How to find the biggest baddest agent in any town?

Question

Bad advice = If you ever find yourself in prison, go up to the biggest guy and punch him square in the face!

Good advice = If you're looking to work with an investor agent call up the biggest brokers in the town, usually KW, Century 21 or REMax, and ask for the agent that bought and sold the highest volume of small multifamily (duplex, triplex, 4-plex) in the last 12 months. The broker should have this information at their fingertips. That agent clearly works with investors, he or she knows a thing or two about inheriting tenants and has probably worked with a bunch of different property management companies. Interview the top dog at each brokerage and your all set.

Remember every agent will claim to be an "investor-friendly" agent. That just means that they're willing to work with investors but doesn't speak to their ability or capacity to help investors succeed.

Jay Hinrichs · Answer

I disagree with the thought process that the bigger box brokers are the go to for investment properties I personally think its the exact opposite.

I know some of them have Commercial Arms within the brokerage but I suspect those folks aren't fooling with duplex's or SFR rentals.

Also for the average investor who might just buy a few props a year going to be pretty hard to break into a actual top producers rolodex of go to buyers.. they already have them

I like to groom newer to mid term agents to my specifics and help them grow.  buying small investment properties you don't need agents with massive experience or knowledge you the investor Has THAT .. and if you don't then you need to educate yourself.

so just the other side of the coin of this thought process.

Wale Lawal · Answer

I call this type of Agent an ON-FIRE Agent. They will make your life easier and save you from costly mistakes.

ON-FIRE Agent means they are:

O - Organize (The Investor-Agent must be well-organized)

N - Network (The Investor-Agent must be well networked with other Real Estate professionals like Lenders, Appraisers, Property Managers, Inspectors, Insurance Agent, Contractors, etc)

F - Focus (The Investor-Agent MUST Focus on YOU)

I - Investor/Investment-Savvy (MUST be INVESTMENT SAVVY)

R - Responsive (Must Be responsive and answer your call/text)

E - Experience (Must be an investor or have experience working with investors)

Shahriar Khan · Answer

@Gregory Schwartz @Wale Lawal those are good starting points .. Let me add a bit from investor perspective or at least how we define investor friendly agent for our team. This is mostly to separate out "I have seen someone doing it " vs " i have done it and understand the upside/downside " of it .

• 1) 30% weight -- past 36 months of listing and/or sold (it cut through market cycle ) 
• 2) 30% weight -- Agent must be actively participating  (with their own fund) 2-5 flips a year (it show the understanding of the cost/hold/financing/rehab etc) 
• 3) 30% weight - Agent must be owning 5 rentals by themselves  (it shows understanding of experience )
• 4) 10% weight - Agents long terms goal + personality ... to hang out with investors, one must have an investor mindset as well as we need to be able to hang out together after a rough day . (this is to eliminate narcissist ones LOL )

Gregory Schwartz · Answer

@Joe Funari that is a great point, smaller brokers often niche down and do an amazing job. The hard part is finding and vetting these smaller businesses. I guess I would add to my original tip that an investor in a new market should search 2 or 3 smaller brokerages and interview them. Just like finding a good off-market deal haha.

Marian Huish · Answer

I agree with many of the comments here @Gregory Schwartz-  Finding the best investor-agent isn't necessarily based on the highest producing agents with the biggest brokerage as, while it may be market-specific, these agents usually serve the conventional home-owner.  And, in fact, many of the big brokerages don't support some of the unconventional investor strategies such as flipping, wholesaling, etc.  Many investor strategies mean higher risk to the Broker which means they often don't encourage/train agents in BRRR, alternate financing, house-hacking tactics.  I believe the best way to find a 'investor-friendly' agent is to develop a relationship by attending REI meet-ups and through sources such as BP.  Also, keep in mind that many of the most successful 'big broker' agents are focused on high dollar, or repeat clients...  much like they may be less willing/able to work with first-time homebuyers who are not able to compete in today's Seller's market, working with new investors can also have it's challenges as many have big ideas but aren't quite prepared with financing, experience, etc.  My advice would be to find a good agent who's also an investor and to nurture that relationship.  Unless you've got deep pockets and proven experience, there's not a lot of incentive for the 'biggest/baddest' agent to work with you!  I find investors often want the agent to find off-market properties and to go the extra mile without any skin in the game from the investor-buyer.  They want the agent to write multiple low-ball offers with no compensation for doing so...  Time is money and unless you've 'proven that you've ready, willing and able to buy, you need to find an agent that prepared to work with you.  As @Jay Hinrichs suggested and @Stephen Brown said, "Just because they're the biggest and baddest, doesn't mean they have time for you!"  It's all about relationships... connect, learn, deliver, and create a mutually-beneficial connection.

Stephen Brown · Answer

Just because you're the biggest baddest agent doesn't mean you'll have time for every investor. I think many investors would do just fine with agents here on BP rather than the best of the best in their city.

Caleb Brown · Answer

I focus on investors. How they find me is BP, FB groups, referrals, Zillow reviews/past sales, Google reviews. Track an agent down doing one of these things. The good ones will have a reputation, track record and reviews to back it up

Jay Hinrichs · Answer

it all works.. I know in PDX market there is a few brokers that all they sell is duplex four plex and small multi's small shop but very good at what they do they mine those listings constantly..  And thats the name of their company ...

for me like I said big box or not the agent I want normally is someone who is willing to learn and has the time..  top producer while great usually are pretty hard for one off buyers to break into.. they already have their buyer base.. unless its a big team and U get handed down to a team member and that could be great too the team member will work hard for U>

Gregory Schwartz · Answer

@Shahriar Khan great points. Very mathematical

@Jay Hinrichs maybe its market-specific but in my experience, the quickest way to find a good buyers agent for a niche product like an investment or more specifically small multifamily is to start with the large brokers. The main office can easily point out which of their 100+ agents is the best fit for your buying needs. This shouldn't take away from the experience and value that a niche smaller broker can offer.

@Alecia Loveless that awesome. How did you find him or her?

Any other tips for finding a great agent for a new investor or for an investor getting into a new market?

Alecia Loveless · Answer

@Gregory Schwartz My agent is a constant producer. He might not be On Fire but when no

One else was selling in my whole region at the beginning of the pandemic, as soon as protocols were put in place to get closings to happen and showings to happen, my agent was consistently closing deals week after week when no one else was.

He networks with everyone, never forgets a name or face, and if you have a problem he finds the solution.

The brokerage he works for is not a national company, it started off in a small town with just two brokers and two agents and today they have 5 offices covering about a 100 mile radius and close to 75 agents.

It’s not always about getting the best agent, or best whatever, sometimes it’s about finding the best fit.

How to find the biggest baddest agent in any town?

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