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Why is someone morally obligated to stay with an agent who isn't helpful if one hasn't signed an agreement? I don't understand that.
I did sign an agreement with a buyer's agent when we bought our first house, and I was very disappointed with him. He didn't warn us about buying on a relatively busy feeder street. He just accepted the comparables of the houses that weren't next to that street. We had a heck of a time selling that house and had to accept a price per square foot much less than the comps whereas we didn't pay much less than the comps. We were green and needed somebody with experience to help us.
I learned from that experience and vigorously interviewed and vetted our next two buyers agents. I was adamant that I didn't want to be pushed into a house but rather helped to make an informed decision with the pros and cons.
I dont hold realtors in high regard as a group either. They need to look out more for the buyer who pays their bills and gets the seller out from under a home for whatever his reason for selling is.
I have had some good realtors and know their are good ones but as a group they look out for themselves not buyers. Perhaps home buyers need to create an agreement we require a realtor to sign to represent us. That agreement would focus on buyer nor seller needs nor realtor needs.
Realtors as a group didnt do a thing to stop this price bubble that burst and put the global economy at risk. Hardly the actions as a group of a profesional bunch imho. Now they run an ad on tv talking about how they help buyers out... come on
IMO, if she showed you a home you want to put an offer in on, she did her job and should be compensated (provided a successful negotiation and closing.
There is so much that realtors legally CAN'T have an opinion on and share with you (per realtor ethics) that it's better to do the legwork yourself and to get some trusted outside opinions. Ie, realtor won't TELL YOU what to offer or what to list your home for- they can give you some facts (comps), make suggestions, but no one is going to say "write the contract for X"- that's your decision.
So when you find a home you love, visit morning noon & night on both weekdays and weekends to be sure there aren't any home businesses, traffic, howling neglected dogs, erc that you don't want to live by. Make sure you feel safe and research the PD's records.
Knock on the neighbors' doors and meet them. Ask about the HOA or the local schools. Ask about the neighbors and the neighborhood.
Watch the comp sales and DOM's religiously to figure out if the market is going up or down.
Also- don't take what your mortgage loan officer says you can afford and shop on that budget. Run the numbers yourself, add up what you already spend and save and then figure out how much you want to pay monthly. Back into the budget; don't push it down from the qualifying amount.
Not lecturing you AT ALL--> most 1st time buyers expect a lot more from a realtor and mortgage officer to help in the decision making process and they really can't. You should be asking the realtor everything you can think of, but just know she won't be able to answer everything and you'll have to do your own legwork there. This is NOT an excuse for what mckinneyowner's realtor did re: community pool; THAT was borderline - or over the line- unethical.
Look realtors are a profession like any other. You spent 4 hours with one. They don't seem to be meeting your needs, and you don't have any contract or agreement with them. I don't see the issue here on moving to another realtor. Now if you were going to make on offer on one of these houses right now (I mean you wanted to buy one, but just wanted to do it with another realtor); yeah, that would be pretty low.
What you are saying doesn't seem like that though. Seems to me, you are just saying that you don' think she is a good fit, and that by avoiding answering your questions she is not providing one of the major services you need; therefore, since you are not committed to her, you with to use someone else instead.
I would do just that, thank her for her time, if she asks why you are moving to someone else, be honest but nice, and then move on. If you do decide to buy a house she has shown you, then asses what seems right to do at that point.
If you like the first house you saw with that original realtor so much you are considering an offer--why are you looking for another realtor? or for another house?
Hedging your bet?
What do you want this realtor to tell you that she has not been forthcoming about???
Realtors have ethical considerations to follow as well--professional guidelines--
most realtors don't know you personally like you know yourself---
most realtors can look beyond the sellers' bad furniture choices. dated house design/colors/appliances enough to know if a house is worth the asking price
They should be able to explain why that particular house fits the neighborhood comps or it doesn't--
and why the neighborhood is worth the comps vs other neighborhoods with less/more expensive ones...
that explanation is certainly something within their pervue and something they should be forthcoming about...
but if you are asking about the racial makeup of the neighborhood--that topic is offlimits by law
A realtor can't promise you this house will be worth more money in 5 or 10 years--and it would be foolish to ask a question like that--
any realtor that WOULD promise something like that is really only intersted in telling you what you want to hear in order to make a sale IMO...
nor can a realtor guarantee you will be happy in a particular house/subdivision--
some probably would not even say how easy it might be to make remodeling changes--or that you don't need a termite inspection because there doesn't seem any evidence of termites...
We worked with a realtor for more than 3 yrs before we bought the house we are in--off and on--not every weekend--
we made offers on only three houses in that time--and frankly I did 95% of the research in pulling houses we wanted to see...which was fine with me--I knew what we were looking for--
We scheduled home visits for sometimes 5 houses in a morning so not to tie up too much of her time--
and we were quick--I did not have to go around with my husband every time--I was evaluating homes that were worth having him come back to view because they were close enough to what we wanted that we might consider an offer
after a while she did become more relaxed about what she could see in the houses that were negatives--because she understood we had specific wants/dislikes and were willing to wait for the house we wanted vs having to buy within specific time frame...
