home buyers (or those who've recently done it)

[rh71]

How important are those real estate agents? I'm going with Century 21 at the moment and the houses we're seeing (just started past Saturday) are pretty much crap (small rooms or crap condition). I'm looking through yhd.com and what they show seems 10x better.

Would you forego the real agent and go with yhd.com for your homebuying or would you stick with the agent and give them more of a chance to show you the good stuff? I'm ready to buy now...

Thanks!

 

[jamautosound]

If your Agent is showing you crap, and you're telling him/her that you think it's crap, then get a new R.E. Agent. They help alot when it comes down to the specifics in purchasing. But it's entirely up to you as to who you choose to be that person.

Stressful process, house buying, you don't need someone who isn't in it to help you out.

 

[Cerebus451]

When you are buying, it is usually best to go with an agent, as they will usually extract their fees from the seller (typically the seller will be paying a 6% broker fee that will be split between the selling and buying agent). There is not a whole lot that an agent needs to do, but they have access to the listing service and can get you the latest and greatest listings for your area (listings on a web site will be out of date - the house you like might already be sold). If you find houses available through a web site, show them to your agent and tell them you are interested in seeing those houses. That is what I did when I was looking. Some were already sold, some were not. The agent will also know more about the neighborhoods and such. An agent will also know about the things to look out for when looking at houses. Of course, YMMV. I had an agent that said she was having as much fun looking as I was because she was getting to see a lot of houses that she normally would not get to see. If you get a stick in the mud, he/she might just try and push you into the first house you see.

 

[vi edit]

Whatever you do, DO NOT get a dual rep agent. Our agent was representing BOTH us and the builder. There was some sort of deal made with the dealer that only this agent could represent the houses and she was ONLY looking out for one person, and one person alone - herself.

It was a bad situation, and if I had more time, and had done more research, I would have never had worked with her.

It's a fairly rare situation, but they are out there. I would avoid it all costs if you could.

 

[rh71]

We're very comfortable with our agent in terms of pushy-ness. I was just wondering if their duty is to show us the stuff nobody else wants first... then over time, we build a relationship where we'll be the first ones they call when a house goes on the market.

You know what though - they use MLS (multiple listing services - any agent can show these houses) and they have their own private login for it... but I found that the list she gave me contained the same exact houses found on mlsli.com ... I've simply been saying... ok, "let's see this one" and she makes the appointments.

However, thru yhd.com (2% instead of 6%, BTW), the houses are fewer, but at the same time, they are less known... we may get a hand at it early. With a service like yhd.com, they have to have very up-to-date info... like within a day. People competing for these houses will know only through the site (these houses are not on MLS)... so I guess it'll be fair game.

It's totally our choice, but the mlsli.com houses in our price range are completely inferior to the yhd.com houses for the same price. This is the dilemma we're facing... so I wanted to know what you guys would do. Thanks for the feedback thus far.

 

[GasX]

Definitely use a buyer's agent, but feel free to get a new one if the current one is showing you crap. They get paid by the seller, and it costs you nothing. If you do a good job of explaining what you want, they will do the leg work to find it. If you see a property on YHD or ANY OTHER website, tell your agent to take you there (not sure about the YHD 2% properties...).

 

[Wingznut]

Originally posted by: vi_edit
Whatever you do, DO NOT get a dual rep agent.

Absolutely.

But remember... even if you get a buyer's agent, they aren't necessarily "fighting" for you. They get paid on a commission of the total sale, so how is it in their best interest to get a lower price? It isn't, really.

For a first time buyer, I do recommend an agent. There is just so much paperwork and so many "bases to be covered."

But more importantly is a good mortgage broker. The amount of money at stake here, you really want to be clear on when, why, and how much money you'll need during the process.

 

[jamautosound]

Originally posted by: rh71
We're very comfortable with our agent in terms of pushy-ness.

However, thru yhd.com (2% instead of 6%, BTW) . . .

. . . the mlsli.com houses in our price range are completely inferior to the yhd.com houses for the same price. This is the dilemma we're facing. . . .

Sound like you solved the dilemma yourself.

Btw, my wife has been in the Real Estate field for about 14 years (never an agent), so she did most (read "all") of the footwork. All I did was, go to look at the house, and say "Yeah, I can fix that." or "Unh uh, what's next?"😉

Good luck to you.

 

[rufruf44]

Originally posted by: Wingznut PEZ

Originally posted by: vi_edit
Whatever you do, DO NOT get a dual rep agent.

Absolutely.

But remember... even if you get a buyer's agent, they aren't necessarily "fighting" for you. They get paid on a commission of the total sale, so how is it in their best interest to get a lower price? It isn't, really.

Absolutely right. Unless the agent is a close friend or family, her main goal is to get the fattest paycheck which will probably hurt you in the bidding process of the house. Another alternative is to go for FSBO (For Sell By Owner House) in the area where you're interested in, and after you have a general idea about the houses in that particular area. Theoretically you can save about 6% from the housing prices that will usually goes toward the agent. The downside is that you have to do the paperwork pretty much by yourself.
I would also suggest that you got pre-approved for a loan. It would stregthen your position when making an offer and the seller sees you have the $$$ ready to go at a moment notice.

