What Skill Set Should Your Realtor Have?

Posted by Leo T. Ly on
What Skill Set Should Your Realtor Have?

What Skill Set Should Your Realtor Have?
 

If you are searching for a Realtor, with thousands of licensed Realtors out there, how do you select the best one? When we say the best, we don’t mean the hotshot Realtor whose face is everywhere from a trash can sign to a giant billboard on a highway. We mean the best Realtor to work with YOU. Depending on your personal real estate knowledge and skill set, you want a Realtor with a complementary skill set to your own so that you can maximize your success when working together. You want to have as much real estate relevant skills as possible between you and your Realtor. Below is a list of real estate related skill set, the more your skills your Realtor possesses, the better he/she is to assist you.

Financial Knowledge

Helping you with the transaction is great, saving you money is better. Do you know that First time how Buyers can get part of the land transfer tax refunded and can use up to $25,000 from their RRSP to buy their first home? Also, for foreign sellers, you have to pay any capital gain tax before you close the sale? A Realtor with sound financial knowledge can save their client thousands of dollars and minimize their financial stress.

Financial Management Skill

Depending on if you’re a first time home buyer, a foreign buyer or investor, the minimum down payment amount can be different for each situation. If you’re buying in the city of Toronto versus outside of Toronto, your closing cost will be different even if the purchase price is the same. Did you know that costs such as Land Transfer Tax, lawyer fees, home inspection fees and property appraisal fees are additional funds that you’ll need to cover and are not part of your mortgage? A Realtor with great financial management skills will ensure that you are financially sound and has sufficient funds to cover all your costs.

Leadership Skill

A Realtor with great leadership skills will not only help you build a professional team, he/she will lead the way to ensure that other professional work cohesively and efficiently to close your transaction on time and on budget

Marketing Skill

Many Realtors claimed that they have great marketing strategies to advertise your properties to millions of potential customers, the claim is difficult to prove. Ask for hard evidence and statistics. Of course, the MLS Realtor website has that potential, but any Realtor can make that claim and any posting.

Negotiation Skill

While many claimed to be a top negotiator, not all of them can prove it. To test your Realtor’s negotiation skills, if you’re selling, ask what commission they are charging and tell them that you’ll only want to pay half of that. If you are buying, ask your realtor to share 50% of his/her commission with you. A good negotiator will not only be able to negotiate a rate that will make her/himself decent money, you’ll also feel that you’re getting a good deal too. Best negotiation result is a win-win situation for both parties.

Risk Management Skill

When you are dealing with real estate transactions, the dollar amount is normally in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, in some cases into the millions. To ensure that you are not financially stretched beyond your limit and has sufficient wiggle room to deal with unforeseen costs when you entered into a real estate contract, a Realtor with great risk management skill can help you mitigate those risks.

Technical Skill

With the advancement in technology in the last decade, many industries were transformed or are being transformed and the real estate is no exception. So how tech savvy is your Realtor and how is he/she using technology to help build a competitive edge?

 

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Leo T. Ly, Money Coach, Personal Finance Blogger/Enthusiast and a Realtor Living in the Markam, Ontario, CanadaAbout Leo
I am a money coach, personal finance blogger/enthusiast and a Realtor living in Markham, Ontario, Canada. I built a net worth of a million dollars over a ten year period. I did it by being a disciplined saver, taking advantage of income tax rules and borrowing money to invest rather than for consumption. I am often excited to take advantage of free money from employers and governments in addition to building more passive income sources. After accumulating my first million dollars, I am now embarking on a second journey towards achieving financial independence. On this journey, I will strive to increase my net worth to two million dollars and retire by the age of 48 - Freedom 48. Come along and follow my journey on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or Google Plus.


There are 30 opinions expressed on this post.

  1. I am sitting on the train home with an hour to kill. It’s great to be able to learn new things and maybe making free money as a result. Thanks for taking the time to write these guides. Hopefully, it will bring you some good leads.

    1. You are welcome T.K. I am glad that you enjoyed the posts. With all the comments that you have been contributing, you’ve definitely increased your chances to win giveaway.

  2. I didn’t know that to be a realtor, it requires that many skills. I always thought that if they are licensed and took all those real estate courses, they’ll qualified and be able to help me with my real estate needs. This guide will serve as a good checklist for me when I meet with my potential realtors.

    1. These are not the required skills to be a Realtor, but it’s my personal opinion that to be a helpful Realtor, possessing those skills will greatly help one’s client. With that being said, I tried to develop those skills as much as I can.

      I am glad that you find this guide useful.

    1. @Zayani, I think that a competent Realtor can be helpful. However, to maximize the benefit of a Realtor’s skills, you should also build your knowledge and communicate your need to your Realtor. By working as a team, you’ll both benefit at the end.

  8. I did not know that a realtor has to wear so many hats in order to help clients get the best out of their home purchase. Thanks for sharing the many skills required.

    1. Emily, for a great Realtor, I truly believe that helping serve a client is not enough. A great Realtor needs to have skills that can save their client money, minimize the risk of financial loss and provide expert opinion that will allow their clients to maximize the value for the clients’ most expensive investment.

    1. @Shirley, when you are involve in a real estate transaction, it’s best to have a knowledgeable local Realtor on your team, and provide crucial information and expert advise that allows you to make the best decision for your investment. Your can always drop by my contact page and send me your question if you need some advice :).

  10. Cheers to the share, it is always good to know before hand on what to expect when looking for a realtor to match your needs. Really appreciate it.

    1. @Shivani, I also appreciate your feedback too. When you are searching for a Realtor, just remember that you and your Realtor will be working as a team. Hence, having similar views and philosophy about real estate will make the partnership more productive. A Realtor can only help you meet your goals and needs only if you are willing to share and communicate your needs to your Realtor.

  11. Thanks for the sharing! But what is realtor actually about? still looking a bit lost about what is realtor, apologize that I have total zero knowledge on this haha!

  12. I am the type of guy that takes things like this for granted – I assumed all realtors should have all these qualities within them.
    Thanks for your write up now I know better.

    1. Hi Rawling,

      All Realtors goes through similar courses to obtain their license. However, the great ones bring a lot more to the table than others. Depending on your own skill sets, finding a Realtor with complementing skills to yours will definitely make your real estate buying or selling much more enjoyable and stress-free. The most important thing is to ask lots of questions. The more questions you asked, the easier it is for the Realtor to help you.

  13. Every realtor should have a kick-ass negotiating skills, and advanced knowledge with real estate market. So it is recommened that realtor should constantly read the papers too

    1. @Blair, negotiation skills and advanced knowledge are definitely important. For all Realtors, we have to take updater courses every two years in order to renew their license. However, some skills such as communication and customer service cannot be taught in the class room. The Realtor needs to develop that from within. You’ll know if the Realtor has that skill or not after you have talked to that Realtor for a while.

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