The Greater Toronto Area has many reputable real estate agents & brokers to choose from. However, you need an agent that can meet your buying/selling requirements with the utmost aptitude. Below are five of the imperative traits you should look for in a real estate agent or broker to help you with your real estate needs:

1. Experienced & Full-time Realtor: This may come as a surprise to you but the fact is that many Real estate agents in the greater Toronto area are part-timers i.e. Real estate is their part-time business along with their regular 9 to 5 job. Statistics show that approx. 60% of Realtors in GTA only sell 3 or fewer houses in a year. It is fine for a part-timer as it is decent money along with a full-time salary but what about the home Buyer or Seller? If you won’t let yourself be touched by a part-time doctor or let your case be handled by a part-time lawyer, how can you let a part-timer handle such a large transaction for you? There are 100s of Professional & reputed Real estate agents to choose from, who have 10+ Years in this business and are successful in making Real estate their full-time career. With so many Realtors around, everyone knows at least 2-3 real estate agents. If they're qualified based on the above criteria, that is great as they're also someone you know but if they're not, then you're gambling with what may be one of the biggest investment of your life.

2. Availability: Clients often complain about the lack of communication with their respective real estate agents. Among hundreds of professional full-time realtors, you may find someone who overloads themselves while handling 20 clients at a time. More can only be handled by giving less time to each, which may lead to compromises somewhere or they may let your important transaction be handled by their inexperienced subordinates, who are working with them because they still can't sustain on their own. Subsequently, you may find realtors who choose to maintain a balance between their work and personal life, taking a maximum of 3-4 clients at a time. Regardless of who your agent is, one should note that balanced individual realtors always take clientele business very seriously - for which they need time and availability.

3. Should be Proficient and Detail-Oriented: Well-seasoned realtors will always listen to the needs of their clients and ensure that they can deliver to them with the utmost proficiency and professionalism. They will also pay close attention to details. Subsequently, when it comes to marketing your house for sale or finding your dream home, they will be aggressive to deliver fast results. 

4. Should be Well-Versed with Technology: In today’s market, most home searches start on search engines like Google or Yahoo. or on social media. A real estate agent who uses technology and social media to market seller/buyer products can present your property to a proficient database, open to a vast audience of interest. Even the ones who were not yet actively looking may catch attention when they see your house in front of them on social media. Print days are over. Digital marketing is the way to go..

Technology use also applies to digital signature software, whereby you will not have to take time away from your busy schedule, to arrange a lengthy meeting for signing documents, in addition to reviewing numerous offers/counteroffers, etc. Everything is digitally accessible from your electronic device. Digital records can also be kept available for future reference much more easily than on paper. Did I mention paperless transactions are environment-friendly? 

5. Do a Self-Reference Check: Do not hire any realtor simply because they are your friend or relative. Transactions of large sizes should be handled with the utmost professionalism. While being experienced in the field, they should also be customer service-oriented individuals, who are willing to go the extra mile to satisfy customer/clientele needs. Along with being successful, your chosen real estate broker should also have a good reputation. Try finding them on a search engine and see what comes up. Do not rely on any paid-rating websites, review their professional profile on reputable websites like Linkedin and take a look at their references. If you do not find anything, ask them to personally provide those references. Good realtors will have nothing to hide and past clients are the best referential for agent reviews.