Technology makes a lot of things easier, including buying and selling homes. While it’s easy to browse websites for listings and to add your own home to a real estate sales website, both buying and selling get a lot more complicated once you have to take the transaction offline. Here are four reasons to hire a real estate agent that are worth considering before you decide to buy or sell your home on your own.
1. Agents know the market—and other agents.
Your real estate agent knows what the current housing inventory is like, what houses in your area are selling for, and the average length of time homes in your price range are staying on the market. Using an agent means you have a convenient single point of contact for all of your questions and problems.
Your agent also knows other agents in your area, which can mean it’s easier to get a deal done. He or she knows what you’re looking for and can sometimes show you houses that aren’t even officially listed yet. This can come in particularly handy in a tight housing market.
If you’re selling, your agent’s knowledge of market conditions means that she can head off potential problems. For example, let’s say you want to sell your house for $500,000 because that’s what your next-door neighbor’s house just sold for. However, your agent might know that due to the condition of your house, it won’t be appraised that high. And if the appraisal doesn’t come through, your buyer won’t be able to get a mortgage.
2. Your agent can be the bad cop.
Let’s say you’re ready to buy, but you want the sellers to do something expensive to the house, such as update the flooring or the landscaping.
Real estate agents are pros at negotiating touchy situations. After all, there isn’t much that is more personal to people than their homes. There is an art to handling these situations sensitively while also getting what you want. If this isn’t something you’re skilled at, one wrong word could torpedo the whole deal.
3. The paperwork is a killer.
If you’ve ever bought or sold a home, you know how much paperwork is involved. When you’re putting the purchase agreement together, your real estate agent is responsible for making sure you’ve signed all the right forms in all the right places. If you buy or sell without an agent, you’re responsible for making sure you’ve gotten all the right paperwork together. The consequences of even one missed signature could be potentially disastrous, and very expensive. You could lose anything from your earnest money to a lawsuit later on.
4. Your agent has to do what’s best for you.
A real estate agent my try to get you to pay a higher price for that house you’re buying so he can get a better commission, right? Wrong! Real estate agents have what’s known as a fiduciary duty to act in your best interests rather than his own. That means his goal is to get the best deal for you even if it results in a lower commission for him.
Real estate agents live by word of mouth and repeat business, so they try not to do anything that could jeopardize their reputations. If for some reason you feel your agent hasn’t done the best job they can for you, you have legal recourse. In contrast, a buyer or seller without an agent has no duty to you to give you a good deal or in some cases to even tell you the whole truth.
While at first glance it may seem like buying or selling without an agent will be easy, it should be clear to you by now that the work and stress your agent will save you is worth every penny you’ll pay them. At Loeffler Realty, we’re ready to work for you, so contact us today.
