How to Find a Trusted Real Estate Agent in Another State (Without Picking a Stranger Off Zillow)

Here's a question I get more often than people might expect: "I need to buy a house in [city I've never lived in]. How do I find a good agent there?"

The short answer is that the best agents in any market rarely need to advertise to strangers. They stay busy through referrals — from other agents, past clients, and trusted connections. So if you're trying to find a good real estate agent in another state, the most reliable path isn't a directory search. It's finding someone who already knows agents in that market and can make a personal introduction.

That's not a sales pitch. It's just how the best agent relationships actually start.

Why Cold Searches Rarely Get You the Best Agent

This isn't a knock on Zillow, Realtor.com, or any other platform. Those sites serve a real purpose. But the agents who show up prominently in those searches are often there because they paid to be. Premier placement is a purchased product, not a merit badge.

The agents who do the best work in any given market — the ones who know every neighborhood nuance, who have the relationships with listing agents, who will tell you the truth when a house isn't worth the asking price — those agents often have full pipelines and don't need the ad spend. They stay busy because past clients send their friends, family members, and colleagues to them.

When you pick a name off a directory in a city you don't know, you're essentially interviewing candidates with no reference check and no context. You might get lucky. But you're operating blind.

What Referral Networks Actually Are

Real estate has a built-in referral infrastructure that most consumers never see. Licensed agents can refer clients to agents in other markets and receive a referral fee when the transaction closes. This creates a strong incentive for agents to maintain relationships with quality agents in other cities.

The key word is quality. When I refer someone I care about to an agent in another market, my reputation is on the line. I'm not going to send a past client or a friend to someone I don't know and trust. That relationship accountability is exactly what protects you as the buyer or seller on the receiving end of a referral. For more on how I vet the agents I work with and what makes someone trustworthy, see Who Is the Best Real Estate Agent in Lancaster, NY?

This is different from relocation departments at large national brokerages, which sometimes operate more like a clearinghouse — routing you to whoever is next in the queue in that zip code. Those referrals can be fine. But the personal accountability isn't the same.

What the Vetting Process Looks Like Behind the Scenes

When I connect someone with an agent in another state, it's not a quick Google and a text message. There's a process — and understanding it helps you know what you're actually getting.

Where My Referral Network Actually Comes From

Most of the agents I refer to are people I know personally through a coaching program I'm part of — a mastermind led by a California-based coach, with agents in every state. The structure of that program matters here.

We're not just in the same Facebook group. Members participate in daily small-group accountability calls, two weekly coaching calls with the full network, and twice-yearly in-person meetings in California. Over time, that kind of consistent contact means I actually know these people — how they think, how they handle difficult situations, what their process looks like, and whether they follow through.

The agents in this network have all invested in the same framework: systems-driven, process-oriented, with a bias toward honest advice over closing volume. That's not a pitch — it's what drew me to the program in the first place and what made me confident in the referrals I'm able to make through it.

If a strong match exists within that network for your situation, that's where I start. Each member maintains a profile that outlines their service area, their business model, and the types of transactions they do best. That specificity matters when I'm matching you to someone.

What the Match Actually Looks Like

• Personal familiarity, not just reputation — I'm not reading reviews and making a judgment. I know these agents from consistent contact over time, including how they handle hard conversations and complicated deals.
• Matched to your specific situation — A relocation buyer who needs to move fast has different needs than someone purchasing a second home without a deadline. I'm matching on fit, not just geography.
• Shared standards — The agents I refer through this network approach their work the same way I try to approach mine: structured, transparent, not pressure-driven. If that's not a match for how you want to work, I'll tell you.
• Communication style check — This sounds minor but it isn't. If you prefer someone who responds quickly and walks you through everything in detail, I'm not connecting you with an agent who's more hands-off.

The goal is a referral you'll thank me for — not one that makes things awkward at Christmas.

What to Expect in the First Call With the Referred Agent

When a referred agent reaches out, treat that first conversation as an interview. A good referred agent expects this. They're being held accountable to the person who sent you, which means they'll typically be more attentive from the start than a cold connection would be.

In that first call, you should be able to get clear answers on:

• How many buyers or sellers they've worked with in the specific neighborhoods or price range you're targeting
• What the current market looks like in plain terms — not just "competitive" but what you should actually expect
• How they communicate and how often
• What their honest take is on your timeline and budget

If they can't give you direct, specific answers to these questions in a first conversation, that's worth noting.

Red Flags to Watch For — Even With a Referred Agent

A referral reduces your risk. It doesn't eliminate it. Here are signs worth paying attention to regardless of how you found the agent.

• Vague answers about the local market. A genuinely knowledgeable agent can tell you median prices, typical days on market, and what inventory looks like right now without looking anything up. If they're hedging on every question, that's a concern.
• Pressure to move faster than you're comfortable with. Good agents create urgency only when it's genuinely warranted by market conditions. Manufactured urgency is a technique, not a service.
• Dismissing your concerns about a property. If you raise a question and the agent talks you out of it without actually answering it, pay attention to that pattern.
• No clear communication plan. You should know from the beginning how often you'll hear from them and through what channel.
• They're much harder to reach after you sign the buyer agreement. This shouldn't happen with a referred agent, but it's worth naming.

None of these are unique to out-of-state situations. They apply everywhere. But when you're in an unfamiliar market and can't lean on your own local knowledge to calibrate, these things matter more.

How to Ask Your WNY Agent to Connect You

If you're in my network — a past client, someone in my community, a friend of a friend — and you're buying or selling somewhere outside Western New York, just ask. That's genuinely it.

The easiest way to start is through the strategy intake at merrittkreutzer.com/startwithstrategy. There's a section specifically for people relocating or purchasing in another market. When I review your intake, if you're buying or selling outside Western New York, I look for a vetted match from my network and reach out to connect you — with context on who you are and what you're trying to do, not just a forwarded name and number.

If you'd rather reach out directly, here's what helps me make a strong match:

• Where you're going (city, state, and ideally what part of town if you know)
• What you're doing (buying, selling, or both)
• Your rough timeline
• What matters most to you in an agent — communication style, experience with a specific type of property, familiarity with relocation moves, etc.

I'll either make a direct connection to someone I know personally, or be honest with you if I don't have a strong match and help you think through how to find one on your own. Either way, you leave the conversation with a clearer sense of what to do next.

I don't need to be your agent to be useful to you. That's part of what being a strategy-first advisor actually means in practice.

The Difference Between a Referral Relationship and a Transactional One

The best referral outcomes happen when three people are all working in good faith: the person who made the connection, the agent in the new market, and you.

From my side, that means I stay available to you throughout the process — not just to connect you and disappear. If something isn't going well with the referred agent, or if you have questions you're not sure how to ask, I want to hear it. I can sometimes translate, sometimes advocate, and sometimes just offer a second set of eyes on a situation.

From the referred agent's side, the accountability to the person who made the introduction typically means higher engagement and more honest communication. Not always. But usually.

And from your side, it means being willing to have a real first conversation — not just treating the referred agent like a search result who happened to call you.

Real estate transactions are long and complicated regardless of where they happen. The relationship quality matters from the first call through the closing table.

Watch: Why Hire a Realtor to Sell Your Home in Western New York?

If you're planning a move to or from Western New York — or anywhere else — and want to talk through what that process looks like, you can start at merrittkreutzer.com/startwithstrategy. We'll map out what you're actually working with before you commit to anything.