Why You Should Interview More Than One Agent (And What to Ask Them)

Aug 24

Picking a real estate agent based on their Instagram feed is like picking a surgeon based on their bedside manner alone. It matters, sure. But it is not the whole story.

I say this as someone who takes content seriously and appreciates that approach to marketing. But I also know the difference between someone who looks good on camera and someone who can actually get your deal done, and so should you.

Most buyers and sellers pick the first agent they come across, whether that is a friend of a friend, someone from a Facebook ad, or the person who commented on their listing photo. Almost nobody interviews more than one. And that is a mistake, because this is one of the only major decisions in the home buying or selling process where you actually get to shop around before committing to anything.

Here is why interviewing a few agents before you commit is one of the smartest things you can do, and the questions that will actually tell you something real.

A Big Following Doesn't Mean Big Expertise

Social media is a marketing tool. It is not a credential. An agent can have beautiful reels, a large following, and a polished presence, and still be new, undertrained, or in over their head on your specific transaction.

None of that shows up in a feed. It shows up in the details. Contract language. Negotiation strategy. Knowing how to handle an inspection that goes sideways. That is the stuff that actually protects you and your money.

There is also a licensing reality worth knowing. In most states, the amount of pre-licensing education required to become an agent is surprisingly low, often just a few weeks of coursework. That means the agent you are interviewing could be six months into their career or sixteen years in, and nothing about their license alone tells you the difference. Experience is earned deal by deal, not granted at graduation.

Interviewing Agents Isn't Rude, It's Responsible

You are about to hand someone one of the biggest financial decisions of your life. Asking a few questions before you sign anything is not awkward. It is exactly what you should be doing. A good agent will welcome it. Anyone who gets defensive about being asked real questions is telling you something important before you have even started working together.

Think about it this way. You would not hire a contractor to renovate your kitchen off one conversation and a nice logo. You would ask about their process, their timeline, and what happens if something goes wrong. A home purchase or sale deserves at least that same level of due diligence, and usually a lot more, since the dollar amounts involved are so much

Red Flags to Watch For

Some warning signs show up early if you know to look for them.

An agent who cannot speak to recent, specific transactions and instead talks in generalities. Vague answers usually mean vague experience.
An agent who pushes you toward a decision before you have asked your questions. Real professionals want you informed, not rushed.
An agent who cannot explain their commission structure clearly, or gets uncomfortable when you ask about it. Money conversations should be easy, not tense.
An agent who has no one else on their team or in their network to lean on if they are unavailable. Real estate does not pause for vacations or sick days, and you deserve a plan for when your agent cannot be reached.higher.

Marketing Yourself and Marketing a House Are Two Different Skills

Being good at building a personal brand takes real skill. I would never take that away from anyone. But selling yourself and selling a house well require different muscles.

One is about aesthetics, consistency, and connection. The other is about pricing strategy, market timing, contract knowledge, and knowing how to protect a client through a dozen small decisions that most buyers and sellers never even see happening. An agent can be excellent at one and still be shaky on the other. You want someone who is strong in both, or at minimum, someone who is honest with you about where they are still growing.

The Cost of Getting This Wrong

This is not a small thing. A weak agent can cost you real money, and not just in a lower sale price or a higher purchase price. They can cost you in missed deadlines, poor negotiation, bad advice during inspection, or simply not knowing what they do not know until it is too late to fix.

Think about the small windows that come up during a transaction. An inspection response deadline. An appraisal gap. A contingency date. Miss one of those, or handle it poorly, and you can lose earnest money, lose leverage, or lose the deal entirely. None of that is reversible after the fact. An experienced agent knows these deadlines cold and builds in buffer. A less experienced one may be learning your transaction in real time.

Pricing is another place this shows up. Price a home too high and it sits, which creates its own stigma once buyers start wondering what is wrong with it. Price it too low and you leave money on the table before negotiations even start. Getting this right takes real market data and real judgment, not a guess based on what the house down the street sold for two years ago.

Interviewing agents up front is how you avoid finding all of that out the hard way, mid transaction, when the stakes are already high.

Trust Your Gut, But Verify With Facts

You should like your agent. You are going to be talking to them a lot, and a good working relationship matters. But liking someone is not the same as trusting them with your money and your timeline. Use the interview to check both boxes. Do you feel comfortable with them. And separately, do their answers actually hold up. The best agents will pass on both counts, not just one.

What to Actually Ask

Skip the small talk questions. Here is what will actually tell you who you are working with:

How many transactions have you closed in the last 12 months? You want someone actively working, not someone coasting on a license from years ago.
Walk me through a deal that almost fell apart. How did you handle it? This tells you how they problem solve under pressure, which is when it actually matters.
What is your negotiation strategy on offers? A real answer sounds like strategy. A vague answer sounds like a script.
How do you communicate, and how often? You want to know this before you are three weeks into a transaction wondering why you have not heard from them.
What do you charge, and what does that actually include? Get specific here. Vague answers around commission and services are a red flag.
Can I talk to a recent client? Anyone confident in their work will connect you without hesitation.
How well do you know this specific area? Local knowledge matters more than people realize. Pricing, school districts, upcoming development, all of it changes street by street.
What happens if we do not get along, or the relationship is not working? A good agent should be able to answer this honestly instead of getting defensive.
What is your plan if this does not sell in the first 30 days, or if we are not getting the offers we want? This tells you whether they have an actual strategy or are just hoping for the best.

Trust Your Instincts, Then Confirm Them

By the time you finish a few of these conversations, a pattern will start to show itself. One agent will feel prepared. Another might feel like they are winging it. That gap becomes obvious fast once you know what to listen for.

Final Thought

Charisma is not a strategy. A great agent should be able to back up their presence with real knowledge, real numbers, and real answers when you ask the hard questions. Take the time to interview a few. Your future self, and your closing table, will thank you.

Have questions about what to look for in an agent, or ready to chat about your own move?