Is a buyer's agent necessary for a new home to be built (sale, mortgage)

[biggz]

Originally Posted by Nspect

A private independent home inspector is the only one involved in a real estate transaction that has no commissions or emotions attached to the deal.

ITs the best deal you can get for a few hundred bucks on the planet.

Since you're not going to be there to protect your interests. You will need someone who is. For any contractual Issues GET A LAWYER. The key here is to position an effective team to handle anything that you will not. In terms of the mechanics of house building. You need someone who knows residential construction from the ground up. He needs to make regular visits to the job site. Keep track of what materials have been used. Bring the project as close to budget as possible. In a timely manner. etc... The important point to remember is that your representative must know where every nail and screw should go and why !

[getmeoutofnj]

Oh, how did I miss this thread before?

Here is naive question #4002:

How does one find a buyers agent? Is it the same as choosing a realtor? Will they help you find builders or is that after you have chosen a builder? Ive seen so many great realtors posting here, I wouldnt know how to choose one!
Can you only work with one, or what is the etiquette?

Ive been looking at websites and am strongly considering having a home built in ft mill. Im still wondering about the +/- of building vs pre-existing. Or how long it takes to build from start to move in. I have a 6 mo lease starting next month. Will be down there soon, and I cant wait! We will begin househunting immediately.

I must admit, any realtor working with me would have to put up with millions of questions!

[south.charlotte&union]

Most realtors can serve as buyers agents. They can help you research builders or work with you once you have chosen a builder. You should really only work with one realtor in any given geographic area. Remember that realtors are not paid until after the home closes -- so all the work that we do up front (and during!) is in preparation for you to move into your new home.

As far as looking at websites -- that is a great start. But you can learn a LOT once you drive the area and visit the communities. In terms of building vs. pre-existing, you will generally get more for your money with buying pre-existing. For new construction, I have heard some builders quote build times as quick as 5 months, and others out to 8 or 9.

As far as millions of questions goes...well...bring 'em on

Best of luck, and let me know if I can help in any way.

[SANDRASELLSCHARLOTTECOM]

Originally Posted by diamondbeys1

Sharon,
We are in MA and are building in Indian Trail. We would never think about doing it from 900 miles away with out a realtor. We can't be visiting the site every week to see progress and make sure everything is being done correctly. That’s where our realtor comes in. She takes pictures for us and emails them to us so we can see the progress. She is also coordinating the Dry Wall inspection with the builder. She knows all of our options and upgrades, so she can watch out for us. We will not be going back to NC till we move in May, a day before closes for our walk through. A buyer’s agent doesn’t cost you anything. My understanding is the cost is built already into the house price and therefore the builder pays the agents commission. Hope this helps some.

Mel

As a buyers agent I spend on day aweek monitoring new construction , taking pictures and speaking with Site managers. Yesterday was pictre day and all of my out of state clients have their new photos. They can't be here everyday and I can , that's what I am here for. They particuallarly like the pictures where I sit in their bath tubs with a martini glass LOL

[labrat]

You would be better to have a buyers agent. We used a sales person Bob with our buy and what a difference he made. He helped us get every thing organized, worked on our behalf with the builder, made sure everything was looked at in our best interest.
I would suggest forgetting the inspector until the end, and getting a buyers agent before going one stop more,.

[scgraham]

Originally Posted by linearity

I agree with this. We purchased a home w/o a Buyer's Agent and hired a Home Inspector who came out for our pre-drywall inspection and who will be coming out for our pre-closing inspection. Because we live 20 min away from where we're building, I've been able to spend a lot of time at the construction site myself. I've take numerous photographs and everything I've noted for correction has been corrected along the way by Mattamy Homes. I've been very happy with our builder and their customer service.

By not engaging a buyer's agent to promote your interests, you most likely saved the builder 3%; or alternatively, the builder's agent earned an extra 3% that would have otherwise gone to your buyer's agent. In addition, were there other aspects of the transaction where the buyer could have saved money???

[karix]

Anyone ever hear of a buyer's agent/realtor suing if you end up not closing on a new home being built. You can't say you have nothing to lose by using a buyer's agent!

[berryjuice4life]

the buyers agent only gets paid if you close..and the builder is paying the commission..so unless there was an unconvential contract in place, nothing the agent can do if you cant or dont close on a new construction..as realtors are only on commission and only get paid when the deal closes...

[johnrex62]

Originally Posted by diamondbeys1

Sharon,
We are in MA and are building in Indian Trail. We would never think about doing it from 900 miles away with out a realtor. We can't be visiting the site every week to see progress and make sure everything is being done correctly. That’s where our realtor comes in. She takes pictures for us and emails them to us so we can see the progress. She is also coordinating the Dry Wall inspection with the builder. She knows all of our options and upgrades, so she can watch out for us. We will not be going back to NC till we move in May, a day before closes for our walk through. A buyer’s agent doesn’t cost you anything. My understanding is the cost is built already into the house price and therefore the builder pays the agents commission. Hope this helps some.

Mel

Unless YOU are paying the agent, they legally do not work for you. Since the builder is paying their commission they legally work for the builder. There are state laws that require them to be fair to you, but they have a fiduciary (legal financial) responsibility to their employer. That just means if they do anything not in the best financial interest of their employer they can be held criminally liable, just as if they embezzled money from them.

A buyer's agent does not cost the SELLER anything as ALL of their fees are borne by the buyer. A seller's agent does not cost the buyer anything since the seller pays all their costs.

If you are assuming an agent is working for you just because you found them and they agree to, then you are in the same boat as the guy who believes everything the seller says just because they have an honest face. Down here we call you "Sucker".

You can certainly get a fair deal without a buyer's agent and you can certainly find a sellers agent with enough scruples to look out for both you and the seller. The only problems arise when you dont find that honest and reputable agent. That is why the law allows buyer's agents, to permit legal contracts between you and an agent. Unless you are paying the bill,however, there can be no legal contract between you and an agent since nothing of value has transferred from you to them to create a contract.

[johnrex62]

Originally Posted by berryjuice4life

the buyers agent only gets paid if you close..and the builder is paying the commission..so unless there was an unconvential contract in place, nothing the agent can do if you cant or dont close on a new construction..as realtors are only on commission and only get paid when the deal closes...

That by definition is not a buyers agent. That describes a seller's agent. If that agent describes himself as a buyers agent it only proves they are ignorant, deceptive or at best very confused.