By Ron Melvin | Concord & Central Contra Costa Home-Selling Expert

Helping Concord, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill and Martinez homeowners sell strategically, especially when the move involves downsizing, an estate, probate, divorce or another major life transition.

Pillar Blog: How to Find the Best Concord Realtor: The Complete 2026 Guide to Choosing an Agent Who Actually Gets You Results

You’ve narrowed it down to two or three names. Maybe a neighbor passed one along. Maybe you found one through Google reviews, or one left a postcard on your porch last spring. Now comes the part most homeowners quietly dread: sitting down with a Concord realtor and figuring out what to actually say.

Most people wing it. They ask how long the agent has been licensed, nod through a stack of printed comps, and sign whatever gets slid across the kitchen table. Then, three weeks into escrow, they find out what they should have asked.

It’s an uncomfortable spot to be in. You’re about to hand someone the biggest financial decision of your year, and you’re not sure how to tell a strong agent from a smooth one. You shouldn’t need a real estate license to interview a real estate agent. You just need a script.

I’m Ron Melvin, and I’ve been on the agent side of a lot of these conversations. The homeowners who get the best results ask a handful of pointed questions, in the right order, over more than one meeting. That’s what this post gives you. It’s part of my complete guide to finding the best Concord realtor, which covers who belongs on your short list. This one covers what to say once they’re in the room.

Why One Interview Isn’t Enough

I encourage you to meet with a realtor on multiple occasions. A single sit-down shows you how an agent presents. A few conversations show you how they think, how fast they follow up, and whether their answers stay consistent once the polish wears off.

Here’s how I’d break it up:

  • Meeting 1: A short phone call
  • Meeting 2: A face-to-face walkthrough at your home
  • Meeting 3: A strategy conversation about price, prep and marketing

Meeting 1: The Phone Call

Your first meeting with a Concord real estate agent will usually be by phone. Keep your goal simple. You want the realtor to schedule a time to visit your home and give you overall feedback on the things you need to do to it. That’s it.

Here’s what to say:

“I’m thinking about selling my home in the next few months. Before I decide anything, I’d like you to come walk through the house and tell me what you’d do to get it ready. When can you come by?”

Pay attention to what happens next. A serious agent books the visit. Be cautious if someone skips the visit and quotes you a price over the phone for a house they’ve never seen.

Meeting 2: Face to Face at Your Home

This is where the real interview happens. Two questions matter more than anything else you’ll ask.

“How many transactions have you done in the last year?”

You may meet realtors who’ve been licensed for a very long time but have worked part-time or haven’t done many transactions, so they don’t have a lot of experience. Do the math. Someone licensed for 20 years who does two transactions a year has done 40 transactions over their entire career. A realtor doing 15 transactions a year passes that number in three years, with 45.

Years in the business sound impressive. Transaction count tells you who is actually working in today’s market. Ask for the number, and ask how many of those were in Concord or the surrounding cities.

“What is your plan and strategy to help me reach my goal in selling this house?”

This is probably the best strategy question you can ask. In a lot of cases, a realtor will answer by handing you comps. The problem is that comps can be up to six months old, and the market can shift hundreds of thousands of dollars in a matter of two months. You could be selling into a very different environment than the one those homes sold in.

So push past the printout. Ask what the market is doing right now, and what the agent’s strategy is to sell your home in this moment, based on what the market is doing. Those are open-ended questions on purpose. A strong agent will talk about current conditions and a specific plan. A weak one will keep pointing at the comps.

Meeting 3: The Strategy Conversation

By the third meeting you should be down to your top choice or two. Now get specific about money, exposure and negotiation. Use these lines word for word if you like.

“What improvements do I need to make to sell my home for the most I can?”

“What’s the return on investment on those repairs or improvements?”

This one gets down to how much money you’re actually going to walk away with. Sometimes major improvements will give you a big lift in the sale price, but the cost and hassle just aren’t worth it, and they reduce your return on investment. A good agent will tell you which projects pay you back and which ones to skip.

“What is your strategy to make sure the most people possible see my home?”

“What is your strategy to create maximum demand and the maximum number of offers, so buyers are competing for my home?”

