How do I choose my realtor?

According to the National Association of Realtors there are about 106,548 real estate brokerages firms working in the United States right now and according to Aceable there are 195,647 actives realtors in the state of Florida. These numbers change every day, mostly to increase. When someone is deciding whether they want to buy or sell a house the best option to find exactly what you need is to reach out to a realtor. By finding out what are the customer's needs and wants a realtor can help find the perfect solution for buying or selling a house.

The question that people need to ask themselves is, how do they find the realtor that will best work for them? With statistics that high in the number of realtors currently working in the state of Florida, how can someone make sure they have found the right realtor for them? Here are some tips to locating the right realtor for you.

Location: Location is a very important factor when it comes to finding the realtor that will best work for what you are looking for. Try to look for a realtor that works in the area that you are looking to buy or sell. When a realtor knows the area, they feel comfortable, know other clients in the same area that he could connect and knows how the market works there. Try to make a list of realtors that are in your area and could potentially be a good fit for you.

Who they work with: There is nothing wrong with a big brand, big names in the real estate industry has been working for years and know how the markets move and how to do their job. Although all of that is true, there is nothing like a local brand. Local brands tend to be more familiar with their surroundings and are not in it only for the numbers but for making sure your needs are covered. Realtors usually work with a group of people to make sure that the process of buying or selling goes through such as title agents, mortgage people and many others. It is important that you as a customer are aware of who your realtor works with, it says a lot about a real estate company by who they make deals with. Feel free to ask your realtor who they work with, it is your right to know.

Reputation and Reviews: Now a days we are very technological people and everything we want need or want to check we do it online. A good way to make sure you are connecting with the right realtor is by looking up their reviews. This way you can verify if their past experiences have been good or bad. It is the easiest way to know some background on the past experiences of the realtor.

Experience: Experience is something that although does not determine whether you are good at your job; it does help to see if you have been successful selling or buying houses in the past. It is something that for a lot of people is important because they want to hire someone that at least has some experience getting the job done. This kinds of things can be asked directly to the realtor or by researching them through the internet something will come up. Also, if they have a business social media, this usually shows and talks a bit about their experience in the business.

There are some people who prefer not getting realtors involved in their buying or selling a house and prefer to do it all themselves. The reality is that although it does not mean that the result will be unsuccessful, it does slow the process down. Realtors are prepared to do these kinds of transactions and have tools provided to them that not everyone can access. These tools help realtors make sure their job is quick and efficient. Selling or buying with a realtor could mean the process will be faster and the possibility of a deal falling through will decrease.

Real estate can be quite unpredictable, that's why we opt to receive help from those who have the knowledge to guide us. Finding out what realtor will work best for you is very important in a field where there are nearly 200,000 people doing the same job.

References:

How many real estate agents are in Florida? AceableAgent. (n.d.). https://www.aceableagent.com/blog/how-many-real-estate-agents-are-florida/.

Quick real estate statistics. www.nar.realtor. (2020, November 11). https://www.nar.realtor/research-and-statistics/quick-real-estate-statistics.

by: Zuheylie Pagan Davila