Toronto Real Estate Buyer Questionnaire
Tags: Buyer Representation, Toronto Real Estate
Contributor: Yan Zhou from GTAHome.com Real Estate Team
Estimate reading time: 2 minutes
When I meet with a home buyer in Toronto, this is the questionnaire list I always use. I find it very effective when I communicate with my buyer client. It keeps the conversation going and allows me fully understand the needs of my clients. As one of my real estate mentors always says, the quality of the answer depends on the quality of the question.
- How long have you been looking?
- Are you working with another realtor? Some buyers have wrong impression of working with a realtor. In order to form a client or customer relationship with a realtor, you will need to sign the “Working with a realtor” form 810 and “Buyer Representation Agreement” form 300 which are shown below.
3. How many members are in your family? Since Toronto has lots of new immigrants, so I will need to ask the buyer about family members in their home country. Sometimes their parents may want to come to visit.
4. Do you own now or you are renting?
5. Do you need to sell first or finish the lease? If yes, can you show me the lease agreement? also do you really need to sell first or you can buy first and sell later? If the Toronto real estate market repeats its history in 2020-2021, you may better off buying first and sell later.
6. Did you see any homes you really like? By asking this question, I can have a feel of what the buyer is looking for.
7. How soon do you need to move? a dream home you really like may have longer closing than what you expect.
8. If I can find the right property, will you be able to make a decision now? This is a trial close to find out if the buyer is fully prepare and serious to buy real estate now.
9. What is the price range of the property you are looking for? Nowadays listing agents like to price their asking price low to attract showings, so it is essential to know what properties that have in mind and what is buyer’s purchase power.
10. Do you have a mortgage pre-approval? if yes, is it a pre-approval letter from a mortgage broker or directly from a bank. I would trust a pre-approval letter from a bank staff more. also try to obtain a mortgage commitment letter if possible.
11. How much cash do you have? Again, Canada is an immigration country and some buyers have funds in their home countries. sometimes it is difficulty to transfer large amount of funds between countries. so I always ask how much fund does the buyer have in a Canadian bank account. Ideally the funds should be in Canada for more than 90 days.
12. Some buyers are sensitive to their monthly cashflow or monthly payment so it is better to find out first. I have attached a mortgage calculator in each of the properties in GTAHome.com
13. How many bedrooms do you need? Do you need a nanny room or office on the main floor? How much space do you need?
14. Is there a specific location you are looking for in the city? Where do you and your spouse work? How do you normally commute to work?
15. What home style are you looking for?
16. Who are the decision makers? who will influence you when making decisions.
17. Do you prefer to communicate in person? or by email? or by phone?
18. What are your favourite websites or apps when you view properties?
If you have any question about this buyer questionnaire list, please feel free to contact me.