 

[rh71]

^^

more opinions/experiences?

 

[thedarkwolf]

Well when I was looking last year I did most of the work. I went on to www.realtor.com and found houses that fit what I was looking for and then did drivebys and if it looked like something I was interested in I called up my agent and had her show it to me. I must have droveby about 300 houses and looked in 40 or 50 over 7 months before I ended up buying one. I am sure my realitor wasn't too pleased with all the time I took up for a $42k sell 🙂.

 

[kt]

Before you take any of these people's advice, I have to forewarn you that if you are going to leave your agent you better tell the agent first. Tell the agent that you are not satisfied with what you've been shown, don't just leave and get another agent. If you do that often enough you'll get a reputation and NO real estate agents will do business with you. Real estate agents usually know each other, so words travel fast within the community.

 

[Muadib]

Realtors are in it for one reason, and one reason only, M O N E Y. Having said that, you must realize that they work for the seller 90% to the buyers 10%. I suspect that the reason she is showing you crap is because she is showing you what she has listed at her office first before showing you other homes. Did she show anything from the multiple listing service?

 

[rh71]

Everything she's shown has been from MLS thus far. I don't believe she/they have any other source. I'm starting to get the feeling there just isn't much out there priced right. If it's new... we're probably not priority on her list yet... but we don't know that for sure.

We just got pre-qualified last night. Now pre-approval... hmm... some people tell me that process is free and some say it's not... I don't even know if we need to be pre-approved at this stage yet...

 

[Vic]

Definitely use a buyer's agent, especially if you are a first-time homebuyer. Real estate transactions are complicated and there is a lot of money involved, so it is very easy for unsuspecting people to get burned if they are not careful.

My recommendation? If your agent isn't showing you homes you like, get a new agent. It may be that the home you want simply isn't available in your area in your price range, or it may be that your agent isn't listening to you or working hard enough for you. You won't know for sure without a second opinion 🙂

 

[Muadib]

Originally posted by: PSYWVic
Definitely use a buyer's agent, especially if you are a first-time homebuyer. Real estate transactions are complicated and there is a lot of money involved, so it is very easy for unsuspecting people to get burned if they are not careful.

My recommendation? If your agent isn't showing you homes you like, get a new agent. It may be that the home you want simply isn't available in your area in your price range, or it may be that your agent isn't listening to you or working hard enough for you. You won't know for sure without a second opinion 🙂

I agree, except for the buyer's agent part, there is no such animal IMO. Another option is to get another person, and use them both. First one who shows you what you want, wins.🙂

Getting pre-approved is a great idea. This way both you and the realtor know what you can afford. It saves time for all, and shows you're ready now.

 

[kt]

Originally posted by: Muadib

Originally posted by: PSYWVic
Definitely use a buyer's agent, especially if you are a first-time homebuyer. Real estate transactions are complicated and there is a lot of money involved, so it is very easy for unsuspecting people to get burned if they are not careful.

My recommendation? If your agent isn't showing you homes you like, get a new agent. It may be that the home you want simply isn't available in your area in your price range, or it may be that your agent isn't listening to you or working hard enough for you. You won't know for sure without a second opinion 🙂

I agree, except for the buyer's agent part, there is no such animal IMO. Another option is to get another person, and use them both. First one who shows you what you want, wins.🙂

Do not do that. Real estate agents hate people doing that. Have only one agent working for you at a time. If you want to jump ship, tell your current agent you're going with another agent.

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: kt
Do not do that. Real estate agents hate people doing that. Have only one agent working for you at a time. If you want to jump ship, tell your current agent you're going with another agent.

No different than when realtors tell buyers to "shop around" for the best mortgage, applying at 10 places and leaving 9 loan officers in the lurch, is it? 😛

Anyway, I never meant to suggest using 2 agents at the same time. I just said to "get a new agent."

 

[rufruf44]

Originally posted by: PSYWVic

Originally posted by: kt
Do not do that. Real estate agents hate people doing that. Have only one agent working for you at a time. If you want to jump ship, tell your current agent you're going with another agent.

No different than when realtors tell buyers to "shop around" for the best mortgage, applying at 10 places and leaving 9 loan officers in the lurch, is it? 😛

Anyway, I never meant to suggest using 2 agents at the same time. I just said to "get a new agent."

If you're not satisfied with the performance of the agent, by all mean, find another agent. There're lots of agent vying for your business in the real estate market, its quite a cut throat business. I do think its simply common courtesy to inform the "fired agent" though.

As for mortgage, most agent have several preferred loan office than they're more likely refer you to. I would try to get the best online quote and ask the loan officer to match it. That way, you'll have the best rate possible and the local bank to contact to whenever there's problem. Even 0.125% saving on interest rate is alot of money over a 30yr loan.