Is a realtor necessary?

[austin-steve]

As we are first time home buyers, we aren't really sure if having an agent is an advantage

If you're first time Buyers, you'd be foolish, in my biased Realtor opinion, to go into a new home purchase unrepresented. There are multiple ways that you can make multiple bad decisions and mistakes, so find a veteran agent who is active and experienced in the area you wish to purchase, and use her or him.

since we sort of already narrowed down to 3 home communities. Will a realtor help us negotiate on the pricing, for eg. on the upgrades for the home? What other added advantages are there in having a realtor?

Yes, a good agent will help you throughout the process and provide both an emotional and logistical buffer between you and the builder. A good Realtor will also explain things in a way that helps educate you into making your own good decisions. You'll come out of the process appreciating the help you received and you'll no longer be a newbie buyer, but an educated home owner who can explain to your friends and family exactly why your purchase decision was a smart one and the home you selected the right one.

Here are some questions to ask yourself if you go it alone:

Why have you narrowed down to the three areas? How do those areas serve your needs?
What are the average and median sales prices of the resale homes in those neighborhoods?
Are those resale prices above or below the new home prices?
Are the resale prices above or below the resale prices of a year ago?
What are the biggest and smallest floorplans and how do the sizes of the plans you like fit into the mix? (you don't want the biggest floorplan)
Is the builder offering agreessive incentives and Realtor bonuses - if so, why is that?
Are there a lot of completed and unsold builder spec homes in the neighborhood? What does that mean?
What are the property tax rates for that neighborhood?
What are the schools and how are they rated?
Are the school boundaries fixing to change, and will that affect future value?
Is there a water district and, if there is, what does that mean?
What are the HOA fees and what is included?
What are the HOA restrictions?
How many rental homes are in the neighborhood? (lack of rental signs doesn't mean anything)
How many foreclosures are in the neighborhood and what does that mean?
Is the neighborhood nearing complete build-out, or is completion years away, and why does that matter?
Are there vast swaths of open, undeveloped farmland surrounding the area in which you are looking, and why does that matter?
Will you have to pay daily toll fees now or in the future, and how does that impact your budget?

If you know to ask yourself all of these questions, and more, and how to find the answers and how to synthetize all of that information and data into meaningful conclusions that inform your decisions as they relate to your needs and financial abilities, then you can probably go it alone and do fine. Otherwise, get some help.

Steve

[jennyb315]

from a veteran home-buyer, those are great points steve

[GreenPlastic]

I am not a realtor nor in the real estate business.

We just sold our home for around $45k more than Zillow valued it. Our agent also helped us stage the house and ran inteference between us and the buyer's agent. Well worth the money in my experience.

[AustinTraveler]

Absolutely do NOT depend on zillow.com for an accurate market value. Zillow gets their numbers from your tax appraisal, which is rarely equal to actual market value.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by normalguy

FREE, good point.
Let us see: you need bread, which costs $2/loaf at
HEB. You go with a dude that tells you all about it, like if it is wheat or
white, has gone bad or not, even smells the loaf for you so you
don't have to smell it.
For this advise, he gets 3% of $2, that is,
3 cents from HEB, cause they really want the bread sold.
But, HEB raises the price by 3 cents cause they dont wanna take
a loss. Who knows, they might jack
it up by 10 cents, so you enjoy your "free" advise a litle more.
Now, HEB can hire their own "bread consultant" who they pay 3% of the
price to help them sell it. That would be the sellers agent.
So, while you think the bread is good and well advised, and the advise
comes free, it really is not. In fact, now to ask HEB when the bread
was baked, you will ask your agent, who will ask HEB's
agent about when it was baked.
Today's real estate is so 20th century. This is the year 2007,
this is the 21st century.
HOW TO BUY A HOME: Do your own research. Go to http://www.zillow.com.
Figure out who is selling or intersted to sell. Look at "make me move".
HOW TO SELL A HOME: Go to zillow, again.
Very soon, real estate will be what it should be: seller sells to buyer,
directly, no middlemen involved.

This is silly, that is like saying that we dont need stock brokers because we have discount brokerage houses. I do believe most realtors are not useful, but some realtors are useful.

The reality is that you have to really watch and pay attention to the market to really understand what is going on. Most people dont have the time or the inclination to do this. Also, just like with stocks, people get emotionally involved. The realtor's job is to help you through it. FYI Zillow's information is garbage, while MLS has the actual closing prices on houses.

I do agree that most realtors are useless, this is not the same as saying you dont need a realtor.

[barbgwb]

I am not a Realtor, nor have I ever played one on TV, but in the 3 transactions I have made in Austin, I have used the same Realtor and have found her services worth every penny. She has important contacts, negotiating skills, and knowledge. I can't imagine making the biggest purchase of my life w/o good professional assistance. I agree w/ the PP who advised using an inspector w/ new homes; city inspections are not thorough. Good luck.

[Taterhead]

Originally Posted by barbgwb

I am not a Realtor, nor have I ever played one on TV, but in the 3 transactions I have made in Austin, I have used the same Realtor and have found her services worth every penny. She has important contacts, negotiating skills, and knowledge. I can't imagine making the biggest purchase of my life w/o good professional assistance. I agree w/ the PP who advised using an inspector w/ new homes; city inspections are not thorough. Good luck.

Can I get her name and number please? also what part of town is she located in?