Communication is key

The most important element of ensuring solid working relationship with another agent is communication. It’s not enough to always be responsive to your client — you must also be available for a prospective buyer’s or seller’s agent. “It all goes back to sharing information,” Hillebrand says. “Remember, the buyer and seller are not going to talk to each other 95 percent of the time. It’s that team approach that can make things go well.”

Fostering good communication not only means being available; it also means being proactive and smart about how you reach out. Gaining an understanding of the other agent’s routine, like how they prefer to communicate, will go a long way.

“Every mode of communication possible is now involved in the process, and everyone’s different,” says J Maggio, broker with CONLON/Christie’s International Realty. “Some people don’t get on the phone; some people are hands off, some are hands on. A lot of it is just mirroring and matching the style of the other person.”

Being open and honest will help your communication with the other agent, which will help in the current transaction and in the future as well. But it could also help the buyer and seller make a connection, says Julie Sutton, broker with Coldwell Banker. For example, instead of just submitting a counteroffer, she recommends that agents also include a reason for the counteroffer. Such an effort can show a buyer’s or seller’s intentions, which helps in buying or selling a house, a process that can be an emotional time for them, Sutton says.

“It’s good to have an idea of who the other side is and where they’re coming from. If someone has lived in a house for years, raised their family there, they always want to know something about the buyer,” she says. “Counters always seem to go over better when they understand the reasons why. It can show that they’re nice and reasonable people.”

While it might be too easy to miss a phone call or forget to return an email, communication issues can be mitigated by simply showing up to every aspect of the transaction.