A real estate agent is always on the go, helping clients buy and sell homes and assisting companies in finding office and industrial spaces to buy or lease. Before getting into the real estate business, an agent needs to be affiliated with a broker, also known as a real estate agency.
After fulfilling the requirements to become a licensed real estate agent, how do you become part of an agency? If you’re an experienced agent, what should you expect when interviewing to change agencies? Monster has put together this guide to real estate interview questions you may be asked along with sample answers to help you prepare for your interviews.
Top 8 Real Estate Interview Questions
- What Makes You a Good Real Estate Agent?
- How Do You Determine What Properties to Show Clients?
- What Is the Hardest Part of Showing a Home to a Client?
- Tell Me About a Time You Had Difficulty Forming a Good Relationship With a Client.
- What Technologies Do You Use to Market Homes and Attracts Clients?
- How Do You Stay Organized?
- How Many Homes Did You List and Sell in the Last 12 Months?
- How Much Time Are You Willing to Put in Each Week?
Question 1: What Makes You a Good Real Estate Agent?
Your interviewer will want to make sure you know your stuff. But this is one of the real estate interview questions that reveals your self-confidence as well, which is just as important in jobs that depend on successful client relationships.
- Focus on one or two of your best qualities.
- Explain how and why those qualities have contributed to your success.
How You Could Answer:
“I think good communication skills are vital to helping someone find their perfect home. I take time to ask questions and listen to what my clients tell me so I can make a good match. I make sure I’m familiar with the homes I show, so I take a quick tour and study the MLS sheet before I take a client to see it. I’m also empathetic. I’ve been in the market for a new home several times, and I know how it feels to be overwhelmed with too many showings and frustrated when you’re shown homes that don’t match your criteria.”
Question 2: How Do You Determine What Properties to Show Clients?
The client relationship is central to an agency’s success. Many real estate interview questions are aimed at learning how you connect with clients to determine what they really want in a home.
- Describe your process for building a client relationship.
- Mention any standard questions you ask to determine client wants.
How You Could Answer:
“I have clients fill out a questionnaire to get their basic info like budget, neighborhood, home size, etc. That gives me a starting point to dig deeper into what I should show them. I also ask them to describe their perfect home and give me three things they absolutely must have. That helps me to narrow down what I show them initially. Then, I take notes during every showing to gather more information and further refine what listings they might like.”
Question 3: What Is the Hardest Part of Showing a Home to a Client?
You probably know all about “wandering client” syndrome. Explain to your interviewer how you work through it:
- Stay positive and explain it’s just human nature for clients to get excited and abandon your well-prepared presentation to look around on their own.
- Talk about how you’ve countered this.
How You Could Answer:
“When I take a buyer to a spectacular house, they get excited to see it. And that’s the end goal. There’s no point trying to give a presentation when they aren’t paying attention. So I tell them to take a look on their own for a couple of minutes, then come back so I can answer their questions and show them features they may not have noticed. This makes for a much smoother showing.”
Question 4: Tell Me About a Time You Had Difficulty Forming a Good Relationship With a Client.
Don’t let real estate interview questions like this trip you up. All real estate agents run into one or more clients that are difficult to “click” with. Your interviewer will want to see if you can be honest about less-than-positive experiences and can describe them objectively.
- It might be tempting to complain about a difficult client. Instead, use positive language and focus on what you learned during the experience.
- Use the STAR method to organize your response—outline the “situation” and describe the “task” you needed to complete, the “actions” you took, and the “results” you delivered.
How You Could Answer:
“It’s common for buyers to have a long list of wants that can’t be satisfied with a limited budget. I learned that the situation is easier when they come to that realization themselves, rather than being told they can’t have what they want.”
“I had one couple that fit this description. So, I showed them houses in their budget, and when they were disappointed by the lack of amenities, I showed them houses that had everything they wanted and were out of their price range. When they came to the realization that their expectations needed to be adjusted, I helped them prioritize their wants. Shortly after that, we found a house that met their shorter list of amenities and was within their budget.”
Question 5: What Technologies Do You Use to Market Homes and Attracts Clients?
Exceptional real estate agents utilize social media, virtual tours, and other technologies to reach buyers and sell homes. Respond to real estate interview questions about technology with the following information:
- List the technologies you use.
- Cite an example of a recent home sale that used technology to its advantage.
How You Could Answer:
“I heavily promote my homes and attract buyers with Facebook, Instagram, and my own website. I send text messages to my buyers who are actively looking every time I list a new home. I’m also very active on platforms like NextDoor to maintain a neighborhood presence. I have an excellent videographer and photographer who stage my homes and set up my virtual tours. One of my homes that sold within two weeks of listing was liked or forwarded 114 times on Facebook. I keep track of my website traffic and adjust listing descriptions if they’re not performing as well as others.”
Question 6: How Do You Stay Organized?
Disorganized agents cause headaches for buyers, sellers, and their agencies. Your interviewer will want to know how you keep track of multiple appointments and showings each day.
- Talk about your commitment to being on time and communicating reminders to clients.
- Mention any calendar or scheduling software you use.
How You Could Answer:
“My days are jam-packed with appointments and showings, and I pride myself on always being on-time and prepared. I’m using Genbook to schedule and manage appointments. The app has a color-coded calendar for me and sends automated showing reminders to my clients. One feature allows clients to cancel and reschedule without having to call.”
Question 7: How Many Homes Did You List and Sell in the Last 12 Months?
Agencies want to know you have a good track record before they take you on. Be prepared to answer real estate interview questions about your history with solid statistics and numbers.
- Include the number of homes you’ve sold on your resume.
- Talk about the types of homes, neighborhoods, buyers, etc. that are relevant to that agency’s market.
- Mention any awards or advanced credentials you’ve received.
How You Could Answer:
“Here is a list of the 53 homes I listed and sold in the past year. You’ll notice they’re all in the $250,000 to $400,000 range. Most are in Highland Heights, Brookfield, and Marlboro, and my clients tend to be families with younger children. I was Smith-Martin’s top seller three months in a row during that time.”
Question 8: How Much Time Are You Willing to Put in Each Week?
Many real-estate agents are full-time sellers, but for others, it’s a secondary job. Your interviewer will determine whether you’re a real go-getter with real estate interview questions like this one.
- Most brokers are looking for high-achieving agents that put in whatever it takes to reach their goals.
- Talk about your availability and willingness to work flexible and long hours and weekends and to drive long distances.
How You Could Answer:
“Real estate is not just a job; it is my passion. I do whatever it takes to help my clients and easily work around their schedules. I currently work an average of 55 hours a week.”
Move Into Your Best Career as a Real Estate Agent With Monster
After you think about how you would answer these real estate interview questions, take the next step in your job search and build your Monster profile. You can upload your resume, which will help recruiters and real estate agencies locate you, and we can send you job listings that match your profile criteria. It’s a lot like what you do to find the perfect home for your clients—our job is to find that perfect-fit job for you.
