[M03/S10] Communicating with your Real Estate Agent

When homeowners are surveyed after the sale of their property has completed, there’s one facet of an agent’s performance that usually gets very high praise or heaps of scorn. That is the experience communicating with your real estate agent.

Some agents are really good at this, and keep their clients constantly in the loop. Literally, the client never has to call the agent, because the agent has kept them apprised of the process, every step of the way. These agents often win high praise from their clients – you will read that a lot in favorable Zillow or Yelp reviews, that the agent had great communication skills.

Selling a home can be very stressful, and it’s comforting to know that your agent is there, on the job, taking care of business. You hear what’s happening – and if nothing is happening, you need to hear that too, and more importantly, why nothing is happening.

When you are interviewing agents, try to get a sense of how good a communicator they are. If you like text messages, ask them if they text. If you like Email, ask if they do that. If you prefer they always call you and you hate text and email, make sure they know that, and that you expect to be contacted at least once or twice a week – or however often you need to hear from them. And if you prefer face-to-face meetings, that’s not unreasonable, either.

Your agent is in the service business. They’re going to be well paid for that service. You deserve to get the kind of service you expect for the money they’re making. If you have questions or concerns late at night or early in the morning, a great agent will accommodate you – within reason. Agents are human, after all, and they need rest, sleep, and time off like everyone else. But a great agent will go the extra mile to respond to your inquiries day and night, seven days a week.

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