There are tons of Realtors out there - some great, some middling and some who are worse than none at all. How to choose?

Buyers, stayed tuned for next week's column. Here's what the Consumer Federation of America thinks sellers should ask as they interview candidates:

Experience: How many homes have the Realtors or other real estate agents sold in the past year? Ever? Ask for the names of a few past customers, said Stephen Brobeck, executive director of the consumer federation. "There's no perfect indicator of quality here, but experience and the experience their customers have had are important," he said.

Representation: Agents cannot represent both the buyer and the seller in the same transaction in Maryland, but their firms can, according to the Maryland Real Estate Commission. Ask how their firms would handle such a situation to ensure that your best interests aren't neglected, Brobeck says.

Commission: It's negotiable. But Brobeck thinks you should pay close attention to the commission split - that is, how much will go to the buyer's agent. You might not want your house listed with less than the going rate, giving buyer's agents a reason to avoid showing it to their clients.

John F. Sullivan, an exclusive buyer agent with Buyer's Edge in Bethesda, looked up a bunch of listings for me to see the commission splits. He says there was an almost equal number of 2 1/2 percents and 3 percents.

If 3 percent is typical, you can probably get the total commission down to 5 percent, Brobeck said. He suggests 3 percent for the buyer's agent, 2 percent for yours.

Marketing plan: What would the agents do to sell your house? Ask for help preparing it to look salable and pricing it so that it will attract interest, Brobeck says.

Find Jamie's blog at baltimoresun.com/realestatewonk