Honest Answers · Representation
How Do I Choose a Real Estate Agent in Denver?
Interview at least two or three, and ask questions that reveal how each one will behave when your interests and their paycheck point in different directions. Credentials matter less than incentives and honesty. Below are ten questions worth asking anyone, including me.
There are roughly 42,000 licensed real estate agents in Colorado, and from the outside most are indistinguishable. The interview is where the differences surface. The point is not to find perfect answers; it is to find honest ones.
The ten questions
1
Will you represent me as an agent with fiduciary duties, or as a transaction broker? And will you put that in writing?
Listen for: In Colorado the difference is loyalty itself.
2
Have you ever advised a client not to buy or not to sell?
Listen for: Ask for the story. An agent with no such story has never put a client's interest ahead of a commission.
3
How do you arrive at a list price, and what happens if I disagree?
Listen for: Listen for method, not flattery.
4
What does your marketing actually include?
Listen for: Specifics, not adjectives. Photography, preparation, exposure plan, timeline.
5
How many clients are you actively serving right now?
Listen for: You're hiring their attention, not just their license.
6
Who covers for you when you're unavailable?
Listen for: Real estate doesn't pause for vacations.
7
How will we communicate, and how often?
Listen for: Mismatched expectations here cause more frustration than any market condition.
8
If I'm unhappy, can I end our agreement?
Listen for: Confident agents don't need to trap clients in contracts.
9
Can I speak with two past clients whose transactions were difficult?
Listen for: Anyone can produce happy references from easy deals.
10
What about my situation worries you?
Listen for: The honest answer here tells you more than the previous nine combined.
What good answers sound like
Specific, calm, and occasionally uncomfortable. Be wary of anyone who promises a price before studying your home, guarantees a timeline they can't control, or treats every question as already solved. The agent willing to say "here's what concerns me" in the interview is the agent who will tell you the truth under contract, when it matters.
Want this as a printable checklist? The same ten questions are available as a free download: the Agent Interview Guide.
Benjamin Urban
Broker Associate · REALTOR® · Licensed Fiduciary · Urban Companies Real Estate
Honest Guidance. Confident Decisions.