And to the OP complaining about realtors and the real estate price bubble--I think you have a skewed perception of events
DFW had marginal exposure to the RE bubble--and our prices are relatively positive over the past 4 yrs compared to rest of the nation...
If a realtor failed to disclose information or mislead a buyer about HOA amenities that is a violation of professional guidelines and should have been reported to the realtor's agency and the local professional board...
but I find it kind of difficult to understand how you could fail to know that pool was in different neighborhood--most HOA pools are marked and state outside who has right of entry...
I dont hold realtors in high regard as a group either. They need to look out more for the buyer who pays their bills and gets the seller out from under a home for whatever his reason for selling is.
I have had some good realtors and know their are good ones but as a group they look out for themselves not buyers. Perhaps home buyers need to create an agreement we require a realtor to sign to represent us. That agreement would focus on buyer nor seller needs nor realtor needs.
Realtors as a group didnt do a thing to stop this price bubble that burst and put the global economy at risk. Hardly the actions as a group of a profesional bunch imho. Now they run an ad on tv talking about how they help buyers out... come on
There are already agreements in place issued by the Texas Real Estate Commission for use by Realtors not agents. The Realtor that represents a buyer has a duty to that buyer and is obligated to look after that buyer's best interests. Sharing ALL information known about the home. Most seasoned Realtors will point to buyers the negatives as well as a positive about the home.
As far as the blame game, it is just so typical to blame someone else for one's poor decisions made. What happened to taking responsibility. I won't hijack the OP's thread for a political debate.
Msooner, I think that it's your money, you're going to live in the home and it's very important that you feel 100% confident with whomever is going to represent you. You have had a few good suggestions on how to deal with it.
If a realtor failed to disclose information or mislead a buyer about HOA amenities that is a violation of professional guidelines and should have been reported to the realtor's agency and the local professional board...
but I find it kind of difficult to understand how you could fail to know that pool was in different neighborhood--most HOA pools are marked and state outside who has right of entry...
Also, a very typical document in ALL transactions (except foreclosures) called a seller's disclosure lists if the community has a pool or not. This is provided to the buyer weeks before closing.
Why is someone morally obligated to stay with an agent who isn't helpful if one hasn't signed an agreement? I don't understand that.
I did sign an agreement with a buyer's agent when we bought our first house, and I was very disappointed with him. He didn't warn us about buying on a relatively busy feeder street. He just accepted the comparables of the houses that weren't next to that street. We had a heck of a time selling that house and had to accept a price per square foot much less than the comps whereas we didn't pay much less than the comps. We were green and needed somebody with experience to help us.
I learned from that experience and vigorously interviewed and vetted our next two buyers agents. I was adamant that I didn't want to be pushed into a house but rather helped to make an informed decision with the pros and cons.
How do you go about interviewing your next buyer agent? What kind of questions do you ask?
How do you go about interviewing your next buyer agent? What kind of questions do you ask?
I moved to DFW and bought a home in Plano after looking in far North Dallas and Plano.
I had narrowed down my area to be near family and set a broad price range and many characteristics of the new home. What I wanted from a realtor is good knowledge of the area and price range for me. I went with a large realtor network but picked a realtor who lives in and focused on the area I wanted to live.
My experience was outstanding. I found the home I bought and many of those I saw. I had the realtor show me homes in the area after describing for her what I wanted. This period was a test period for me to see how well she understood my description of wants. She excelled at it and once I knew the areas better I found this home to see.
I have pretty strong opinions and wanted a realtor who could communicate her thoughts firmly to me but who would listen to me most of all as well as have good chemistry with my wife.
An interview with a few house showing was a "working interview". Listening well and showing me homes she picked which met my wants showed me she had listened and understood us. Finally chemistry, advisor role with great chemistry with my wife. I got some pressure to consider other realtors after I had begun, from realtors in the church I was attending but never considered a switch. Those realtors have gotten over any issues with me not using them.
If you like the first house you saw with that original realtor so much you are considering an offer--why are you looking for another realtor? or for another house?
Hedging your bet?
Sorry, I should have clarified. That was a "what if" situation. We aren't looking for another realtor just to make an offer. However, there are only a limited number of homes in our price range in the area...maybe 18 and we can eliminate more than half on size and location. She isn't doing too much legwork for us, though she did provide some comps after I asked for them.
TurtleCreek & Naima, thank you for your good advice. We are still not 100% sure about buying, but we're shopping mortgage vendors. We figured out what we can comfortably afford per month and used that number for the first pre-qual. I have no idea how much we could qualify for, but we aren't going that route at all.
We did see one house for the second time today--it needs a lot of work and I wanted my dad to see it as he is pretty good about catching things that aren't always noticeable but could be money pits. And he did--he found a lot of wood rot in the siding that points to termite damage and there is a good chance quite a bit of it would need to be replaced. The realtor kind of shrugged it off a little and said something about all houses have some sort of termite damage. I think that is what worried my mom and husband.
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