Most people who know a realtor will start with that personal connection when choosing an agent to sell their home. But what if you don’t know anyone in the industry? One place to start is by looking at the differences among the brokerage companies.

How do real estate brokerage companies differ? There are many firms to consider, each claiming to give you the best expertise, the fastest sale, the best marketing, etc. All of these promises and claims boil down to one thing: selling your home. Each of these firms is making promises to show they stand out from the others and are the best company for the job of making the sale.

You want to maximize your chances to sell your home as quickly as possible, at a good price, while not giving up too much of any potential equity to commissions and fees. With these goals in mind, this article considers five different factors, (brand establishment, website presentation, agent training, marketing/tools, and commission splits) and looks and multiple national brokerages to see who stands out from the crowd.