Yesterday I read a post from about whether agents can sell anywhere in their state and whether they should or not by Charles McDonald. That post lead me to thinking a bit about this topic. SO...
Historically agents stayed in their areas. All agents worked as sub-agents of the seller whether or not you had the buyer and if a buyer wanted to look in another area the agents would refer them and receive a 25-30% referral fee. Seniors agents had referral networks throughout Westchester County and knew that if they referred out they would receive the referrals coming in. An income stream. An income stream to be protected at all costs. New agents were "helped" and referred their buyers to agents who would then refer back to the senior agents. The income stream was protected. The newer agents really didn't understand what the game was.
In the past few years the internet has emerged as the main resource of information for buyers. Previewing properties now is not controlled by the real estate agent. The buyer's find the properties they want to see themselves. Buyer brokerage has also emerged as a shift from the status quo. Buyers can now hire a buyer's broker to represent them. Sub-agency while not entirely a thing of the past is more and more vanishing.
More and more I see agents from other areas travelling all over Westchester County. To be an expert in an area means what? Learning about the transporation, schools, train parking, zoning, taxes, etc. All of which is on the internet, a visit to the Village Hall or Town is a way to learn quite a bit about any property. As buyer's agents verification of all information is necessary whether you are in a familar area or not....It is necessary to do your homework. Since I have moved to a new area I have had to learn everything about a lot of communities and I know how, what and where to learn.
The Real Estate community is very territorial. Agents in the business for many years are trying very hard to hold on to how things have always been. They don't want anyone infringing on their turf and are often not very nice. One agent even insinuated to me that because I didn't know who owned a particular beauty parlor before the current owner that I would not be able to sell in that area. Is that something that a buyer moving into a community would want to know? Don't think so.
So, which is worse. An experienced agent learning a new area, studying and verifying informayion and knowing which questions to ask and who to ask or a new and inexperienced agent staying in their area but not having any experience about how to negotiate a contract or how to analyize and troubleshoot engineering issues.
You can't stop progress. Agents throughout Westchester County are working all over the county. They are working as buyer's agents and going with their buyers and selling in various communities, more and more. The times they are a changin.......
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