13 Questions to Ask a Realtor Before Selling Your Home

Published on August 7, 2026 by Leegie Parker

Leegie Parker | Real Estate Advisor | DRE 01020534 | Compass | Leegie.com

Quick Answer

The most important questions to ask a realtor before selling your home are how well they know your neighborhood, how they approach pricing, how they handle negotiations and offers, and how they will guide you through premarketing and preparation. In the San Fernando Valley and on the Westside right now, real local knowledge and pricing discipline separate a trustworthy advisor from someone reciting a quick AI search.

The questions to ask a realtor before selling your home matter more than most sellers realize, because the answers reveal whether an agent understands your market or is guessing along with everyone else. I sat down with a seller in Tarzana not long ago who had already interviewed another agent, one who pulled up a quick AI-generated list of neighborhood highlights and confidently rattled off restaurants that hadn't been open in years. That's the moment you find out who knows the ground they're standing on.

Interviewing an agent isn't a formality. In the San Fernando Valley and on the Westside right now, pockets like Tarzana, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Woodland Hills, Calabasas, Brentwood, Santa Monica, Westwood, Beverlywood, and West Hollywood each move differently, price differently, and attract different buyers. The right questions separate an agent who knows your specific street from one who knows the general idea of Los Angeles real estate.

Below are the questions I'd ask if I were sitting across from an agent for the first time, plus what a strong answer, and a red flag, sound like.

In This Post

●       Question 1: Do They Know Your Neighborhood?

●       Question 2: What Do You Think My Home Will Sell For?

●       Question 3: How Will You Price My Home?

●       Question 4: How Do You Handle Negotiations and Offers?

●       Question 5: What Is Your Marketing Plan, and How Will You Position the Lifestyle of My Home?

●       Question 6: How Will You Communicate With Me, and How Are Showings Handled?

●       Question 7: What Is Happening With Inventory and Demand in My Pocket?

●       Question 8: What Is Your Experience in This Neighborhood, and Do You Work Full-Time?

●       Question 9: What Do You Do in the Premarketing Stage, and How Will You Help Me Prepare My Home?

●       Question 10: What Happens if My Home Doesn't Sell as Expected?

●       Question 11: Can You Walk Me Through the Escrow Process and Costs?

●       Question 12: What Separates You From Other Agents?

●       Question 13: What's One Thing You Wish Sellers Asked?

●       Frequently Asked Questions

●       Key Takeaways

Question 1: Do They Know Your Neighborhood, or Did They Google It This Morning?

A realtor who knows your neighborhood should be able to speak specifically about your street and pocket without leaning on a quick internet search.

I've sat in living rooms in Tarzana where a seller mentioned they had already spoken with another agent about listing their home. That agent had done a quick AI-generated search to prepare for the meeting and rattled off a list of neighborhood highlights, several of which hadn't existed for years. AI can be a useful starting point for learning an area, but it is not a substitute for time spent on the ground.

Here in Tarzana, for example, there are two country clubs: El Caballero and Mulholland Hills. Mulholland Hills is still often called by its former name, Braemar Country Club, even though the rebrand happened about a year ago. An agent who doesn't know that distinction, or worse, doesn't know it exists, isn't ready to represent your listing at a buyer's open house. No agent knows every detail of every pocket they serve, and that's fine to admit. What matters is whether they've spent time there, not whether they can fake it convincingly.

Question 2: What Do You Think My Home Will Sell For?

No agent, no matter how many comps they pull, can tell you exactly what your home will sell for, because the buyer decides that number, not the agent and not the data.

This is one of the most revealing questions on the list, but not because of what a confident answer would tell you. It's revealing because there isn't a confident answer to give. I can look at what similar homes have closed for in your specific pocket, what's currently sitting, and what the data supports. What I can't do is tell you what a specific buyer will pay before that buyer shows up with an offer. Demand, timing, and the particular circumstances of who walks through your door at any given time decide that number, not me and not the comps.

Here's what I tell my own sellers: “I don't know exactly what this will sell for yet, nobody does, until the market sees your home on the market. Here's the range the data supports, here's how we'll find out fast, and here's what I'll tell you the moment we learn something real. I'm telling you what the data shows, not what you want to hear.” My job is to get you the most money the market will bear. The market and the buyer decide what that number is, not me. Pricing discipline, understanding that range and reacting to real data as it comes in, is the dividing line between a home that gets real activity in the first two weeks and a home that sits through round after round of reductions.

Question 3: How Will You Price My Home?

A strong pricing strategy is built on recent, comparable sales in your specific pocket, not a general sense of the market.

