview Questions to Ask Re Agents as Investor

Edwin De leon
Investor · bronx, NY · Member since 2008 · 265 posts · 42 votes

You as an investor ...What interview questions would u ask a real estate agent to determine if you want to work with them  and make part of your team, you want someone that will not be telling you here is nice countertop which is of no value  to u as investor ...... you only want to hear  things of value investors want to hear about on any rental property u are considering and not trivial things like here is a nice SEPEARATE door entry for your pet 😀 

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Caroline Gerardo
Lender · Washington DC · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
3y

How many properties have you sold as buyer agent? How many houses in the tract have you walked through on preview? Do you have referral team for lender, insurance, contractor, handymanwoman, attorney, CPA, property manager, inspector...? What agents do you not get along with? When do you not answer your phone? What experience does your broker have? Are you willing to do the rental listing?

I do not think they need to be an investor as they may compete with you.

They have to have owned more than two houses and had a mortgage. 

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  • Rachel KokosenskiPro Member
    Realtor · West Michigan · Member since 2017 · 105 posts · 53 votes
    3y

    @Edwin De leon - number one question, "What experience do you have as an investor?" If they have never been an investor themselves, they will approach it much differently than those of us that have done our own investing! Also, ask them what they know about market rents in their area. I'd recommend talking to a few of them before deciding who you want to work with.

    Hope that helps!

    6Reply
  • Caroline Gerardo
    Lender · Washington DC · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y

    How many properties have you sold as buyer agent? How many houses in the tract have you walked through on preview? Do you have referral team for lender, insurance, contractor, handymanwoman, attorney, CPA, property manager, inspector...? What agents do you not get along with? When do you not answer your phone? What experience does your broker have? Are you willing to do the rental listing?

    I do not think they need to be an investor as they may compete with you.

    They have to have owned more than two houses and had a mortgage. 

    7Reply
  • Conner Olsen
    Real Estate Agent · Austin, TX · Member since 2020 · 1k+ posts · 941 votes
    3y
    Quote from @Edwin De leon:

    You as an investor ...What interview questions would u ask a real estate agent to determine if you want to work with them  and make part of your team, you want someone that will not be telling you here is nice countertop which is of no value  to u as investor ...... you only want to hear  things of value investors want to hear about on any rental property u are considering and not trivial things like here is a nice SEPEARATE door entry for your pet 😀 


     Do you own rental properties? Are you currently doing (insert desired rental strategy) in this market? Which areas have the best price/rent ratio? Where are the lowest taxes? Where is the path of progress? Where are your other clients buying?

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  • Ben ScottPro Member
    Property Manager · Oklahoma City, OK · Member since 2019 · 579 posts · 351 votes
    3y

    In my experience, if the agent is an investor that definitely lends to their credibility. Selecting tenants, managing repairs, estimating rehab costs ... those are all experiences that are key to helping investors. 

    1Reply
  • Taylor DaschBusiness Member
    Real Estate Agent · Temple, TX · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 700 votes
    3y

    I would like the agent to be an investor as well that can guide me through the market. 

    They must be familiar with ARV and rental rates in the area. Also if they had a contractor that could give an estimate on rehab that would be a big plus as well.

    For my investor clients I try to provide them with all of my contacts that I use for my personal properties, Rental estimates on possible properties, as well as ARV.

    Theres so much more that goes into it but those are the main things that I would want. 

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  • John MorganPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Grand Prairie, TX · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y

    @Edwin De leon

    I only use the listing agents. They get double the commish and go all out for me to get the house.

    4Reply
  • Todd Gun
    Rental Property Investor · Irvine, CA · Member since 2017 · 7 posts · 1 vote
    3y
    Quote from @John Morgan:

    @Edwin De leon

    I only use the listing agents. They get double the commish and go all out for me to get the house.

    Very good advice.  Thanks
    0Reply
  • Edwin De leon
    OP
    Investor · bronx, NY · Member since 2008 · 265 posts · 42 votes
    3y
    Quote from @John Morgan:

    @Edwin De leon

    I only use the listing agents. They get double the commish and go all out for me to get the house.

