Common Broker Agent Interview Preparation Guide

Download PDF

This is the candidate's opportunity to shine. Look for those interviewees who really sell themselves and tell you why they'd be a great hire. Seek candidates that list more than just personality traits (i.e. a hard worker, or fast learner), but those who can provide examples from their previous work history that exemplify those traits.

The culture of your brokerage should play into this question. If your brokerage is located in a small town, maybe phone calls work best. If your brokerage is in a large city, maybe text messages or emails are preferred. Also consider what forms of communication match your agents' client base best.

Print advertising popularity is on the decline, so how is the company providing alternative ways to capture leads and route them back to you? Company-hosted lead capture websites, web and print marketing, floor time and open house availability all come into play to provide you with contacts. Keep in mind that ultimately, the most lucrative real estate businesses are built through referrals of personal friends, family and past clients and colleagues.

☛ What commission do you charge for undeveloped land or lots?
☛ Do I have the authority to list for less commission under certain circumstances?
☛ If yes, what are those conditions?
☛ Could I list it for more?

It's a sellers market, your lead should have a strategy in place to find and convert seller leads. Possible answers might be PPC ads, social media ads, blogging, marketing flyers, print ads, or lead generation services.

☛ What is the normal amount?
☛ How many is that per full time agent?
☛ What is the average list price of the listings?
☛ What is the average sales price of the office?
☛ What percentage of listings are sold in house?

Some brokers might like an agent whose lead generation matches that of other agents at their firm. Others might like an agent that uses methods they'd like their other agent team members to learn, such as social media, blogs, or search engine marketing.

This should give you some insight into which programs they are familiar with and how tech savvy they are. If the candidate is not familiar with your CRM, lead generation, or other Real Estate service software program, see if they are eager to learn new programs.

☛ How many do you want?
☛ How many part time agents?
☛ What is the agent turnover rate?
☛ What is the average tenure of agents?

Get a realistic business plan, knowing how many houses you’ll need to sell on average to earn a comfortable income. Knowing what the company considers as “average” will give you a snapshot view of what is expected of you, and what the company is prepared to coach you towards.

If your brokerage uses any particular online databases, see if this agent is familiar with it or if they have experience using similar databases.

Compare the candidate's answer to other agents at your firm. Maybe this candidate could help your agents with newer platforms like Instagram or Snapchat.

☛ How often?
☛ Who pays for it?
☛ Who determines which listings get advertised?
☛ Who writes the ads?

☛ What day, time, and how long do the meetings usually last?
☛ Could I attend a sales meeting before I make a final commitment to come on board?

Real estate agents are responsible for all aspects of running their own business, but brokers can help out by providing them with items like business cards and signs as well as office and tech support.

When asking this question, prospective agents should
1) provide a professional reason why this lead was difficult to work with,
2) what steps they took to try to repair the relationship before ending it and
3) what they learned from the experience.

Do yourself a favor – don’t ask about commission until the very end of the interview. Your commission split may be negotiable and dependent upon how the manager has determined what your business growth rate will likely look like in the next six to 12 months. Asking this question too soon in your interview can be detrimental; you may unknowingly set yourself up for disappointment when you force the manager to provide you with a low-risk response before either of you have a chance to understand what you can offer to each other.

Would clerical assistance be available to me such as preparation of monthly mailers, typing letters, preparing flyers, entering and making changes in listings, etc.?

☛ Do you do property management?
☛ Will I receive referral fees from a business I may refer to?
☛ Do you have in-house loan offices?

Will you be on your own a lot, or will the sales manager be readily accessible? How often is he or she in the office and can you get a hold of them whenever you need to?

Compare this number to the agents at your brokerage. If they're just starting out, ask how they'd find leads.

Top agents generally sell more than 15 homes in a year. Pay attention to them in sales meetings to learn the most.

Don't beat around the bush, this question is the equivalent of asking for a pay history.

The interviewee should touch not only on what traits their brokerage would mention, but how their personal traits led to a positive outcome for the brokerage.

The candidate should provide an outline of what previous marketing plans they have implemented.