“What is your strategy to reduce negotiations on things like repairs once we’re in contract?”

Repair requests after acceptance are where a lot of sellers quietly lose money. Listen for a real plan here.

If you’re buying: “What is your plan to make sure we don’t buy a lemon?”

Buyers need their own version of the strategy question. Ask how the agent will make sure you don’t end up with a home that needs a lot of work once you close escrow.

If you want a longer checklist to bring along, my list of 10 questions to ask before hiring a Concord realtor covers marketing, communication and specialization in more depth. And if an answer makes your stomach drop, compare it against the warning signs in how to spot a bad Concord realtor before you sign.

Your Interview Cheat Sheet

Save this or screenshot it before your meetings:

  1. Phone call: “When can you come walk through my home and tell me what it needs?”
  2. At your home: “How many transactions have you done in the last year?”
  3. At your home: “What is your plan and strategy to help me reach my goal?”
  4. At your home: “What is the market doing right now, and what’s your strategy for this moment?”
  5. Strategy meeting: “What improvements should I make, and what’s the return on each?”
  6. Strategy meeting: “How will you get the most people to see my home?”
  7. Strategy meeting: “How will you create maximum demand and multiple offers?”
  8. Strategy meeting: “How will you reduce repair negotiations once we’re in contract?”
  9. Buyers: “How will you make sure we don’t buy a lemon?”

What Happens When You Skip the Script

Homeowners who don’t ask these questions tend to find out the hard way. The house gets priced off stale comps and sits. A price reduction follows, then another. Money goes into remodeling projects that never come back at closing. Buyers find something during inspections and the repair negotiation eats into the equity you were counting on. On the buying side, people close on a house and discover a list of expensive problems nobody warned them about.

What It Looks Like When You Get It Right

Now picture the other version. You hire a Concord real estate broker or agent who can tell you exactly how many deals they closed last year, what the market is doing this month, and which improvements are worth your money. Your home launches with a plan to reach the most buyers and draw competing offers. Repair negotiations are handled before they turn into a fight. You close knowing you made a smart call, and you know why it worked.

That’s what the best realtor in Concord looks like for you: the one whose answers hold up across three conversations.

Watch Before Your First Meeting

If you’d rather hear this than read it, these two videos walk through the same ground:

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I ask a Concord realtor on the first phone call?

Keep the first call short. Your goal is to get the realtor to schedule a visit to your home and give you feedback on what needs to be done. Save the detailed questions for the in-person meeting.

How many transactions should a good Concord real estate agent have done?

Ask how many transactions they’ve done in the last year rather than how long they’ve been licensed. An agent licensed 20 years who does two deals a year has 40 total. An agent doing 15 a year passes that in three years.

Why aren’t comparable sales enough to price my home?

Comps can be up to six months old, and the market can shift hundreds of thousands of dollars in about two months. Your agent should explain what the market is doing right now and their strategy for selling in current conditions.

How many times should I meet a realtor before hiring them?

More than once. A phone call, an in-home walkthrough and a separate strategy meeting will show you far more than a single listing presentation.

Should I make every improvement a realtor recommends?

No. Ask for the return on investment on each one. Some improvements lift the sale price, but the cost and hassle can outweigh what you get back.



Interior of a modern home office with real estate documents and a laptop.
Real estate interview script and property photos on a desk in Walnut Creek, CA.

Put Me Through the Script

I’d rather you interview me hard than hire me easy. Ask me every question on this page. If you’re getting ready to sell in Concord, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill or Martinez, especially if you’re downsizing, settling an estate, going through probate or divorce, or facing another big life change, I’ll walk through your home and give you a straight answer about what it needs and how I’d sell it in today’s market.

Call or text me with your questions: 925-708-1178.

Still comparing agents? Start with the How to Find the Best Concord Realtor: The Complete 2026 Guide to build your short list.

See what my clients say: Google Reviews | Zillow | Yelp | Facebook

Ron Melvin, Realtor | DRE #01927543
East Bay Real Estate Team | Keller Williams
Expert Strategies to Sell Your Home for More #expertstrategiestosellyourhomeformore