Questions to Ask a Real Estate Agent Before Listing Your Brampton Home

Before you list, ask every agent five things: the comparable sales behind their price, their recent sales near you, their written marketing plan, how they’ll run showings and handle offers, and what the agreement says about services, commission, expiry, cancellation and holdover. Then check the answers. Good questions cost you nothing. The wrong hire costs you money you never see.

I’m Manjinder Singh, a Brampton Broker licensed since 2003, and these are the questions I’d want answered if I were the one handing over my keys. RECO, the province’s real estate regulator, suggests interviewing “a few agents”, at least three, before you choose (RECO). Bring the same questions to every meeting so you can compare the answers line by line.

Why the questions matter more than the pitch

You know your home. You know the morning light in the kitchen, the year you redid the bathroom, the school down the street your kids walked to. The agent across the table knows something else: the recent sales, how buyers behave this season and how offers really unfold. That gap is natural. Your questions are how you close it.

A listing interview is also a performance. A warm conversation feels good, and a good feeling says nothing about pricing skill. A meeting that ends on an exciting number leaves a glow that outlasts every fact you heard in the hour before it.

So write the answers down while you’re in the room. Notes keep the whole meeting. Memory keeps the high point.

1. 1ExperienceRecent sales near you, who does the work, and references you can call.
2. 2Pricing evidenceThe comparable sales first, then the number, then what would make it wrong.
3. 3MarketingA written plan, MLS® System timing, and who pays for what.
4. 4ShowingsWho attends, who is escorted, and how keys and lockboxes are handled.
5. 5OffersYour options, what gets shared, and the plan for a buyer the brokerage also represents.
6. 6The agreementServices, commission, expiry, cancellation, holdover and your designated representative.

Before the interview: two checks you can do yourself

1. Search the RECO public register. Confirm the agent is “registered”, note the brokerage, and look at enforcement activity from the past five years (RECO). The search is at registrantsearch.reco.on.ca.
2. Read reviews from more than one source. The Competition Bureau notes that “when a company has only 5-star reviews, that’s a red flag” and suggests reading the 2-, 3- and 4-star reviews too (Competition Bureau).

Questions about experience in Brampton

• What have you bought or sold recently, and where? RECO suggests asking about each agent’s “recent trading activity” and their experience in your neighbourhood and with your type of property (RECO).
• Will you handle my listing yourself, or will others on a team? You want to know who prices the home, who attends showings and who negotiates.
• Can I speak to recent clients? RECO suggests asking for references and contacting them.
• What do your awards measure? RECO’s advertising guidance expects an award to come with “the source, date, and relevant information” and team awards to be described as team achievements (RECO Bulletin 5.1). Ask for the issuer, period and basis.

Listen for reasoning as much as results. Anyone can recite rules. Judgement is applying them to your house, on your street, in this month’s market. An agent who can explain why they’d handle your semi differently from the detached house two streets over is showing you judgement. An agent who gives every home the same speech is showing you a script.

Questions about pricing

Order matters here. The first number you hear sticks, and it sticks hardest when it’s the number you were hoping for. Ask for the evidence first.

• Which comparable sales support your price? Ask to see the sales, with dates, and how each one differs from your home.
• What would make this price wrong? An agent who can argue against their own number has actually tested it. Put the same question to yourself.
• What does the current market look like? A prepared agent can put your home in context. In September 2026, Brampton homes sold through TRREB’s MLS® System had an average selling price equal to 97% of the average listing price, and sold listings had been on the market for an average of 32 days (TRREB Market Watch, September 2026). Those are city-wide averages, not a forecast for your home.
• What happens if we get no offers in the first few weeks? Ask how and when they would review the price and the marketing.
• Why is your price different from the other agents’? A price far above everyone else’s helps you only if comparable sales support it.

Here’s a rule I’d want every seller to keep. If an agent gives you a lower number than you hoped and shows you the sales behind it, that agent has told you something uncomfortable to your face, when it would have been easier to flatter you. Count that in their favour. The flattering number wins the listing. The honest number sells the house.

Questions about marketing

• What is in your marketing plan, in writing? RECO suggests asking how the home “will be marketed to help attract buyers”, and notes that services such as staging, professional photos, advertising and open houses “may vary from brokerage to brokerage and agent to agent.”
• When will the listing go on the MLS® System? Under CREA’s Realtor Cooperation Policy, publicly marketed residential listings must be placed on an MLS® System within three days of public marketing, unless the seller chooses an exclusive approach and confirms that choice in writing (CREA).
• Who pays for photography, staging or cleaning? Get the answer in writing, along with what happens to those costs if the listing ends early.
• How will you check the listing details? RECO recommends that listing details such as size, renovations, taxes and lot dimensions be “supported by invoices, receipts, or documentation” (RECO Seller’s checklist).

Questions about showings and security

Strangers will walk through your bedrooms. You’re entitled to know exactly how that will be managed. RECO suggests asking your agent these questions before any open house (RECO):

• “Will your agent be present during the open house?”
• “Will attendees of the open house be asked for identification?”
• Will all visitors be escorted, and will the number of people inside be limited?
• Will doors, windows and other access points be checked before locking up?
• Should visitors be allowed to take photos or video?

If a lockbox is proposed, RECO notes that you are never obligated to use one, that access requires your consent, ideally in writing, and that you can ask how often the code changes (RECO).

