A Real Estate Agent is a licensed individual who works with Buyers and Sellers when dealing in real estate and represents them. Buyer/Seller may be required to sign a representation agreement to document their relationship where the Real Estate Agent represents them.
It doesn’t cost any money
You should hire a real estate agent when looking to buy your first home because it’s free and does not cost you anything. When you are working with your agent and close the deal on your new home, you do not owe any commission to them for representing you during the whole process.
The Listing brokerage working with the seller will share the commission split with your agent, and you owe them nothing. The only situation where you might be required to pay your agent out of pocket is when you buy the home, which the homeowner directly lists. In real estate terms, it is called for sale by the owner(FSBO) owner. The owner’s property listed for sale usually means the owner is not interested in paying any commission to anyone and not even to a person who brings in the buyer.
Experience and Knowledge
A licensed Real Estate Agent deals in real estate transactions more frequently than anyone else. An expert real estate agent will stay abreast of the newest market trends and information to help you find a better home even in the low inventory market. Furthermore, they will be up to date on current industry factors such as laws and regulations based on economics, mortgage rates and information, and everything that can impact the buying or selling of any real estate property. Moreover, buying and selling a home is their full-time profession. And dealing with Real estate transactions more often gives them experience and expertise to aid you to find the best deal. And being licensed, they will have all the tools and technologies at their disposal to conduct a better market analysis and in-depth research.
Co-ordination
When you work with a real estate professional to help you find your dream home, you will have specific requirements and expectations. When you share these requirements with your agent, they will help you find the best home fitting your requirements. And when the need arises, and they understand your need correctly, they can also share some additional options that might benefit you. If you can hire someone who understands and values their client, your home buying process will be a breeze, but its reverse is also true. A good agent will respect your time and will help coordinate home showings and meetings around your schedule. You do not have to worry about anything except visiting homes and deciding what you like the best.
Transaction Guide
An expert real estate agent will have the skills to study the local real estate trends and calculate the absolute value of any home in that market. When it comes to making an offer on the listing, including writing in the offer price and buyer’s conditions in the agreement, this research and guidance are valuable. Thus, saving the buyer from falling prey to the seller’s overvalued listing price or overpaying on a listed home to win some bidding war. Moreover, during the negotiation process, a diligent real estate agent will guide and help reach a decision and set the terms, keeping the buyer client’s best interest in mind. This agent won’t be too conservative or vague during negotiations with the seller or seller’s agent. They will evaluate each aspect precisely and help their buyer client decide what to include or exclude in the agreement of purchase or sale to secure the best deal in time.
Buyer’s Trusted Advisor
Buyer’s Agent with whom the buyer will sign a Buyer’s Representation Agreement will have a fiduciary duty to promote and protect the buyer’s best interest. Additionally, this also binds real estate agents to have complete transparency and share all the information with their clients without self-benefiting intentions. Hence, a real estate agent will put their client’s interest first. A diligent real estate agent will show their buyer all the properties that meet their criteria as bound by law. The buyer’s agent will disclose all the facts related to listing that can impact the buyer’s decision to buy a particular home, such as neighbourhood score, schools nearby, local community centers, playgrounds, worship places, and many more such amenities. Suppose the buyer requires some information, then the agent is required under contract to research and find the accurate information to satisfy the buyer’s query. Any information, personal or financial, or other non-transactional details known to the agent about the buyer is entirely confidential.
Protects Buyer’s From any Anomalies
No matter if you are a first-time home buyer or the fifth-time home buyer, but it is unlikely that you come across and visit as many houses as the real estate agent does daily. Based on this experience, a successful real estate agent will have an expert eye when seeing homes and identifying any anomalies in the property. Many minor or significant problems can exist within a home that is not recognizable with the naked eye or someone inexperienced. But a successful buyer’s agent will know where to look for and what could be a common area of concern that can impact the buyer’s decision. For example, if a client is buying a home with a built-in swimming pool during the winter, a knowledgeable real estate agent would advise them on adding the condition to the agreement for holding the seller payable for any issues found once the snow melts.
Personal Network
Real estate agents work 24/7 in this field, and they have a whole network of other agents that they can defer. Many times, some homes never make it to MLS and just get sold off the market. The seller agent could connect directly with the real estate agent with a potential buyer client from within their network and close the deal in these situations. If a buyer is working with such an agent, they might find their dream home off the market.
In addition to that, a real estate agent also has a trusted network of third-party individuals that might be required to close a better deal successfully. These third-party contact networks usually involve a lawyer, plumber, electrical, home inspector, certified technicians, and more like these. Receiving a trusted reference is still better than doing your research yourself, as this process can be pretty taxing.
Keeps you Updated
Once a buyer puts an offer on their dream home, the process does not end there. There are many important dates mentioned while writing the contract. Keeping in accordance with them and on time is highly important, and it is hard to do it all by oneself. Still, an excellent real estate agent makes sure everything is happening according to the schedule and keeps checking on progress. Most importantly, a reliable real estate agent will keep their buyer client in the loop and share all the updates with them. They make sure every party directly or indirectly involved in the transaction adheres to these dates and ensures a timely closing.