Ask which comparable sales an agent is using and why, down to the pocket, not just the neighborhood. A home half a mile away in a different part of Encino or Sherman Oaks can sell for a meaningfully different price per square foot once you factor in the school-adjacent streets, the flats versus the hills, or proximity to Ventura Boulevard.

An agent who can walk you through their comps and explain the reasoning, rather than just handing you a number, is doing the work you're paying them for.

Question 4: How Do You Handle Negotiations and Offers?

A strong negotiator has a clear strategy for evaluating and countering offers, not just a plan for choosing the highest number when several arrive at once.

Negotiation isn't only about what happens when multiple offers land on the table together. It's how an agent handles a single offer that comes in low, a buyer who wants repairs after inspection, or a request for a rent-back after closing. Ask what their approach is to countering, when they'd advise you to hold firm, and when they'd suggest flexibility.

When you do get multiple offers, the strongest one isn't always the highest number. A higher offer with a shaky loan or a long list of contingencies can be riskier than a slightly lower offer that's clean and ready to close. Ask how multiple offers get evaluated as part of this conversation, and ask what their negotiation strategy looks like from the first offer through final terms.

Question 5: What Is Your Marketing Plan, and How Will You Position the Lifestyle of My Home?

The strongest marketing plans sell the lifestyle a buyer will have in your home and neighborhood, not just a list of bedrooms and bathrooms.

Ask how they plan to get your home in front of buyers and other agents, not just how it will look on the MLS. This includes photography quality and whether they preview the home to other agents before it goes live. Do they hold open houses? How do they promote the home? Have them walk you step by step through each detail of their marketing plan and how they will be accountable to you for each step. So much of marketing a home begins before a listing goes live in the MLS, make sure they are not just putting it in the MLS and sticking a sign in the ground in your front yard.

But ask something else too: how will they position the lifestyle your home offers? A buyer isn't only purchasing square footage. They're purchasing mornings on a quiet street in Sherman Oaks, weekend trips to the farmers market in Studio City, or a short walk to the beach in Santa Monica. The agent's job is to help a buyer picture their own life in your home, not just recite its features.

Question 6: How Will You Communicate With Me, and How Are Showings Handled?

Ask whether the agent personally accompanies showings to highlight your home and answer buyer questions, or whether that's handled by an assistant or a lockbox.

Some sellers want a quick text or phone call after every showing. Others want a weekly summary call. Neither is wrong, but you should know upfront what to expect, and the agent should ask you what your preference is.

Also ask who shows up to your showings. An agent who personally accompanies every showing can answer a buyer's questions on the spot and highlight details a lockbox or an assistant might miss. That's a meaningfully different experience for a buyer walking through your home.

Question 7: What Is Happening With Inventory and Buyer Demand in My Specific Pocket Right Now?

A knowledgeable agent should be able to describe current conditions in your exact pocket, not just the Valley or Westside broadly.

Tarzana, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Woodland Hills, and Calabasas each move at their own pace, even within the same general San Fernando Valley market. The same is true on the Westside, where Brentwood, Santa Monica, Westwood, Beverlywood, and West Hollywood each have their own inventory levels and buyer pools.

Ask for current conditions in your specific neighborhood or whichever pocket you're in specifically. An agent who can speak to your exact streets, not just the region, is showing you they've done the work.

Question 8: What Is Your Experience in This Specific Neighborhood, and Do You Work in Real Estate Full-Time?

Ask about their track record in your specific neighborhood, not just their experience with a similar type of home, and ask directly whether real estate is their full-time job.

A condo sale and a single-family sale in Tarzana call for different approaches, but so can two single-family homes in different pockets of the same neighborhood. Ask about recent sales in your specific area, not just homes similar to yours elsewhere.

And ask plainly whether they work in real estate full-time. An agent juggling another job may not be available when a buyer wants to see your home on short notice, or when an offer needs a fast response.

Question 9: What Do You Do in the Premarketing Stage, and How Will You Help Me Prepare My Home?

A strong premarketing plan and clear guidance on which improvements are worth the investment can matter more than anything that happens after your home is live.

Ask what happens before your home ever hits the market: how they'll position it to other agents in advance, what materials they'll prepare, and how they'll use that lead time.

Just as important, ask what you need to do to prepare your home, and ask them to walk you through which improvements are worth making. My rule of thumb is that I don't recommend a seller spend a dollar on an improvement unless they can expect three dollars back. The right agent will tell you plainly where your money is well spent and where it isn't, rather than pushing a long, expensive to-do list before you list. This is also where the conversation looks different if you're selling a home you've lived in for decades, since updates, capital gains, and Proposition 19 tax transfers all factor in differently than they would for a recently renovated flip.

