How to Interview a Listing Agent: 9 Essential Questions to Ask

A listing agent, also known as a seller’s agent, is a licensed real estate professional representing the home seller during a sale. Their primary duties include determining a listing price, marketing the home and negotiating the closing deal. A good listing agent will help maximize your sale price and help you close the deal as quickly as possible. 

Hiring a real estate agent involves signing a listing agreement, which is a contract between you and the agent’s brokerage (the listing firm). Choosing the right agent is important to avoid costly mistakes down the road. 

Whether you have an agent in mind or are searching for someone new, it’s smart to interview three or more prospective agents to find the best fit. We’ve laid out nine essential questions to help you choose a listing agent.

1. Can You Tell Me About Your Background as a Real Estate Agent?

As you meet with potential listing agents, finding out how much experience they have is important. Focus on the five criteria below as you learn about their professional background.

• Time in the business: Typically, a real estate agent who has been in business for two years or more will have a solid grasp of their job. Also important: are they a full-time agent or a part-timer juggling multiple jobs? If they’re dividing their time between you and another job, the agent will be less available and have less experience than someone with an equivalent number of years in the business.
• Real estate job title: A real estate broker may have more experience and qualifications than a real estate salesperson, but not always. It can depend on the state in which they received their license since some states only issue broker licenses. However, agents, brokers and salespeople are all called Realtors if they are members of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), a real estate trade association whose membership is held to a high standard and follows a code of ethics.
• Buying or selling experience: Listing agents, or seller’s agents, work with sellers. Buyer’s agents, also called selling agents, represent buyers. Many agents do both, but some have more experience with one or the other.
• Recent real estate transactions: You want an agent with multiple recent sales as a listing agent. It’s a good sign if those homes are sold above the asking price and within a reasonable timeframe for the local market. The agent profiles on Homes.com display a track record of sold properties, active listings and areas of expertise.
• Reputation: Check out online agent reviews and see what their clients say. You can also ask to speak with past clients and hear directly what they say. Additionally, agents with a good reputation in the local real estate community will have relationships with buyer’s agents, exposing your home to more potential homebuyers.

2. How Does Your Experience Fit My Needs?

Experience is a great start, but you also want to ensure an agent’s real estate expertise is a good match. Look for these important factors: 

• Knowledge in your local market: An agent with experience in your area will better understand the local real estate market and what your home may realistically sell for. On Homes.com, you can browse for agents based on their number of sales in a city or even in a specific neighborhood. 
• Experience selling your type of home: If you are selling a historic property, you might not want to pick an agent who only sells new construction. Choose someone who has sold homes similar to yours.

3. What Is Your Communication Style?

You want a real estate agent with a communication style that works for you. This initial interview process is a great way to understand that. Are they giving you direct answers, walking the property and asking what your goals are for the sale? Those are all positive actions, or green flags, that you may want to hire them.

You also should confirm that the agent will work with you directly throughout the process. “If I were a seller, my first question would be, ‘Once you get my listing, are you going to hand me over to an assistant, or are you going to be the person on my side until the sale is completed?’” says Anahita Johnson, an agent with Long & Foster Realtors in Richmond, Virginia. 

4. What Do You Think My Home Can Sell For?

Discussing a potential listing price for your home before signing any contracts with an agent is standard practice. Going with the agent who promises you the highest price might be tempting, but you should exercise some caution here. They might be inflating the price to win your listing. You can check your property’s worth before you meet with a Home Valuation Report.

A prepared agent will want to tour your home and run a comparative market analysis (CMA). A CMA report estimates your home’s value using data from similar, recently sold properties. 

5. What Is Your Marketing Strategy?

Your listing agent’s marketing plan can greatly impact how you sell your home. According to NAR’s Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, the top marketing strategies in 2024 were listing the home on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), posting yard signs and conducting open houses. However, those three things are the most basic actions a listing agent should perform. Expect more from a good listing agent, such as providing Matterport 3D virtual tours.

Ask the prospective agent what they recommend to make your home show better. The seller will likely be responsible for large projects, like repairing property damage. However, the agent often covers the cost of professional photography; some will even stage your home for you. 

6. How Much Do You Charge?

Real estate agents typically get paid by commission. In other words, a percentage of your home sale pays for your agent’s service, typically 2.5% to 3%, but it’s negotiable. If an agent’s rate is higher than expected or they charge additional fees, ask why. Commission fees are not set in stone and can change based on the level of service you are looking for.

7. What About the Buyer’s Agent Commission?

Sellers used to be expected to pay a similar real estate commission to the buyer’s agent, but how those commissions are handled has changed since the 2024 NAR settlement. The listing agent and their broker are now prohibited from advertising cooperative compensation to the buyer’s agent through the MLS. The commission paid to the buyer’s agent is now a negotiable term in the offer process that’s finalized in the purchase agreement.  

8. How Involved Will You Be in the Closing Process?

The period between accepting an offer and closing the deal is generally the most stressful and complicated part of selling a home. “That’s when a good real estate agent really earns their money,” says Brian Walinski, an agent with Fathom Realty in Henrico, Virginia. “But some agents think their job is just to get the contract, and then they will turn the paperwork over to their office clerks.” 

How do you know if you are getting an agent who will stand by you? Walinski says getting an answer to that question is why a preliminary interview is so important. “Watch how the agent responds to your questions,” he says. “Their answers should be about you and your needs versus a generic response about how many sales they’ve made.” 

9. What Makes You Different from Other Realtors?

Every agent brings a different skill set to the table, often based on their previous experiences. A former social media manager might have an edge in marketing, but an agent who has worked in sales might be a better negotiator. Asking this question can be a great way to learn if an agent’s specific skills align with your needs.

The Bottom Line: Find a Listing Agent Who You Trust

Most agents will welcome questions and be eager to explain their process. Open and regular communication is the easiest way to ensure the home-selling process goes smoothly. “A good agent will take the weight of the transaction off your shoulders and put it on their own,” Walinski says. “But to get to that relationship, you have to pick an agent that you trust.”