Using the Professional Services of an Experienced Realtor® When Buying a Home Can Keep More Money in Your Pocket.  When Buying One of Your Largest Lifetime Assets, a Home, It can be both Exciting and Scary - Having a Real Estate Professional On Your Side Can Help With Every Emotion and Help You Reach the Results You Desire!  

Professional real estate agents can provide their experience, knowledge, and skills to save homebuyers Money (and time and stress) when purchasing their first home, retirement home or any home in-between.  If a home buyer is deciding between using a Realtor® or purchasing a home without one, here are six reasons you should hire a professional to be on your side:

    1. The Real Estate Agent handles all negotiations on the buyer’s behalf and with the home buyer’s best interests put first and the goal of getting them the best price.  A Realtor® knows what homes in the area are selling for and can run reports to make sure the buyers are paying the fairest price for the current local market, the home itself and the buyer’s specific needs. Many buyers don’t realize that there is more than one instance of negotiations during the purchase of the home.  For example, home purchase negotiations can include any or all the following: 

o   The initial offer

o   Any inspection items of concern

o   If the buyer’s financing is affected during the sale (example-property does not appraise)

o   If there is a home sale contingency needing to be adjusted or extended

o   At the final walk-through should something in the home not be the same as when the offer was made, or any negotiated repairs haven’t been completed

o   If a cancellation is needed, that is also negotiated depending on the timing within the purchase. 

   2. The Real Estate Agent can provide an impartial and neutral opinion.  Many times, a home buyer will fall in love with a home or a certain aspect of a home and have a difficult time seeing anything more than that.  The Realtor® can have an objective eye and point out things the buyer may overlook.  As we all know, descriptive words such as “newer”, “beautiful”, and “spacious” all are all relative and one person’s point of view may be the opposite of another’s.  For example, if a home is advertised with a “newer” roof, but the agent realizes it’s over 10 years old, they will point that out to the buyer, so they understand what “newer” meant in this situation.  An agent will review the seller’s property disclosures to make sure they are complete and if there are any questions from the buyers or something doesn’t look completed, the agent will get the answer and information.  By an agent pointing out any potential immediate or short-term future investments that may be needed in the property, the buyer can consider all factors before deciding on an offer price.  An experienced Realtor® knows things to look for in a home and what some things are that a buyer may not.  A new home is a “shiny new” and exciting opportunity for homebuyers – their agent will help make sure they have all the facts and information about the property, so they don’t decide on excitement alone. 

3   3.  The Real Estate Agent helps with the “total picture” of buying the home.  Most Realtors® have a meeting and consultation with a buyer at the beginning of the home buying process to find out their desired budget, the approved mortgage price (if financing), their ideal location, their specific home criteria want versus needs and their timing.  When deciding whether of not to write an offer on a home and if doing so, the price and terms to offer, the agent takes all the information from the buyer’s consultation and discussions and analyzes it all with the home buyer.  This can include discussing commute times, school district proximities, community amenities and desired home specifics, but even more so, working with their loan officer and making sure they have a full financial understanding for the monthly costs for the home, closing costs and any potential costs the home could have. Here are a few examples:

o   Monthly Costs for the home include the mortgage payment with current interest rate, property taxes, insurance costs (some homes may have additional such as a home with a pool or cedar-shake roof), association dues (if applicable) and average utility costs (electric, gas, water/sewer, and sanitation). 

o   Closing Costs for the purchase include title fees, financing fees and pre-paid escrows (if applicable are typically 1- 3%) and what the buyer’s down payment amount will be for the purchase price. 

o   Potential costs to consider and look at can include things like inspection repairs the buyer decides to take on themselves after closing, any future updates/upgrades/additions/replacements the buyer discussed about the property to make sure the neighborhood would support it, moving costs that could vary depending on distance/packing needs/rental truck, lease buyouts or additional months depending on closing date, if purchasing without selling your current property, the cost to carry both,  and so on.  The right real estate agent will make sure you have all this information and the “total picture” around financing to make sure you are comfortable with the purchase, but also for making an informed decision on your specific offer.

    4. A listing agent has a fiduciary duty and contractual obligation to the home seller.  If a home buyer does not have their own representation, a listing agent will have a difficult time being impartial and negotiating the best price and terms on the buyer’s behalf when doing so for the seller.  It’s difficult to have one person speaking to both parties and trying to get the best price and terms for them both. 

     5. In most cases, a buyer does not pay the Realtor’s® commission, the seller does through the listing contract and listing agent/brokerage.  Some agents and brokerages may charge a retainer fee, but most real estate brokerages in our location charge a small fee (now referred to as a brokerage commission fee) at closing to the buyer included in their closing costs. (Most we have seen are between $400-$1000*) A common myth with homebuyers is that if they don’t have a real estate agent, they will save that money on the home.  Although there may be rare instances this could happen, the listing commission is decided at the time of the listing and owed to the listing brokerage, so instead of the commission being divided between the listing agent and buyer’s agent, the listing side receives it.    

     6. A real estate agent will be continually researching properties to find a homebuyer the right match, through the MLS, coming soon listings, their professional networks, and databases, as well as off market listings.  This is especially important when inventory is tight. 

Choosing the right real estate agent to hire is not always easy, but there are several factors to consider before doing so:  What is their experience? Knowledge? Skills?  Or if they are newer to the industry, are they part of a team and what is their experience/knowledge/skills?  If hiring a team, who will be my main contact and how does it work?  Do they work full-time?  Do they listen to my goals and what I want?  What resources do they provide that will be helpful?  Do they communicate and explain things to me?  Will I be comfortable with them? 

Buying a Home should be exciting and wonderful - have a Realtor® working for you that agrees! 

The Welu Home Team at Keller Williams Realty Elite is a mother/daughter team working together to provide home buyer’s a seamless and as stress-free home purchase as possible, with the best results for the buyer.  Fortunate to have assisted over 1300 home buyers since 2000 and grateful for the knowledge, experience and skills learned from it to assist our current and future clients.  Cindy and Farrah offer complimentary, no-obligation consultations if you’re looking to buy soon, later this year or in the future.  We have digital home buying guides we can email you upon request.  *In reference to the buyer representation brokerage fees mentioned in #5, Keller Williams Realty Elite’s fee is $599, and although many teams charge an additional buyer fee, the Welu Home Team charges $0. 

Contact Cindy Welu or Farrah Welu:  952-943-1324  |  team@weluhometeam.com  |  WeluHomeTeam.com

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