Here's what you don't want to hire when you finally decide on which real estate agent you will use to sell your house. You don't want an agent who as several inches of compaints filed against him and her at the State Board of Real Estate Agents.

Before choosing an agent you should interview each candidate for your business. In the course of the interview you will ask them many of the usual quesstions. How long have they been in the business? How many homes did they sell last year? Can they give you the names of some references so you check them out? These are all important questions.

You should make an inquiry with the State Board of Real Estate Agents (each state uses a different name for its regulatory body) to determine if there have been complaints filed against the agent. If the agent has been in the business 20 years and there are only a few complaints these might come from people who tend to be chronic complainers. But you should ask your agent candidate about the complaints and ask how they were resolved.

A little precaution in choosing your agent goes a long way. Its better to find out any bad news before you're on the hook.