Agent Interview Question and Answers - Fox & Roach Careers Where serious professionals build their business

Interview Questions Every Agent Should Ask

Who is Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Fox & Roach?

As the largest Realtor in the Tri-State area of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, we are the largest single market residential real estate brokerage in the U.S. BHHS Fox & Roach has over 5,300 sales associates in 65 offices.

In 2017, BHHS Fox & Roach was awarded #1 in units and volume production nationally. Its subsidiary, The Trident Group, is comprised of Trident Mortgage Group, Trident Insurance, and Trident Land Transfer. The leadership of BHHS Fox & Roach is located in our Devon PA headquarters.

 The Berkshire Hathaway brand, awarded “Best New Brand of 2014” provides national and international connections, recognition, and market exposure to our agents and their clients.

What is your market share and how does it help me to grow my business? What tools do you offer to help me demonstrate that market share to potential clients?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach is the market share leader in the Delaware Valley.  

Our sales associates also can demonstrate the strength of our company by creating highly customizable charts and graphs using our exclusive tool – AgentMetrics. This is a huge aid in building your name recognition with your client base.

What is your average sales price?
Why is that important to my business growth?

We have the highest average sales price in the Delaware Valley. It enables our sales associates to attract and enjoy a higher average sales price per unit of transactions they complete which translates into higher average commissions earned per transaction.

Describe the support systems in your team, sales offices, including administration, mortgage, title, and insurance services.

BHHS Fox & Roach provides multi-layered office support. Our experienced staff includes in-office administrative personnel as well as Trident Mortgage, Title, and Insurance representatives who are available to assist you and your clients with all of your business needs through our One-Stop Shopping Business Platform.

Each office also has its own Welcome Specialist and Technology Specialist available to you as a constant resource.

How many offices are in your network? What access do I have to those offices?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach has 65 offices throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. All offices provide computer resource rooms where our agents can log-on to our systems and have immediate access to all our free tools. On vacation at the Jersey Shore? No problem! Just stop into the local office to receive a fax, use the computer, or meet a client.

Unlike many competitors, Berkshire Hathaway has an open-door policy that enables an agent to service clients over a broad market by being able to use any office, making it considerably easier to convert leads into transactions.

How has your company fared during difficult markets? What differentiates you from your competitors?

Contrary to many competitors, Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach has continued to invest in the growth and development of our company even during the economic downturn by growing its number of offices, services, and market area footprint.

We continue to invest heavily in technology and support staff to provide you with every tool needed to succeed in the real estate business. Our continued commitment ensures that our agents are affiliated with an unparalleled reputation in the marketplace.

Describe your new agent training program. What training is available to me online?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach values education and offers a variety of training and mentoring programs to agents at all levels of the business, averaging 1,000 classes per year. Our new agents participate in our B.E.S.T. program which includes both live classroom instruction and web-based training over an 8 week period. Classes are held twice a week for 2 ½ hours. We’ve found this the most effective way to deliver instruction and enable the new agent to begin using these new systems and materials to generate business immediately.

Our exclusive Keys to Mastery Series of eight, 2 ½ hour classes are open to all our agents regardless of experience level and provides hands-on, with your laptop, learning. A complete list of ALL training is posted on our exclusive Agent Resource Center (ARC) with immediate access to registrations and class descriptions. You may attend training classes at any sales office location any time which makes attendance far easier than a restricted schedule.

New agents are also encouraged to attend our extensive training provided to experienced agents. We also encourage new agents to attend our free company-wide training and networking events provided by national name speakers throughout the year.

Who will be my coach? Will I have a mentor? Explain your coaching and mentoring program.

All Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach managers offer on-going, personalized coaching programs, at no charge to you, on a schedule that meets your needs. Coaching provides you with a strategic action plan, accountability, and an assigned experienced mentor who will help you navigate transaction challenges while building a client base and income.

Are there a variety of business plans available to me? What assistance do you provide in creating a plan? May I see copies of your business plans?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach agents can choose from a variety of business planning formats. Annual business planning workshops are conducted in each office to assist the agents in preparing an effective plan. Plans can be reviewed on a one-on-one basis with the manager and are referred to throughout the year to keep you on track to reach your goals.

What marketing tools are provided to me and are there a cost? Do you offer a platform for drip-marketing campaigns?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach offers you a wide variety of tools, all of which are easily accessed through our custom, nationally recognized intranet portal, Agent Resource Center (ARC). Our sales associates are offered countless types of software and marketing systems, including custom individual agent websites and custom marketing materials, all at no charge. Our Contact Management System, part of the ARC umbrella, makes using our already created automatic drip marketing campaigns easy to use no matter what the technology comfort level of the individual agent.

BHHS Fox & Roach also provides technical support at the office level with a Technology Specialist offering weekly training and one on one sessions with our agents. This enables you to learn quickly and become very comfortable with our marketing systems Our office Technology Specialists help you to make the best use of our programs while greatly reducing the frustration we can feel when trying to set up new marketing campaigns. This level of one on one support is unheard of in the industry.

Does the sales office manager have outside responsibilities that may distract from their time devoted to managing and developing their agents? If so, how much time is devoted weekly to these outside activities?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach sales managers’ number one responsibility is to provide full-time support and assistance to their agents’ business growth. Their focus is on coaching, training, development, and daily transactional and management needs of the agents and the office. Their job is to help you succeed. Managers are allowed to generate their own sales on a very limited basis.

Describe your social media initiatives - Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, and Blogging.

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach offers extensive training, including programs from recognized national trainers, on all forms of social media and blogging.

We employ full-time technology trainers and host a company intranet (ARC) where you can find webinars on a variety of social media topics. Our Information Technology and Marketing Departments are committed to bringing you the best tools and training in the market. We even have a Facebook Business Page dedicated to providing you with helpful information you can use in your business.

How do your marketing programs promote my clients' properties to potential buyers? Do your programs help me to generate leads?

As the clear leader in the marketplace, Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach continues to provide state of the art marketing exposure for your clients’ properties, including our comprehensive and exclusive Digital Home Marketing System (see DHMS brochure).

The DHMS has a number of components that enable you to easily drive buyers to your listings. Unlike many of our competitors, leads that are generated from inquiries on your listings are directed to you and are without fees or reduction in your commission level.

As a new agent, who will assist me in creating my personal brand and marketing campaign?

Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach is the only broker that provides all agents a unique opportunity to meet with a professional marketing consultant from our in-house Marketing Department. They can assist you in creating your personal brand and marketing campaign. Best of all this consultation, including writing and graphic art services, is free!

We also provide a large range of branding and self-promotion opportunities including your free access to our Digital Home Marketing System (DHMS) with your photo, contact information, and links to your properties. The DHMS enables you to brand yourself on the internet easily and at little or no expense. It helps you create an image on hundreds of web sites regardless of your skill level with today’s technology.

New and experienced agents learn very quickly the value of combining their efforts with the power of the Berkshire Hathaway brand to maximize their reputation and generate referrals, always the #1 source of quality leads and steady income.