Buyers Help
Find the Right Real Estate Agent for You
Finding the right home that meets all your wants and needs usually requires finding the right real estate agent first.
Here are several tips for hiring who's right for you:
Ask for recommendations
Whether you're searching for a home buyer agent, a gardener or contractor for your new house, word-of-mouth from someone you trust can be one of the best ways to go.
Do you know any owners who recently bought a house in your area? If so, ask how their experiences measured up. Was the agent responsive to their needs? Would they recommend this agent?
If you don't know any recent home buyers, Internet forums can be helpful as well. Do a search and ask away. Most people are more than willing to put in a good word for someone who helped them buy a home (and shed the light on those agents who didn't).
Ask any prospective agent plenty of questions
Here are a few to consider:
- May I contact some of your past clients?
- What is your commission?
- How much do you think you can save me?
- Why should I hire you over someone else?
The last one is paramount. Act as if you're interviewing someone for a very important position — because you are! You're purchasing a home, not a doll's house. Pleasantly set the tone upfront that this person will be working for you, not the other way around.
Consider hiring an agent before you start seriously looking
If you've carefully reviewed your financial options and feel "now's the time," then you should consider looking for an agent. Many times, first time home buyers will start the search only to quickly find — and subsequently lose — the home of their dreams.
Why? There was no knowledgeable agent there to properly guide them through the process, or they haphazardly grabbed the wrong one at the last minute. In either case, you'll find yourself on the wrong end of the home buying stick.
Get the proper buyer advice from the beginning. Have an expert there when you're ready to pull the trigger.
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