How to Choose an Estate Agent in Georgia: Nine Questions Before You Sign

There is no estate agency licence in Georgia. No exam, no registry, no professional body that can strike anyone off. Most agents are competent and straight; the ones who are not look exactly the same on a website. Since the market will not filter for you, the questions you ask before signing are the filter.

Why does this matter more here?

Because you are probably buying in a language you do not read, in a market you cannot check by walking around, from a person you found online. Three of the four safeguards a domestic buyer relies on are missing. What remains is the quality of the person in front of you, and one conversation will tell you most of what you need.

The nine questions

The nine questions

Ask	What a good answer sounds like
Who pays you, and how much?	A number and a side. "The seller, 3%" is fine. "Don't worry about it" is not.
Are you acting for me or the seller?	A clear answer either way. Both is not an answer.
Is this your listing or someone else's?	Honest either way; it tells you whose interest is in the room.
Who does the title check, and are they independent of you?	An independent lawyer, named. Not "our lawyer handles everything".
What is the last problem you found on a title?	A real story. Anyone who has done this has one.
What would this flat actually rent for?	A range with a reason. A single confident number is a warning.
Can I speak to a foreign buyer you worked with?	Yes, with a name. Reluctance here is the loudest signal on this list.
What happens if I want to walk away?	A clear answer about the deposit, in writing.
Will you put the fee and the scope in writing?	Yes, before anything else happens.

Kavlian's network exists to shorten this list. Every agency in it was reviewed before being admitted, and their listings are checked before they go on the site.

What should worry you?

• Pressure on time. "Three other buyers are looking at it today" is sometimes true and always worth ignoring.
• One lawyer for everyone. The person checking the title should not be paid by the person selling the property.
• A price that only exists verbally. If it is not written down, it is not a price.
• Refusing to name a past client. A working agency has happy buyers and can find one.
• A power of attorney offered too early. That document comes after you have chosen a lawyer, not before.

Does a bigger agency mean a safer one?

Not by itself. Size buys you continuity — someone answers when your contact is on holiday — and usually a written process. It does not buy you attention, and a large agency's junior can know less about a specific block than a two-person office that has worked that street for ten years. Ask who will actually handle your purchase, not who owns the company.

How do you check what you are told?

Three checks cost nothing:

1. The extract. Ask to see the Public Registry extract for the property. It names the owner. If the seller is not on it, ask why before anything else.
2. The same flat elsewhere. Search the address on other portals. Two very different prices for one flat is a conversation worth having.
3. The company. Georgian companies are on the public business registry. A five-year-old company with a real address is a different proposition from one registered last month.

Quick answers

Do estate agents need a licence in Georgia? No. There is no licensing regime, which is why buyer checks matter more here.

Who pays the commission? Usually the seller, commonly 2–4%, but it is negotiable and should be written down.

Should I use the seller's lawyer? No. Instruct your own for the title check.

What is the single best question? "Can I speak to a foreign buyer you worked with?" — the answer, and the speed of it, tells you most.

A shorter route

Kavlian reviews every agency before it joins the network, publishes what languages they work in and what they handle, and checks their listings before they appear. It costs a buyer nothing.

See the agencies in the network →