Question 10: What Happens if My Home Doesn't Sell in the Timeframe We Expect?

A quiet opening week is data, not a verdict, and your agent should have a plan for that conversation before it happens.

Ask how they'll handle it if the first couple of weeks are quieter than expected. Do they recommend an immediate price cut, or do they look at the actual data, showings, feedback, and comparable activity, before recommending any change?

Question 11: Can You Walk Me Through the Escrow Process, the Timeline, and What This Will Cost Me?

Ask for a clear breakdown of commission and closing costs up front, not just a rundown of the escrow timeline.

Ask your agent to walk you through the full escrow timeline in plain language, including who holds funds and documents, the role of title and escrow, what contingency periods look like, how inspections are handeled, and what your role and what is needed from you at each stage. An agent who can explain this clearly is one who will keep you informed when it matters.

Ask what they charge for compensation, since that number is negotiable and should be discussed directly rather than assumed. Ask about the Buyer's agent's compensation would be handled, and what to expect if there is an unrepresented Buyer. Then ask what else comes out of your proceeds at closing: title insurance, escrow or closing fees, county transfer tax, your prorated share of property taxes, a natural hazard disclosure report, and if you're in a community with an HOA, any transfer or document fees. Understand all of your costs upfront so nothing catches you by surprise.

Question 12: What Separates You From Other Agents that I Might Interview?

The strongest answer to this question is specific to your home and your pocket, not a general pitch about service or dedication.

Every agent will tell you they're committed to your success. Listen for specificity instead: recent sales in your exact pocket, a clear pricing philosophy, a communication style that matches what you want. Marketing that is outside of the box. Information about their Brokerage and how their Brokerage supports you. Vague answers here usually mean a vague experience later.

Question 13: What's One Thing You Wish Sellers Asked, But Rarely Do?

This closing question often reveals more about an agent's judgment and character than any question you came in with.

I like this one because it puts the agent in the position of teaching, not selling. A thoughtful answer, an perspective you had not considered, whether it's about pricing patience, disclosure requirements, or what really moves a home in your specific pocket, tells you a lot about how they'll advise you when it counts.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many realtors should I interview before listing my home?

Two or three conversations are usually enough to compare pricing philosophy, marketing approach, and communication style. Interviewing more than that rarely adds new information and can slow down your timeline.

Is it rude to interview multiple real estate agents?

No. Interviewing more than one agent before you list is normal and expected, and any agent worth hiring will welcome the comparison rather than take it personally.

What is the biggest red flag when interviewing a realtor?

A confident, guaranteed sale price is one of the clearest red flags, whether it comes on day one or after the agent has pulled every comp in the book. No one can tell you exactly what a buyer will pay, because that decision belongs to the buyer, not the agent and not the data.

Do I have to sign with the first agent I talk to?

No. You are free to interview multiple agents before making a decision, and taking the time to compare answers to these questions will give you a much clearer sense of who is right for your sale.

Key Takeaways

●       Real neighborhood knowledge, down to details like which country club goes by which name, is worth more than a quick AI-generated summary of the area.

●       No agent, no matter how many comps they've pulled, can tell you exactly what your home will sell for. The buyer decides that number, not the agent and not the data.

●       Pricing discipline, not a confident number on day one, is what separates homes that get real activity from homes that sit through round after round of reductions.

●       A strong multiple offer strategy weighs price, terms, contingencies, and certainty of closing together, not just the highest number.

●       Ask about conditions in your exact pocket, since Tarzana, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Woodland Hills, and Calabasas each move differently even within the same San Fernando Valley market.

●       Commission is negotiable and closing costs go well beyond it, so ask for a full breakdown of all fees, including title, escrow, transfer tax, and any HOA fees before you sign anything.

●       Interviewing more than one agent is normal and expected. The right advisor will welcome the questions, not deflect them.

Bring This List to Every Interview

I put together a printable checklist with these questions, plus a few extra ones for pricing and marketing, so you can bring it to every agent interview and compare answers side by side. If you would like a copy, email me here and I will send it over.

Thinking About Selling?

Thinking about buying or selling in the San Fernando Valley or on the Westside? I'd love to hear from you. Call or text me at 310-739-9202, or email Leegie@Leegie.com. I'll give you a thoughtful, grounded take on where you stand.

Leegie Parker

Real Estate Advisor, Compass

DRE 01020534

310-739-9202 | Leegie@Leegie.com | Leegie.com