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Real Estate: Are You An Old-Fashioned Buyer?

Praful Thakkar
06/15/2006

Gone are the days when all real estate agents worked only for sellers. In the old days, even agents who claimed they were working with buyers, were really working for sellers. Gone are the days when homebuyers were dependents on Sunday Newspapers’ Real Estate Section and few real estate magazines. Do you still use the magnifying glass to search the 3 bedrooms; two-and-a-half-bath split-entry home in Burlington, MA priced under $400K and built in 90s?

Please DON’T!!!! Help is on the way, in the form of Exclusive Buyer’s Agent – who would help you at every stage of home-buying process.

The biggest myth for homebuyers is that real estate professionals are for finding homes. These buyers think that they can search anything on the internet, get the address and the price and go find the house. Sometimes, they can peek into the house or go to the open house and make an offer and bingo… they got the home at great price.  They think that the job of a Realtors is to find a  home. For a realtor finding a home for you is just the tip of the iceberg. The fun begins after that. Many times, there are sleepless nights and nightmarish days till you close. Your real estate representative should and will take care of the transaction in a hassle free manner for you. From your offer to close, many people play significant roles in a successful transaction. Your representative should make sure that each and every player plays his or her role to your benefit.

When a immigrant makes a conscious decision to process immigration papers we go to an immigration attorney- a professional in this field. No one relies on the internet to acquire the information on how to get a green card or become the citizen. When you are  about to take the biggest financial decision of your life it is important to have the help of a professional.

Do not forget, if you love new construction, your representative can help you buy the house from builders. There are certain home sellers who would not like to pay the fees to real estate professionals. Your representative will be able to help you there, too.

Two myths of prevail in a buyers’ mind when they are buying their home. The first is regarding the commission paid to the real estate agent, and the other regarding their own negotiation capabilities.

The buyer, most of the time, assumes that he/she has a great bargaining capability. He can get $10 back while buying $5 worth of something at a retail store. Many of you have been shopping for bargains on the Black Friday (the day after Thanksgivings day). You did find excellent deals and bought many items for free – or almost free. With that, one starts thinking that he or she is a great bargainer and unfortunately, the attitude continues when one wants to buy a home. Without realizing that this is a different ball game, one would offer a very low price for a home. In most cases, such offers, one after another, are rejected and when the buyer opens their eyes and sees the real picture, a couple of years have gone by. This is where the buyer’s agent’s expertise comes handy.

The real estate agent you are working with will be able to guide you in pricing most properties within few thousand dollars of the price that could be accepted by the seller and perhaps, a buyer would own home much sooner that expected. The basic difference between the bargainer and negotiator is same as owning a home later or sooner. One, who looks for bargains in home buying, usually ends up buying something where money is the most significant criteria compared to number of bedrooms or bathrooms.  A bargainer will start with a very low offer for the property, forcing seller to discontinue negotiation even before it is started, whereas a negotiator will offer a price that will tempt the seller to counter the offer.

Another myth – the commission agreement between the seller and the listing agent is negotiable by the buyer!!! Especially, when buyer approaches the listing agent directly. (I have heard the stories where the buyer eliminated both buyer’s and seller’s agents and started negotiating the price directly with the seller!!!)

A human nature always looks for bargains and most of the buyers know that there are professional fees associated with buying and/or selling of a home through a real estate agent. So, when it comes to negotiations, the very first cut would be in the pocket of the realtor with whom they are working. It is also assumed that if the listing agent is contacted directly, the listing agent may be able to help the buyer to ‘achieve’ the price that buyer wants to, just by reducing his or her ‘professional fees’ and will adjust against the price. The fact is something different altogether. The buyer must know that there is a contractual agreement between the listing agent and the seller and it is totally an independent piece of document compared to an offer to purchase contract from the buyer.

As we are talking about myths associated with buying and selling of real estate, let me talk about another myth. The myth is - the complications involved in the real estate transaction are due to the agents involved in the transactions. The truth is these agents’ goal is win-win for all parties involved. More so, when you have hired a buyer’s agent. Now, you have someone who represents you and is working in your best interest. They will try to find the ‘middle path’ that will benefit both buyer and seller.

The buyers should understand that the real estate transactions reflect a mutual agreement on terms and conditions between sellers and buyers. If the buyer has a good professional representative, he/she respond to the needs of the buyer – to get the buyer what is best for him/her.

The buyer’s agent would always help you get the right home at the right price. And isn’t that any homebuyer is looking forward to? Or, are you still and old-fashioned buyer?

To start the process, simply go to http://VIP_Buyer.iPraful.com or http://FreeReports.iPraful.com and see how you can benefit when you have your own representative in home buying process.



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