    Thanks... got my attention, how do they double the commission ? What are the 2 commissions they get :( don't understand !!

    0Reply
  • Russell BrazilBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes
    3y
    Quote from @Edwin De leon:

    You as an investor ...What interview questions would u ask a real estate agent to determine if you want to work with them  and make part of your team, you want someone that will not be telling you here is nice countertop which is of no value  to u as investor ...... you only want to hear  things of value investors want to hear about on any rental property u are considering and not trivial things like here is a nice SEPEARATE door entry for your pet 😀 


     Why do you feel like the material used in the countertop is not important?  I wouldnt want laminate countertops in my rentals because they are cheap, ugly and get damaged. I wouldnt want marble in them either because they will easily stain. Id have no qualms about quartz, but general go with granite in my rentals. 

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  • Edwin De leon
    OP
    Investor · bronx, NY · Member since 2008 · 265 posts · 42 votes
    3y
    Quote from @Russell Brazil:
    Quote from @Edwin De leon:

    You as an investor ...What interview questions would u ask a real estate agent to determine if you want to work with them  and make part of your team, you want someone that will not be telling you here is nice countertop which is of no value  to u as investor ...... you only want to hear  things of value investors want to hear about on any rental property u are considering and not trivial things like here is a nice SEPEARATE door entry for your pet 😀 


     Why do you feel like the material used in the countertop is not important?  I wouldnt want laminate countertops in my rentals because they are cheap, ugly and get damaged. I wouldnt want marble in them either because they will easily stain. Id have no qualms about quartz, but general go with granite in my rentals. 


    Thanks for feedback, with all respect to you .... I understand what you are saying, there is some value in the small details, but as an investor I want the bottom line a quick snap shot of all the things that would perk up my ears, catch my attention, showing me that he or she did her homework on the rental property, is providing me with quick researched data points I would have to go dig up on my own to get quick insight on property as an investor, information of substance to an investor is what I want to know how does it compare on NOI against other similar properties in area, rental rates for area, any new upcoming developments in area that will increase value of properties in area, etc

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  • Mason Hickman
    Real Estate Agent · Sandwich, MA · Member since 2014 · 974 posts · 636 votes
    3y

    @Edwin De leon

    The listing agent would get the buy side and the sell side of the commission if they list and act as a dual agent. Before getting licensed, I always used to go direct to the listing agent because I thought I would get more attention because they could double dip on the commission. It finally bit me in the a$$ and I stopped doing it. Just think about it: would you ever hire the same divorce attorney as your spouse? Hell no! Huge conflict of interest; the same as dual agency. Proceed with caution. You will want someone to walk you through the process and be on your side.

    0Reply
  • Michael L.Pro Member
    Investor · Member since 2022 · 293 posts · 58 votes
    3y
    Quote from @Edwin De leon:
    Quote from @John Morgan:

    @Edwin De leon

    I only use the listing agents. They get double the commish and go all out for me to get the house.

    Thanks... got my attention, how do they double the commission ? What are the 2 commissions they get :( don't understand !!

    @Edwin De Leon, the 2 sides of commission is the buyer side=3%, and the seller side=3%. An since your letting the seller agent represent you too, you might be able to negotiate your portion of the commission (3%) down to maybe 2%. An remember, the answer will always be NO if you don't ask...
    0Reply
  • John MorganPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Grand Prairie, TX · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y
    Quote from @Edwin De leon:
    Quote from @John Morgan:

    @Edwin De leon

    I only use the listing agents. They get double the commish and go all out for me to get the house.

    Thanks... got my attention, how do they double the commission ? What are the 2 commissions they get :( don't understand !!


    They get the full 6% vs only 3% as the listing  agent. For example, I just bought a house 3 weeks ago and the agent got the full 6% commission (16k vs only 8k). I called her up and told her I didn’t have an agent and would like to see the house. She showed me the house to me right away and spent 10 min there with me there.  This is why listing agents get excited when I tell them I don’t have a buyers agent. They seem to go all out for me to get the house for obvious reasons. 

    0Reply
  • Eliott Elias
    Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2021 · 9k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    3y

    The biggest draw to a investor friendly realtor is their ability to negotiate. It's everything in this business, and if your realtor is not a bulldog lose them. 

