Hiring a realtor is a serious business. Buying or selling a home is the most important financial transaction in your lifetime, so you want to make sure that whoever you select to guide you in this journey is up to the task. It is critical to ask the hard questions upfront and have expectations clarified early to ensure they will be met, leading to a successful transaction. Make sure your realtor is here to save the client (YOU), not the deal!
Here’s what you should focus on to make a sound decision:
What is the cost? If you’re a buyer, the commission is taken out of what the seller receives in the transaction. Typically this is 5% of the final price, equally shared between the buyer’s agent and the seller’s agent. So the buyer doesn’t “pay“ anything directly. It’s all included in the purchase price. Some services will charge less, but like always in life, “you get what you pay for”. Those services hire salaried agents. These have no incentive to be available on a Saturday night to answer that burning question you have about a home you want to submit an offer on, even less so to draft that offer in an hour if you made that decision close to the cutoff deadline. So on to the next question:
What am I getting for what I’m paying? As a buyer, you want to make sure that your agent will guide you through the maze of decisions to be taken and not just show you houses. As a seller, you want to make sure that your agent will market the home as effectively as possible: he should be able to provide you with staging services, photography, video, as well as references to contractors so the home hits the market in the best possible conditions.
What am I obligated to by signing a contract? The agent should clearly explain that the contract engages them to put your interest ahead of theirs. The only obligation that falls on the client is the payment of the commission out of the transaction proceeds. So essentially, that contract is a guarantee for you and a set of obligations for the agent.
How in practice will you be working together? Real estate transactions are not a 9 to 5 kind of job. Questions arise anytime and depending upon market conditions, decisions have to be made very quickly. It is a far most important is that your agent be ready to react on the spot and to share their expertise quickly and effectively. Emails, phone calls, texts are the preferred communication. Ensure that this is clearly defined at the outset.
How many clients are they representing right now? You want to make sure that your agent will have enough time to represent you effectively. If the agent is currently representing six or seven other clients, days don’t have enough hours for them to devote the time you need to ensure effective work.
Call me now to ensure these rules are observed and you get the treatment you deserve!