What do you know about buyer agency? Should a seller care if the buyer has a buyer’s agent or not? I contend that a buyer with a buyer’s agent is better than a non-represented buyer. A transaction broker relationship is better than an unrepresented buyer. Unless that unrepresented buyer has extensive experience buying and selling homes and is familiar with the customs and laws associated with buying and selling homes in your market area then it is better that there is a buyer’s agent involved or a transaction broker.
A recent experience with some first time home buyers at an open house really opened my eyes to the amount of misinformation that is out there. These buyers attended my open house and emailed me the next day with an offer and asked me to put their offer on the proper forms. They informed me that they were coming in without a buyer’s agent and informed me that because they were unrepresented that they would be saving the seller the buyer’s agents commission.
I told them that I would write up their offer, but I also wanted to clarify how the commission works in our area. The listing agent and seller negotiate a commission. If there is a buyer’s agent involved who is going to do half of the work, the listing broker agrees to split the commission with the broker whose agent is doing the buyer’s half of the work. If the listing agent is doing all the work, then the listing brokerage keeps all the commission. There is not less work because the buyer hasn’t hired a buyer’s agent.
With all that clarified, they asked me why anyone would enter into a real estate contract without their own agent. My reply was simply, “I don’t know!”
Why should a seller care if a buyer has a buyer’s agent or not? An unrepresented buyer who is not familiar with the process or the paperwork can cause a lot of glitches. Think about a teenager learning to drive a stick shift without an instructor. There is a lot of information on the internet telling someone how to purchase a house. There are a lot of cable television shows taking a buyer through the process. My questions to you:are any of those shows filmed in your market area? Is any of the information that the buyer read from your market area? From Kansas City to Lawrence to Topeka, the customs and forms are different. Do you suppose the customs are different from Kansas to California or Kansas to New York or Florida? How about the forms? How about the laws?
Having an agent on both sides of the transaction, even if it isn’t to give “advice” but to inform and guide is better than not having that instructor or guide. If you are interested in learning more about the home buying or selling process, are thinking about selling or purchasing a home, or maybe thinking that you would like to get your real estate license, give me a call or drop me an email. I would love to sit down and talk with you.
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