I know, your brother’s best friend’s cousin’s girlfriend is REALTOR® and you feel obligated to use them. She does about two to three deals a year.
Or, since everyone seems to have a real estate license, your friend said that you can use them and they will get you some money back.
If real estate were that easy, you wouldn’t need REALTORS®.
Let’s go over why it is important to use a REAL REALTOR®.
You want someone who is full time who is keeping up with market trends and values. What if some recent sales started showing signs of slowing and your REALTOR® informs you that you can offer a lower price than asking and probably get it?
Or, what if, because of recent development in the area, the neighborhood you are looking in, is about to sky rocket and the house you are interested in, is really a steal at the asking price?
Every deal I work on, something new surprises me and also makes me better at what I do.
When working in older homes, bad electrical boxes (Zinsco and Federal Pacific) and bad plumbing (Polybutylene) could make the house uninsurable. Bringing that to light in a negotiation could help you possibly get a lower price or have you buying a new house with a brand new electrical box. 😉
REALTORS® who work full time and have been at it a while, have good contacts. Unfortunately, most houses do not come in brand new condition and they have things wrong with them. Having quality inspectors and contractors can really go a long way.
The saying in real estate, “Everything is negotiable,” is quite true. You want a good professional who negotiates these kinds of things on a daily basis.
Real estate is probably the largest purchase you will ever make. A good REALTOR® will care about finding the right house for you. I have walked into houses and said simply, “No,” and walked the buyers right out. Also, in quite a few deals, the inspections and appraisals came up with too many issues and made the property not worth the purchase. So the buyers and I discussed it and felt it was time to move on, to find a better house for them.
A REALTOR® who does one to two transactions a year is going to care more about the money they are making than if it is the right house for you.
Many times it surprises people that I will walk into a house and point out the good AND the bad. Why?
I can’t have a buyer purchase a house, and two months later find that they are upset because the house is in a flight path or the noise from the highway behind it is worse than they expected.
Sometimes it takes five houses for a buyer to find a home, other times twenty to thirty. I feel that you can’t put a time or number limit on happiness and every buyer is different. Trust me, your brother’s best friend’s cousin’s girlfriend is not going to have the knowledge or patience to help you find the best house and deal for you.