“Why does every Real Estate Agent ask me if I’m working with a Realtor? It makes me feel like they don’t want to talk to me!”

Of course they want to talk to you! There’s two very good reasons why you always get asked this question.

One: Ethics! A reputable, honest agent doesn’t want to “steal” another agent’s client. Real estate agents invest time and effort into their clients, and don’t want to interfere in another agent’s relationship with a client. If you decide the agent with whom you’ve been working isn’t right for you, talk to them and make sure you’ve ended the relationship or contract between you before beginning to work with another agent.

Two: Money! The Realtor is asking you if you are working with someone to find out if you are, in essence, offering earning potential, or if you’re asking for a donation. Many clients either don’t realize or forget that the only way an agent makes any money is when a sale closes. Everything they do for a buyer or seller until that closing is at their cost. Essentially, agents work for free, hoping to close a sale so they can be rewarded for that hard work.

Many of the questions a buyer or a seller ask take time and work to answer. If you ask to see a property, the agent has to schedule time that’s just for you. If you want to know if they know of any homes for sale that meet your needs, they have to do research and create a selection, often including a dozen or more listings. If you are asking for an estimate of your property’s worth, the agent must tour the property, research similar listings in the area, and create a list of comparable listings and present the estimate to you. No matter what the question, it takes time, expertise, and energy that cost real dollars and cents to answer.

Would you work for free? Maybe for a good cause, or a good friend, but on a regular basis for total strangers? Probably not.

Most real estate agents are either in business for themselves, or working entirely on commission. They work as a listing agent to sell a property, or as a buyer’s agent to find you the right property. They do all that work in hope of closing a sale to get paid. It’s a complicated, difficult, and time-consuming process, so most of us choose to work with an agent to make it easy and pleasant. That hard work and dedication is why an agent asks if you’re working with someone.

That agent wants to be the agent to work with you!