Do I need an agent when buying a home?

most people realize that they need an agent. However, most of those dont understand why we need to get paid our large commissions, you point out well what we do

Hi, Don!  I just wanted to congratulate you on 200,000 points!  (Well, you're a few points away from it, but you should get there today!)   That's pretty cool!     :)

Good Points Don.  Most people don't know half the issues that need to watch when buying a home,

Well said, Don.

It always pays to have a good Realtor looking out for your best interests.

Don, yeah!  They need an agent!  Most agents I know hire an agent when they do a real estate transaction on their own account,

Your list poses a great set of questions.  Here is the problem - you can buy or sell your home by yourself.  You may have no problems.  Over 15 years, I saw the do-it-yourselfers visit my law office on a fairly regular basis. Here are a few examples:  Loss of earnest money (untimely exercise of financing option), defects in home (water, roof, structural), unfamiliarity with neighborhood (location of highway, airport noise), building code regulations (bought intending to operate home business), legal (bought a 1/2 interest thinking it was full ownership), encroachments (costly defense of fence and roadway litigation), bankruptcy (loss of deposits due to builder bankruptcy or title company defalcation), environmental problems (mold, radon, sewer problems, overhead wires, unstable soil), defective repairs (flues, roof, HVAC), fraudulent transactions (inflating purchase price, splitting inflated price) etc. I can't say that using a Realtor would have prevented all of these issues - but it would have at least decreased the likelihood.  Each of these mistakes cost thousands of dollars to fix.  Is saving 2% or even 5% really worth risking your financial future?  Before I started our real estate brokerage, I bought 2 homes and sold 1 home,  As an attorney, I probably could have done much of the work, but I chose to use a local Realtor for each transaction.  In the long run, it saved me time and money.