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Hmm, interesting. That only confirms the feelings I had about our agent, then... (closed yesterday, good riddance!). She barely even took us out to see homes... sent us along without checking on them herself, and even when she did come along, she never said anything negative about anything. Just kept "Mmm-hmm"ing to whatever we said, nodding along... the only time she contradicted us was when we wanted to do things she didn't like (requesting repairs, doing a walk-through, etc). In the card she gave us at closing, she included a handful of her business cards for referrals... yeah, right.
And yet you retained her, thinking all agents were alike. No doubt next time you contemplate buying property, you will take a different approach.
It's fasinating to me that so many buyer/agency relationships do not start with a meeting of the minds on the very basic issues of communications.
My agent did some searches and send them to me and I did quite a bit of searching on my own. Ultimately I found the house we purchased. A big part of that was that it was a local move, within the same community where we were already living (moved from townhome to single family). So I had a good idea of what the neighborhoods were like and so forth. If we lived in a small city I would expect the agent to know quite a bit about the homes on the market but we live in Northern Virginia and agents often cover quite a bit of territory. My agent may not have done the bulk of the home searching but she was fabulous at noting the pros and cons of each property, giving us advice, and negotiating the contracts.
Finding homes for sale and going to open houses was easy for me to do; I needed an agent for the overall real estate knowledge and experience. At that she truly excelled and we couldn't have been happier with her.
On the other hand, we used the same agent when we bought the townhome (about 3 years prior to the single family) and we definitely needed more guidance on home choices then since we were first time buyers and not familiar with the area. During that time, our agent was very good at finding homes for sale, although I did some searching of my own as well.
I think the important thing is to discuss the "division of labor" in advance so you're all on the same page.
Last edited by Ashburnite; 03-07-2010 at 11:53 AM..
I typically have the buyer set up on a MLS mailer. When new listings pop up they want to see they call me for a showing. So I guess for me, I'd say the typically "find" the homes they want based on MLS mailers from me. It's pretty easy for buyers to find what they want with the internet these days. That's really the easy part anyway. The contract to close is where the agent is more important.
I search the MLS myself almost daily. Our agent knows I'm doing it. When he knows we're coming down (about once a week), he'll throw a couple more listing on the pile, he sends me the full reports on the ones I let him know I'm interested in and finds out if they're really active or not. He sets up the appointments and when we find something we like, he's there to mediate and advise us.
I think waiting for someone else to point out the listings to me would drive me nuts. I'm glad the internet allows me to be an active participant! Of course, I also LOVE our agent!
And yet you retained her, thinking all agents were alike. No doubt next time you contemplate buying property, you will take a different approach.
It's fasinating to me that so many buyer/agency relationships do not start with a meeting of the minds on the very basic issues of communications.
This is an interesting thread. I don't know what I am supposed to expect from a real estate agent, either, but I guess I thought he'd do more. I saw some units for sale in a condo complex, so he sent me some recent sale info about the place, which was educational, but then what? Exactly what am I supposed to infer from that information (except that they all sold for lower than the asking prices on the current units). For example, my concern was that if there are seven units for sale and some of them have been listed for a few months, does that mean that there's a problem with the property? I kind of thought the real estate agent would tell me this stuff, but I guess it's my job to find things out myself. I'm sure a big part of it is that I am looking at the lower price end, and I can understand that this doesn't make me a priority. I wish there was some sort of crash course in buying a home that explained the terms, the process, etc. Most of what I've learned has been from reading threads on here or doing research on the Internet, but I still have no way of knowing if a price is good or not. I'm not originally from the area where I now live.
I just have so many questions that would probably sound really dumb to most people, but I've never owned anything and I just don't know and sometimes I wish there was a live person to talk to.
Last edited by Mightyqueen801; 03-08-2010 at 05:40 PM..
This is an interesting thread. I don't know what I am supposed to expect from a real estate agent, either, but I guess I thought he'd do more. ...I just have so many questions that would probably sound really dumb to most people, but I've never owned anything and I just don't know and sometimes I wish there was a live person to talk to.
A really good agent will sit down with you up front and do a consultation. They will cover the local market conditions, goals, loan programs you should know about, etc. By the time you are ready to make an offer you should know what to expect moving forward. However, finding the home is the easy part.
There are many agents out there. There are very few exceptional agents out there. The exceptional agents are consultants with buyers. The other agents tell and sell.
A really good agent will sit down with you up front and do a consultation. They will cover the local market conditions, goals, loan programs you should know about, etc. By the time you are ready to make an offer you should know what to expect moving forward. However, finding the home is the easy part.
There are many agents out there. There are very few exceptional agents out there. The exceptional agents are consultants with buyers. The other agents tell and sell.
He did make the arrangements to look at a few places. We went out one day and hit about four or five condo units. But I have to email him and call him and push him to get the info. He did recommend the mortgage guy from whom I got a preapproval, but I am going to an information session on Saturday given by one of the real estate agencies' mortgage guy because I have more questions.
As I said, I know it's very likely because I'm looking at the lower end of the RE market. The people looking at pricier properties are going to get any agent's attention first, I'm sure. They aren't in the business to help people, just to make money. I was just a little disappointed because I know next to nothing about how all this works. I have no problem with self-education, but I'm afraid of making a mistake.
I think you need a new agent. If you have a contract with the agent, when it's up you should interview other agents and choose one who will work FOR you. Interviewing agents and asking for references is a perfectly acceptable practice.
When we were preparing to look for our first home I read "Home Buying for Dummies." Yup, there's a "Dummies" book for everything.
The book was very helpful in explaining what the basics are and what a buyer should expect from an agent, real estate brokers, mortgage brokers, the bank, home inspectors and much more. It really covered the basics of how to go about choosing an agent and what the agent's responsibilities usually are. As a first time buyer I found the book very helpful. The book should be available at your local library, which is where I got my copy.
Interesting thread.. sad to hear there are so many bums out there!
I asked recommendations on a good Realtor when my (now) husband and I began looking. Ours is really top notch, I must say. She is not just an agent - she's reputable, trustworthy and - if anything - overly cautious. She actually 'red flags' so much in a property it almost irritates me! But she is legally vested in us - she is looking out for our interest and it shows.
I think you need a new agent. If you have a contract with the agent, when it's up you should interview other agents and choose one who will work FOR you. Interviewing agents and asking for references is a perfectly acceptable practice.
When we were preparing to look for our first home I read "Home Buying for Dummies." Yup, there's a "Dummies" book for everything.
The book was very helpful in explaining what the basics are and what a buyer should expect from an agent, real estate brokers, mortgage brokers, the bank, home inspectors and much more. It really covered the basics of how to go about choosing an agent and what the agent's responsibilities usually are. As a first time buyer I found the book very helpful. The book should be available at your local library, which is where I got my copy.
Good luck!
Thanks, I never thought of the "Dummies" series! Of course there has to be one! Great suggestion.
I don't have a contract with the agent. I didn't even know you were supposed to have a contract. Geez. This Dummy thanks you.
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