Protect the Seller gives home sellers free, honest education, and a simple way to tell a great agent from one who is just winging it, before you sign anything.
Created by Kati Spaniak, founder of Truth in Real Estate®
Most people sell only a few homes in their whole life. They cannot tell a great agent from one who is winging it, and the industry likes it that way. We think you deserve straight answers, in writing, before you sign. That is the whole idea.
A written, human-reviewed promise to answer every hard question honestly. It is about the kind of person your agent is, not how many homes they have sold.
No fees for agents, ever. Every other credential in real estate charges the agent to get in. This one never will.
A real person reviews every agent before the badge is theirs to carry. If we say "verified," we actually checked.
There is no sales quota to earn it. A brand-new agent and a 500-home veteran carry the same badge, because it is a promise, not a scoreboard.
Reaffirmed in writing every year. If an agent will not give straight answers, it can be reported and taken away.
Any agent can answer these. A Protect the Seller Verified agent has already put their answers in writing, had them reviewed, and renews the promise every year. Print this list, and before question one, ask: "Are you Protect the Seller Verified?"
How much business do you actually do, this past year and over your career? Is real estate your full-time work?
When are you available, how quickly will you respond, and what is your plan for me when you are out of town?
What is your cancellation policy? Can I leave the listing if this is not working?
How does the commission work: what do you charge, who pays the buyer's agent, and what if the buyer comes unrepresented?
How do you handle dual agency, when the seller and the buyer both use the same agent?
What do you honestly think my home is worth, the real number and not the flattering one? Where are the comparables?
What exactly do you do for your fee?
Who do you recommend for lenders, inspectors and contractors, and do you get anything for the referral?
What happens after I sign: how often will I hear from you, and how will I know what is going on?
The questions are deliberately open. A great agent might work part-time, charge differently, or run a listing their own way. What the badge guarantees is that you get the truth about all of it, up front, and get to decide for yourself. The conversation is the protection.
Download the list of questions to see if your agent is Protect the Seller Verified.
If you already put the seller first, this is your credential. Broker-agnostic, no fees, no catch.
We do not tell agents how to run their business. We ask them to be this kind of person.
At all times, including "I don't know, let me find out."
Complete and real, in everything.
Your outcome ahead of their paycheck, willing to say the hard thing with care.
Clear about availability, never leaves you in the dark.
No conflict of interest they would not volunteer.
The expert in the room, so you never feel like the one absorbing the risk.
Get the questions. Ask them out loud. And if your agent will not answer honestly, we will find you one who will.
Tell us where to send them and the download unlocks right here.
Your list of nine questions is ready. Print it and bring it to your first meeting.
Download the questions