    1Reply
  • Lee RipmaPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Prairie Village, KS · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y
    Quote from @Edwin De leon:

    You as an investor ...What interview questions would u ask a real estate agent to determine if you want to work with them  and make part of your team, you want someone that will not be telling you here is nice countertop which is of no value  to u as investor ...... you only want to hear  things of value investors want to hear about on any rental property u are considering and not trivial things like here is a nice SEPEARATE door entry for your pet 😀 

    How many rentals do you own? I give my clients first crack and the deals and sell at least a deal a week I would personally buy. So I don’t buy that a good agent is in competition with their clients. I don’t have the bandwidth/capital to purchase more than 2% of what I sell. If they own rentals, have done rehabs, and are well-networked they are likely to interview you and not the other way around! 
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  • Joe Facenda
    Realtor / Investor · Vienna, VA · Member since 2014 · 133 posts · 114 votes
    3y

    Agree and disagree with some of the comments above....

    Agree that the selected agent should also invest.  But disagree that an agent that invests will be competition for you.  I mostly invest outside my market.  I'm not competition for any of my clients.  Plus I don't do flips so again no conflicts.  But as @Lee Ripma said, there is only so much money any person has.  They can't buy everything!  

    Completely disagree that you should use the listing agent. I am a Realtor.  I DO NOT like being on both sides.  Yes more money but also more opportunity for post settlement issues. Post settlement problems, even if they don't end up in court are a major pain.  The time involved is extensive and this is time where you make $0, tick off your client who was previously your champion and the negotiations over the problemtake you away from moving on to the next deal.  I do all I can to make sure we have a clean settlement.  For me,  the the extra income is not worth the risk and potential loss of time. 

    Also, you can not represent opposing sides in a transaction. This all depends upon state law but in Virginia, there are 2 ways you can be on both sides. You can represent one side and the other is unrepresented or you can "represent???" both side but not be an advocate for either.  So why would a listing agent "go all out" for a buyer to get them a deal?  Doesn't that mean they are also "going all out" against the seller who hired them?  

    Maybe it appears to the buyer they are going all out but what is going on behind the scenes?  Are their issues with the property not being disclosed?  Maybe not factual issues but opinions that a buyer agent would share with you.  If am a representing an investor, I can say, "I think this home would be hard to resell/rent because of the (the power station out back/the slope of the yard/the road in the back/upcoming construction in the area/ the new complex down the street, etc.)  If I am a listing agent I am obligated to remain silent on all of those items as I represent the seller.  Yes, I still need to disclose adverse material facts relevant to the physical property but I can not offer my opinion as to why this would not be the best flip or rental.  (Again what must or must not be disclosed is governed by state law.  In Virginia we are only obligated to disclose facts relevant to the physical property or piece of land. No obligation to disclose issues outside the property.)

    Another question I would ask. "You said you've worked with x number of investors. How many have bought multiple properties with you?" We know most investors are not one and done. Of course the agent could lie, but if they give multiple examples of clients buying multiple properties, that is a good sign. Why? Well it means they gave the investor an accurate ARV or accurate rent number. If I were to tell an investor a number that is too high, I am pretty sure they would not come back to work with me again.

    Hope that helps. 

    0Reply
  • Shiela R.
    Investor · Boulder, CO · Member since 2017 · 304 posts · 347 votes
    3y

    @Edwin De leon, decent info here.  As an investor who got her license, I'd ask you what is YOUR criteria?  I only work with other investors who are repeat clients or those they refer.  I often tell them if you don't know what you want, I certainly can't find it for you. :)

    Seriously, though you need to be crystal clear about what you are looking for. Is it distressed properties to flip, or to rehab and rent? Do you want a multi unit but no more than 4 units? Or do you want an STR? Do you have a proof of funds letter from your bank or a pre-qual letter from your lender? What's your exit strategy? Do not rely on an agent to do this critical step (knowing the purpose of why you are buying). That's just lazy and frankly, not the agents job. The agent's job is to listen to what you want and use all their experience (people skills, negotiation skills, construction knowledge, market knowledge et al) and resources to find it for you.

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