Are you a brand new real estate licensee or considering making a move from your current brokerage? What questions should you ask the brokerage? What questions should you ask yourself when interviewing brokerages?

Having a list of questions helps you review your options and weigh the pros and cons: franchise, independent, small, large, techie, or old-school. Ultimately, you will thrive at a real estate office that you feel comfortable at.

8 Questions to Ask When Interviewing a Brokers

When you are interviewing brokerages, make a list of real estate offices that you want to call or email to schedule an interview. Before you even go to the office, you will find out one thing: who calls you back. Once you have the interview scheduled, then you should prepare your list of questions to ask the broker. You might be meeting with the broker, team leader, or office manager and interviews might range from a  quick 15 minutes to over an hour. Your questions should cover commissions, insurance, common practices in the office, what to expect from staff support, and operations.

It might not be a direct question, but your feeling when sitting with a broker, office manager, or recruiting director matters! Your intuition can signal that something is a great fit or that you should keep looking.

Question 1: Location

Is being physically close to the office important to you or do you care more about virtual support via phone calls and email?

Are you someone who wants to work inside of a real estate office or do you have a home office where you are more productive?

Question 2: Broker Supervision

How closely does the broker supervise transactions and agent activity? California real estate law regulates broker supervision of real estate salespersons, but supervision comes in different forms.

Do you want a broker who is accessible and approachable and gives out their personal cell phone number?

Question 3: Other Real Estate Agents

Is the office roster of other real estate agents diverse in experience, life perspective, and talent? You learn from people around you.

Are you someone who wants to be a “big fish in a small pond” or do you want to be a “small fish in a big pond”?

When you visit the office in person, are there other agents in the office? Do you want to be friends with the real estate agents at the brokerage or are you more of a lone wolf who is okay if no one knows your name?

Question 4: Community

Does the office have community bonding events throughout the year for staff and agents? Some offices foster a sense of community and together-ness whereas sometimes the office environment is competitive and dog-eat-dog.

Ask how often everyone in the office staff and agents come together as an office.

Question 5: Online Presence & Technology

Before meeting with the broker in person, search for the company online. What are the online reviews for the real estate brokerage? Visit their social media platforms and see how often and what they post.

Does the brokerage have a strong online presence? Typically a broker with a strong online presence sees the value in their virtual storefront and will be more likely to encourage their agents to invest time and energy in their online profiles. 

Ask the broker what types of technology and software are integral parts of their business model. Do they use a transaction management software or social media to connect with agents? Are agents encouraged to use a particular type of computer or technological services? 

Question 6: Commission and Fees

The money question: how much will I get paid if I join your office? You should ask whether there are monthly, annual, or recurring fees to be a part of the office. Is the commission model based on splits, caps, or flat-fees? Ask how commission graduation plans happen and what you have to do to earn a higher split.

Are fees per transaction or levied regardless of production? Find out whether certain fees are optional or whether all services with fees attached are mandatory.

Question 7: Staff Support

Is the broker and his assistant the only people on staff or does the broker have separate departments for marketing, transactions, and operations?

Ask questions about who is on staff and what each person on staff does every day. Will you have interaction with the broker’s assistant or the transaction coordinator? Is the marketing team available for all agents to use or only agents on a specific plan or production level? 

Question 8: Training and Education

Training and education is crucial for brand new licensees, but also any producing agent because laws, common practice, and forms update constantly.

Ask how often training happens in the office, whether it is a live instructor or virtual instructor. Are classes recorded or is attendance mandatory?

How often are office meetings?

What education happens outside of the classroom setting?

Who teaches the classes and what are their qualifications for real estate training?

After Interviewing Brokerages

Once you have interviewed real estate offices and collected the responses from the meetings, then you should organize your results. What interview stood out to you? Which office felt like it was the best fit for you and your real estate goals?

KALEO Real Estate Company hires full-time, part-time, and real estate teams. Whether you are starting your real estate career or you are a top-producer who wants an office who will help propel them to the next big milestone, KALEO Real Estate Company is a local favorite for a unique, innovative, and distinctly different brokerage experience.

Choose a brokerage that feels like home. Call 626-609-2130 to schedule your private consultation with our broker!