HOME BUYING
FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS

What should I look for in a buyer’s agent?

There is a huge difference an average buyer’s agent and great one. An average buyer’s agent is a person who hold’s a real estate license but lacks the experience and resources to properly represent you as a buyer. They are often part time agents with one foot in and one foot out of real estate. While a great buyer’s agent will add an immeasurable amount of value to your home buying process, an average buyer’s agent can expose you to unnecessary headache, risk, and liability. Here are a few things to consider when choosing a buyer’s agent.

1. Experience & Track Record - Does the buyer’s agent have the experience and expertise needed to best advocate for your interest? The reality is becoming a great buyer’s agent doesn’t happen overnight, and it often takes years to go from rookie buyer’s agent to a great one. You want a buyer’s agent who has helped a number of buyer’s successfully purchase homes, and has a track record for providing excellent service. Most experienced buyer’s agents will have testimonials and reviews to reference.
   

2. Ethics - Is the buyer’s agent ethical? Are they looking out for your best interest? It’s an unfortunate fact that there are many highly unethical agents out there. A great buyer’s agent is a highly knowledgeable and transparent one. They will answer all of your questions and will be forthright with their guidance. If a home is not a great fit they will be the first to tell you. A great buyer’s agent will educate you on the potential pitfalls and red flags of a particular home. Unethical buyer’s agents on the other hand, will try to steer you to turn a blind eye to potential pitfalls. This type of unethical agent can end up costing you alot of time, money, and energy. Make sure your buyer’s agent is an ethical one.
   

3. Attention - We all have 24 hours in a day. The agent who sells 50 homes a year has the same amount of hours as you do. Although they have the experience, they lack the time and energy to really focus in on your situation. The “big name” agent will often delegate your home purchase to a lesser experienced agent within their team. While this model works well for their business, the question is whether this works well for your home buying? You want to align yourself with an agent who can directly give you the personalized attention you deserve. There’s nothing worse than being a “number”, especially when buying a home. Make sure your agent is available to answer questions, and to give you the proper attention and guidance you deserve.
   

4. Personality -  At the end of the day you want to work with a person you like. But it’s wise to also be mindful of personality traits great buyer’s agents possess. A great buyer’s agent has the ability to remain calm and focused during the anxiety boosting periods of purchasing a home, and to uplift you during disappointments in your house hunt. In addition to being your expert guide, they are also your confidante through the buying process. A great buyer’s agent understands the variety of emotions that go into purchasing a home and can help you through these emotions. There’s a house you love and you’ve submitted an offer, 99 other offers came in after yours. You get an offer accepted only to find severe structural damage through inspections. As you can imagine these are all scenarios that can come up during your house hunt, make sure your buyer’s agent has a personality to calmly guide you through these issues while offering expert ethical advice on addressing them.