The Benefits Of Hiring A Buyer's Agent

The Benefits Of Hiring A Buyer's Agent

I'm sure you have had friends and family say you do not have to use a real estate agent to buy a home. True, you do not have to. But it's never a good idea to be without representation.

The listing agent represents the seller. They have a Exclusive Listing Agreement. That agent owes Fiduciary duties to that homeowner, not the buyers. If you, the buyer, purchase a home through the listing agent, you will not have representation. You will get fair and honest treatment. When it comes to negotiating the price of the home, it is the listing agent's job to get the highest price possible for their seller. There is no one negotiating on your behalf. You are on your own.

When you hire a real estate agent to represent you, you sign an Exclusive Buyer's Agreement. This means the real estate agent you hire, works for you. You hire them exclusively. They now owe you Fiduciary duties along with fair and honest treatment to the sellers. This also means that you work with that real estate agent and only them. All agents have access to the same homes that are listed on MLSLI. There is not an agent that can pull a magical home out of their hat. There are homes that are Exclusive in just one Brokerage but that is usually for higher priced homes. It's very rare that a $300k home will be listed with just one Brokerage and not in the MLSLI. When it comes to commission, the seller pays it. It is stated in the listing agreement what the seller is going to pay the Buyer's Agent. When you sit down with me, I will fully explain the Exclusive Buyer's Agreement before you sign it.

As a real estate agent, I search for homes on the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island (MLSLI) so my buyers do not have to do it.Depending upon your needs, this could take a few hours alone in one sitting. This saves you a lot of time from doing it yourself. Then I forward those homes to you via email to make sure you want to see them.

Then it's time to schedule those showings by calling each Brokerage one by one. They have to call the homeowner to find out if the day and time works for them. Sometimes that one call can take hours to find out if that appointment will work. If it works, then it's on to the next call then the next one, etc.

Now it's time to go and look at those homes. With first time home buyers, it's always a good idea to show no more than 4 or 5 homes.Anymore than that, it can get overwhelming for the buyers. The homes will start looking the same. This is where buyers get frustrated when buying a home on their own. They look at too many at one time. It's my job to make sure that you are eased into home searching and to keep the home search as stress-free as possible.

Once you find the home you want, it's time to make an offer. Before doing that, I will pull comparable homes to find out what those homes have recently sold for. This is to ensure you are not paying over market value at the very least. Do not expect to get a great deal. A nice home that hardly needs any cosmetic work will not warrant a low offer. A home like that goes for about 95% of list price. If you want a great deal, buy a foreclosure.

After your offer has been accepted, it's time to schedule a home inspection. You will do this unless you want to give me a heart attack! Home inspections are very important. It's there to detect any major defects. If a major defect is detected, it's time to renegotiate. When small cosmetic repairs are detected, that doesn't mean we renegotiate for thousands. Most times, renegotiating dollars is not an option. The sellers usually fix the small repairs for the buyers.

After the home inspection you go into contract. Your real estate attorney will sit down with you and go over the contract before you sign it.They deal with real estate transactions on a daily basis. They know the legalities. So make sure to get an attorney that only practices real estate law.

Now it's time for you to apply for your mortgage. You should already have a mortgage broker set to go. I always help my buyers when it comes to finding a mortgage broker. Always get 2 opinions because there are many mortgage programs out there. It's always best to have a pre-approval letter in place by the time you hire a real estate agent to help you find a home. It shows the sellers you are serious when you are making an offer.

In New York State it usually takes about 60 days to go to closing. Sometimes 90 days. Either way, there will be a "lull" from the time you sign the contract until a few days before closing. The time in between you will be communicating with your bank because they will need more documentation for your mortgage. I also stay in contact with my buyers at least once a week to see if they need anything or just to lend an ear.

Usually a few days before closing, your real estate attorney will call to let you know what checks you need to write. They will also let you know what checks have to be bank checks and what checks can be personal checks. Either way, get right on it.

Closing day can be exciting and stressful at the same time. You will feel that you are signing your life away. That is because there are a lot of documents you have to sign. Your real estate attorney will explain what each document is before you sign it. And of course, I will be there for moral support!

NYS Licensed Real Estate Agent

When You Want Your Home SOLD....Call Jackie!

Cell: (631) 703-0201
Office: (631) 226-5995 Ext. 242
Email: JackieC@century21aa.com
Website: www.longislandrealestatelady.com
Blog: http://jackieconnellyfornuff.com
Skype ID: LIRealEstateLady

                      

 

 

 

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