How to Find and Qualify a Real Estate Agent in Peterborough

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We know how hard it is to qualify Realtors in this day and age, so we want to help you with some things that we deem as important qualifying questions for finding the Realtor that’s right for you to buy or sell in Peterborough!

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Experience, Knowledge, and Expertise

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Ask For Referrals, or Read Reviews!

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A lot of the clients that our team works with are referrals from past clients, friends, or those who found us on agent review sites. Reading reviews can be a huge advantage in helping find the local Realtors that you’re interested in qualifying.

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Good reviews will talk about things such as:

• Knowledge in the current real estate market.
• Personal connections.
• Response time.
• The fact that they felt supported throughout the process of buying or selling their home.
• Clients who write that they would refer, or use the agent or team again.

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Look for red flags such as:

• Clients felt pressured or rushed within the transaction.
• Clients felt unsupported or that there was a lack of effort from the agent.
• Clients who would not use the agent or team again.

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Great sites to check reviews on for Peterborough Realtors are Google and Rate My Agent.

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Look At Their Experience

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Just because a Realtor has been in the business for ten years, doesn’t mean they have been active in the business. Sales volume is very important, especially because the Peterborough real estate market is changing quickly. Depending on whether you're looking to buy a home or sell a home, you want to make sure the Realtor or team you choose to work with has been consistently listing homes, going on showings, and writing offers. Don’t be afraid to ask any Realtor you are qualifying to show you a list of homes they’ve sold recently, or ask them about their recent success with buyers. If they’ve got a successful track record it will help ease your mind, knowing you are being guided through the process by someone who knows the process like the back of their hands. Social media is a great tool for this as well. Most agents or teams will post about their listings or buyer success stories on their Instagram, Facebook, and other social outlets.

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Competence and Market IQ

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As mentioned above, you want to make sure the Realtor you choose is active in the market - but activity doesn’t always equal knowledge. You need to know that the person who is guiding you through buying or selling your home is actually studying the market, understanding trends, and learning about why the market currently is the way it is. Your agent should know about the local market as soon as you ask them - if they don’t, you should be questioning the value that agent is adding to your experience.

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When selling your home, an agent should provide you with a comparative market analysis to support the pricing position they are presenting you with. It should be competitive, and they should be speaking with you about strategy as well as showing you comparable homes within that price range. Question any agent who immediately agrees with your suggestion for pricing without providing you with market insights and a strategy.

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For an in depth look at the current market, Mitch completes a Peterborough real estate market update article, video, and podcast monthly - and you can find them all here.

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Local Knowledge

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Knowing that your agent is from Peterborough or has spent a lot of time in the Peterborough area is something that will ease your mind when it comes to them providing you with local knowledge. Peterborough is a small town with a big town feel, and someone who grew up here would be able to tell you the ins and outs of all the neighbourhoods, ends of town, schools, and even the amenities and services each end of the city and county has to offer. Not only will they be able to tell you the great areas, but they will also be able to tell you the areas in Peterborough you’ll want to avoid. Local knowledge is huge when it comes to this big of an investment!

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Listing Commission and Services

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Common commission for Realtors in Peterborough is 5% of the sale price of the home. You’ll want to ask any Realtor you are qualifying what their specific commission is, and what they include in their listing package.

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Our team includes things such as:

• Professional photos.
• Personalized video.
• Staging.
• Detailed floor plans.
• Personalized advertisements and marketing materials.

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If you’re looking to use an agent that offers to list your home for less of a commission, you might be getting less of a deal. Just be sure to ask! You don’t want your most valuable asset being listed with dark, blurry photos and no strategic advertising plan.

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Your buyer agent should offer a specialized and unique strategy for finding you the perfect home. Our team has in-depth client onboarding calls, and frequent check-ins to make sure that your search is accurate! We make sure we get down to what your wants and needs truly are, and how we can best help you find the place of your dreams!

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As a buyer, just remember you don’t have any realtor expenses. You will however have legal fees, and land transfer tax to consider - so keep that in mind when you’re planning your budget!

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Availability and Hours of Service

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Depending on your personal needs, the availability of your agent might be very important to you. It’s likely that you’re going to have lots of questions during the process of buying or selling and it’s comforting knowing that your agent is responsive. This takes us to our next point of working with a trusted real estate team versus a solo real estate agent.

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Individual Agent Versus Real Estate Team

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Some people might like the individual attention of working one on one with a Realtor, but we have proven time and time again that working with a team has immense benefits. With an individual agent, you have one sole person to communicate with and only one person to answer questions in a timely manner and to guide you in this process. With a team of real estate agents, client care representatives, and administrative staff, you have multiple people on your team, with more availability! This means there are more people ready to look up properties, show you homes, and come to listing appointments! You want to ensure your home has multiple eyes on it to price it properly before it gets listed. Also - we know that multiple opinions, collective teamwork and discussion typically result in the best ideas. Working with us, you’ve got the knowledge and expertise of six team members - six brains are better than one!

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Building a Relationship

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Connection, Relatability, and Ease of Communication

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When looking for a Realtor, you should almost be qualifying someone as though they’re going to be your friend. Building a trusted relationship is essential during your real estate journey, as you’ll want to know that the person guiding you actually cares. You want to feel excited and confident about your decision, instead of cold and unsupported at the end of one of the biggest transactions of your life.

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Set and Clarify Your Expectations

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It’s really important for you to sit down and brainstorm on what’s important to you when you are choosing someone to work with. Chances are, you are going to be in contact with your Realtor on a daily basis, if not multiple times a day depending on the stage that you’re in. Buying and selling real estate can be emotional and seem like an overwhelming journey at times, so you want to be sure you have clarified your expectations of what’s important to you, and make sure that your Realtor is in alignment with your values and your goals.

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Be Sure Your Agent Understands YOU

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Not only do you want to feel aligned, but you want to be comfortable having hard conversations with your Realtor, as you will need to cover sensitive topics such as finances, and even talk about your personal life to learn your motivating factors, what's important to you, and really get down to the essence ofwhy you’re looking to buy or sell right now.

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Conclusion

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Choosing a real estate agent or real estate team in Peterborough is a tough process. We recommend that you interview and ask these qualifying questions to a few agents that are on your radar, or that have been recommended to you. Your real estate journey is yours, and you want to make sure that it’s enjoyable and that you feel comfortable and confident within your own personal experience.