Hi Lucy,
Selling your home is a very important decision. You should always choose a Realtor who you feel you can trust.
I think the easiest and the first thing you should do before hiring any realtor is search the California Department of Real Estate public information website using agent's name (or license #) and see if his/her real estate license is in good standing. If all the information seems to be Ok, you should go further and do a little more research using other sources.
DRE public license search website: http://www2.dre.ca.gov/PublicASP/pplinfo.asp

I hope it all works out for you for the best :)

PS: I also live in Rohnert Park, it’s a cute little town! :)

Hopefully, his personal (and in writing?) guarantees that you can drop him at any time, without any cost! Good for you for doing some research. You've done many potential sellers and buyers a service by sharing this info.

Wow! Well first off let me say almost anybody can study and get their Real Estate License. Really some good points for you the next time is make sure they are a Realtor as well as having the Real Estate License and that off the bat should weed out many. The other thing is check to see how many closings they have for this year and how many escrows they have. Make sure they are not all short sales because many of those don't work out. Speak to the agents broker about how they are doing with closings escrows and such... Be careful and trust your instincts as I do the same with working with people, in fact I fire a lot of buyers based off of the feelings or senses I get from them. You should always meet face to face in a safe environment especially the first meeting. I hope this helps you for the future and go to http://www.taylor-mason.com

Hi Lucy,
The agent you interview should have a list of recent sales which include dates the homes sold, how many days the home was on the market, and what the home sold for vs. the listing price. If they are not willing to provide this information to you you'd be better off moving on to the next agent that will. You can view some of my recent sales and listings http://www.JenniferAument.com.
Good luck!
Jennifer Aument
Realtor
Century 21 Bundesen - Petaluma http://www.JenniferAument.com

Sorry to hear about your experience with that realtor.

Another way to determine an agent's good standing is to go to California Department of Real Estate to check on the status of an agent's license. If the agent was ever suspended, etc. this information is available. Here's the link http://www2.dre.ca.gov/PublicASP/pplinfo.asp

If he/she has a current listing, look it up at REALTOR.com and see how he/she is promoting the property on this site which is the major source of information for other realty sites. Are there a lot of pictures (maximum is 25). Is the description thorough and not generic? Is there a virtual tour?

Has he/she posted listings on the internet (trulia, activerain, craigslist, vflyer, postlets, etc). Since 86% of buyers today go online to look for a house to buy, the marketing focus should be weighed heavily towards the internet.

Call some of the referrals

Yes, referrals from friends and relatives matter a lot....do augment that with additional research.

Good luck!

Hi Lucy,
I, too, am sorry to hear of your recent situation. You may want to consider a call to the agents Broker to let them know of your experience. Selling your home is one of the biggest financial decisions you make and you want the right person for the job.
I agree with a majority of what Keith has said below and would like to expand as follows:
Referrals from family members and friends is a great place to start, but you should definitely interview several agents because your needs and personality must "click" with the agent you are hiring to sell your home.
One thing that I am happy to do is to provide a list of past clients so that you may contact them and ask them about their experience working with me.
The Realtor should come prepared to advise you how to best prepare your home for the market so that you can get the highest price possible, in the shortest amount of time, and with the least amount of inconvenience to you.
I make sure my clients know that we are working together for a common goal and that selling your home is my top priority.
And lastly - go with your "gut". You will know when you find the right Realtor for the job. Selling your home can be a positive and yes, even fun experience!

I'd love help you in any way. Please don't hesitate to call with any questions.

Lori Godwin, Realtor
Creative Property Services
707-540-9818

Lucy
I am very sorry to hear of your situation.
My suggestion in interviewing Realtors would be the following:
Ask friends, people that you see at work, church, or other social places.
Interview three Realtors so you see that we are different. We are not all the same.

Ask them a couple of important questions, ask them all the same questions so you can compare the answers:
1. Are you a full time agent? Only 35% of Realtors are full time.
2. Are you a member of the National Association of Realtors? They should be. We adhere to a code or ethics. If you can prove your charges as noted in your post, you should complain to the local association of Realtors (see the link at the end of the article)
3. Observe how they interview you. A good Realtor asks questions to learn about your concerns. If they spend a lot of time talking about themselves, look out.
4. Are they professionally dressed, prepared, and read to not only list your home, but sell it?
5. Ask them how they plan to sell your home for top dollar, within your timeframe and up to your expectations. They should have a written marketing plan that you think makes sense.
6. What happens if things do not go well? How do they communicate? Daily, weekly, email, phone?
CAn you fire them if they don't do the job/

If you still need help call me and I will help you find someone. 1-888-284-2056