Questions to Ask Any Southwest Wisconsin Real Estate Agent Before You Sign (Including Me)

Hiring a real estate agent means handing someone control of a six-figure transaction, often after a single conversation. Most people choose based on a referral, a yard sign they keep seeing, or the first agent who called back. Nothing wrong with any of those, but you should still interview the person. I'm Jeremy Fishnick, and these are the questions I'd want answered before signing with any agent in southwest Wisconsin, with my own answers so you can hold me to the same standard.

Short answer: Ask how they price, how they market, how often they'll communicate, what happens if it doesn't work out, whether they know the specific town you're in, and whether they can read a house. Then listen for specific answers. Vague ones are a warning.

1. How will you arrive at a list price?

Listen for a method, not a number. An agent who names a price before seeing the house or pulling comps is guessing or flattering you. A good answer involves recent comparable sales, adjustments for condition and location, and a reason behind the strategy.

My answer: I price the way an appraiser would, off real comps, and I'll show them to you. Often I recommend pricing to create competition and letting multiple offers push the number up, rather than listing high and reducing later. I stand behind that with a Sold For Top Dollar Guarantee: if your home sells below the original agreed list price, I pay the difference out of my commission, up to 1% of that price.

2. What specifically will you do to market my home?

"Put it on the MLS and Zillow" is the floor, not the plan. Ask what else happens, and when.

My answer: I shoot my own photos and 3D walkthrough. I mail postcards to the surrounding neighborhoods timed with launch, because in towns like Lancaster and Platteville the buyer often already knows the street. I run Facebook and Google marketing, pay for a Zillow showcase listing, and design a custom yard sign built around your house's best feature. The listing goes live Thursday, showings run Friday through Sunday, and we review offers Monday.

3. How often will I hear from you, and how?

The most common complaint about agents isn't bad results, it's silence. Get a commitment.

My answer: You hear from me after every showing and at least weekly regardless of activity. Text, call, or email, whichever you prefer. You will not be handed off to an assistant.

4. What happens if I'm not happy?

Ask for the exit terms before you sign, not after. How long is the agreement? What does it cost to cancel?

My answer: If you ever feel I'm not doing my absolute best, you can cancel with $0 in fees. The only exception is if I'm the one who produced the buyer who ends up purchasing the home.

5. How well do you know this particular town?

Southwest Wisconsin is not one market. Platteville has a university and the turnover that comes with it. Cuba City and Lancaster draw Dubuque commuters. Boscobel and Prairie du Chien are river towns. Dodgeville and Mineral Point attract a different buyer again. An agent from a bigger city may be perfectly competent and still not know which street floods.

My answer: I live in Lancaster and work Grant, Iowa, Lafayette, and Crawford counties every week. I've inspected hundreds of houses across these towns, which means I've been inside the basements of the exact housing stock you're selling or buying. I keep a page of local municipal links for each town because I use them myself.

6. Can you tell me what's wrong with this house?

Most agents can tell you what's nice about a house. Fewer can tell you what a buyer's inspector will find, and that gap is where deals die. You want someone who can look at a foundation crack or an electrical panel and give you a real read.

My answer: I'm a licensed Wisconsin home inspector as well as a Realtor. Before we list, I'll walk your house and tell you what's going to show up on the buyer's inspection report. When you're buying, I'll point out the problems at the showing, before you've written an offer. Abel C., a buyer I worked with, put it this way in his review: "Information is a powerful weapon to have when negotiating a home sale or purchase."

7. What are my options besides a traditional listing?

An agent with one tool will recommend that tool. Ask whether they can present alternatives, and whether they'll tell you when one is better for you.

My answer: I offer six ways to sell: traditional listing, cash offer, cash hybrid, short sale, novation, and assumable mortgage. The traditional listing usually nets the most, and I'll say so. But if your situation calls for speed or simplicity, I have a direct cash-offer business, Wisconsin House Partners, and access to my brokerage's Zoodealio platform. You'll see the numbers for each path before you choose.

8. Who else will I be working with?

On some teams the person you interview isn't the person who shows up. Not necessarily bad, but know who your actual point of contact is.

My answer: I work with a small team under Fishnick Realty Advisors, brokered by LPT Realty, but I'm your point of contact from the first call to closing. My phone number is on everything for a reason.

9. Can I see your reviews, and are they recent?

Reviews won't tell you everything, but patterns across many of them tell you something. Look for specifics, not just "great to work with."

My answer: Between my real estate and inspection businesses I have 35 Google reviews, all five stars. I went through what they actually say in this post, including the themes and the limits of what reviews can tell you.

10. What would make you tell me not to sell right now?

This separates an advisor from a salesperson. A good agent has walked away from listings, or told a seller to wait, because the timing or price wasn't going to work. Ask when they last did that.

My answer: If your expectations and the comps are far apart and you're not open to adjusting, I'll tell you to wait or talk to someone else. I've done it. A listing that sits for a season helps nobody, and my guarantee means an unrealistic price costs me too.

How to use these

You don't need to ask all ten. Pick the four or five that matter most and ask them to every agent you talk to, including me. Notice whether the answers are specific, whether they volunteer the downsides, and whether you'd want to hear from this person every week for the next two months. The agent who answers plainly, even when it isn't what you hoped, is usually the one who'll tell you the truth when it counts.

Talk to Jeremy

If you want to put these questions to me directly, call or text Jeremy Fishnick at 608-732-2564 or email [email protected]. You can also read how I handle each step of a sale at fishnickrealty.com. Ask me the hard ones first.