What makes a real estate brokerage that is worth your time, that will help you effectively buy or sell a property? The question might seem fairly obvious – and we can indeed create a working list of what to look out for – but the truth is that answering it also depends on a range of circumstance-specific factors. 

City Home Collective, a real estate brokerage specializing in luxury homes and condos, add that it also depends on what type of property you are trying to buy or sell, as this also requires different expertise. Good brokerages share a lot in a common, but they are not identical everywhere. Nevertheless, it is much easier to identify a bad real estate brokerage; there are certainly a range of red flags which apply across the board. 

Good Real Estate Brokerages 

When it comes to a general description of a good real estate brokerage, it all comes down to professionalism and knowledge. There are many superficial aspects to real estate brokerages, from flashy offices to a wide selection of properties on their websites and many employees with impressive degrees. That is all very well (and can of course indicate a brokerage that is worth your time) but what is most important is knowledge of the housing market which they are dealing with and the expertise to know what to do with that information. 

Accordingly, a good brokerage should be able to tell you the best strategy (based on knowledge of the owners) about how to succeed in securing a property. And for those looking to sell a property, that expertise and knowledge becomes even more important. Indeed, it is the only way they can put a proper price on the property.

Signs of a Bad Real Estate Brokerages 

But of course, to properly appraise any given brokerage, it might be better instead to look out for the following red flags:

Slow Communication 

Slow communication is usually the result of, well, having little to communicate. Accordingly, if your brokerage has not contacted you in a while then it could well be because they have not found any potential buyers for your property or haven’t found any potential properties for you to buy. In other words, they are not doing their job. 

They Endlessly Agree with You

Of course, your opinions and input are vital, so you want to make sure your broker is taking that on board. However, they are the experts, not you. And if they simply agree with everything you say while offering no advice, maybe they are not experts at all. 

They Don’t Use Their Full Arsenal

Expertise is one thing, but a good real estate brokerage should also be using that expertise. They should also be using every resource available to them to sell your property or a find one for you to buy. If they are not writing first rate descriptions, taking good photographs, and spreading your ‘For Sale’ notices far and wide, then it’s best to look elsewhere. 

Too Much Pressure 

You need to watch out for brokerages that seem to demand all sorts from you. And you should be very wary of one that is constantly asking you to pay for this or that. For every item of advice they offer, they should be able to fully explain why they are doing so – and that usually requires some kind of documentation to back up their claims. 

In the end, the best tactic to spotting a rotten brokerage might be to know generally what makes a good one – and know specifically what makes a bad one.

Mark Pereira