Questions about offers and negotiation

Picture offer night. It’s past nine, the kids are finally asleep, and there are three offers on your dining table. One has the highest price and a financing condition. One is lower and firm. One wants a closing date that doesn’t work for your move. Your phone keeps buzzing.

That is the worst possible moment to invent your rules. Agree them with your agent in daylight, weeks before the first offer arrives, and offer night becomes a decision instead of a panic.

• How will you handle competing offers? RECO lists the seller’s options: accept the best offer, negotiate with one buyer, set others aside, or reject all offers (RECO).
• Will you share offer details with other buyers? “Sellers choose how much other information, if any, they want to share about the offers they receive,” and the agent needs your “clear written direction” before sharing any offer content (RECO). Buyers who submitted written offers are entitled to know how many competing offers there are.
• What happens if a buyer wants your brokerage to represent them too? That is multiple representation. It needs every client’s written consent after written disclosure, and the agent then cannot advise you on “the price you should offer or accept” (RECO). Ask how the agent handles it and what alternatives they offer.
• Do you want me to complete a property information statement? Ask how it will be used. RECO notes that if a statement is meant for buyers, your agent “must disclose this fact to every interested buyer” (RECO).

Questions about the listing agreement

RECO’s guidance on signing a contract with a brokerage points to the terms to ask about:

• Which services are included? “The agreement must clearly set out the services you will receive.” If a service isn’t written down, don’t count on it.
• What is the commission, and how is it shared with the buyer’s brokerage? “You and the brokerage decide the amount you will pay for services.” The amount “is not fixed or approved by RECO.”
• When does it expire? The expiry date must appear prominently on the first page. There is no standard length.
• Can I cancel, and what would it cost? The agreement should list every circumstance in which it can be terminated. Ask about penalties.
• How long is the holdover period? “A holdover clause could mean you owe money even after the expiry of the agreement.”
• Who is my designated representative? The brokerage cannot appoint a different one unless you agree.

Before signing, RECO suggests you “seek independent legal advice if you’d like a second opinion” (RECO Seller’s checklist). An agent who is confident in their agreement will happily let it leave the room with you.

Warning signs

• The agent won’t leave the agreement with you to read.
• Awards or rankings come with no issuer, period or basis.
• The suggested price is far above every other agent’s, with no comparable sales behind it.
• Promised services are missing from the written agreement.
• The answers on commission, cancellation or the holdover period are vague.
• You haven’t been given the RECO Information Guide, which “must be given to a buyer or seller before services or assistance are provided.”

Checking the answers afterwards

• Registration and discipline: the RECO public register.
• Recent sales: RECO notes that an agent’s recent activity is sometimes shown on the brokerage website or other platforms. Ask for addresses and dates you can check.
• References: call them, and ask what they would have done differently.
• Reviews: compare several platforms over a long period, as the Competition Bureau suggests.
• The agreement: read every page, and have a real estate lawyer review anything unclear.

Ask me every one of them

I’d rather you bring this whole page to our meeting than none of it. Every question here has an answer I can show you on paper: the comparable sales, the written plan, the agreement you can take home tonight.

Sellers have noticed. One wrote on RankMyAgent that I covered “the market trends, the house listing price range, advertising and pricing strategy, best time to list the house, as well as all the services included in the commission fee. He did not use any pressure tactics…” A first-time seller wrote: “As first-time sellers, we had many questions, and he took the time to answer each one clearly and thoroughly.” On RankMyAgent, I hold a 4.99 out of 5 rating across 282 verified reviews, as of October 2026, and RE/MAX named me Top Individual Associate in Brampton every year from 2020 to 2023. Ask me in English, Punjabi or Hindi. The answers won’t change.

Common questions

What should I ask a real estate agent before listing my house?

Ask for the comparable sales behind their price, their recent sales near you, their written marketing plan, their approach to showings and competing offers, and what the listing agreement says about services, commission, expiry, cancellation and the holdover period. Ask every agent the same questions so you can compare.

How do I know if a real estate agent in Brampton is any good?

Check the RECO register for registration and discipline history, ask for recent sales you can verify, call references and read reviews across several sources. A strong agent explains the price with comparable sales, tells you what could make it wrong, and puts their services in writing.

Can I negotiate the commission with a listing agent?

Yes. RECO says the seller and the brokerage decide the amount, and that it is not fixed or approved by RECO. Compare what each brokerage includes and make sure every service is written into the agreement.

What is a holdover clause in a listing agreement?

It is a clause “designed to protect the brokerage” that can mean you owe a fee even after the agreement expires. RECO advises making sure you agree to the length of the holdover period before you sign.

Do I have to tell buyers about other offers?

Buyers who have submitted written offers are entitled to know how many competing offers there are. Whether any details of those offers are shared is your choice, and your agent needs your clear written direction first.

Key takeaways

• Check the RECO register and read reviews before the first meeting.
• Ask for comparable sales before you hear a price, then ask what would make that price wrong.
• Write the answers down; a pleasant meeting is easy to misremember.
• Agree your rules for showings and competing offers well before offers arrive.
• Read the agreement for services, commission, expiry, cancellation, holdover and your designated representative, and get legal advice on anything unclear.

Good questions cost you nothing. Ask them of me first: contact me and we’ll start with one conversation about your home.