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Wow Valerie - that was fascinating and very informative - and most of all easy to understand. Thanks for taking the time to write that out - now I can't rep ya but BIG REPS here for you for that.
Many thanks to rmcewan and Valerie C for the informative feedback - that was exactly the kind of information I was seeking!
I have a contact in a real estate office in Keene, and I think my next step is to talk this over with him. However, I'm not completely sold on Keene itself, primarily due to the high property taxes within the city limits, but perhaps a town near Keene would do nicely.
Then again, after reading this forum for a while, it's clear that there are many nice spots in NH where I believe my wife and I could be very happy. In other words, thanks a lot, guys ... you've made a tough decision even tougher!
Then again, after reading this forum for a while, it's clear that there are many nice spots in NH where I believe my wife and I could be very happy. In other words, thanks a lot, guys ... you've made a tough decision even tougher!
Pleased to be of service!
You're right, there are many nice spots. When I was looking for where we would move to, I knew the general target area I wanted to stay in (no further north than Concord, no further west than New Ipswich - and that was kinda pushing it). So I looked at the tax rates for the town, checked a few back years to get an idea of hopefully how stable they were, and then looked at what was available to buy. That seemed to knock down a lot of potential towns! Once we had an idea of a couple places to concentrate on, we went to see properties which gave us an idea whether we liked the property and how we felt about the town (was it likely to fit our needs and could we see ourselves living there). Otherwise, there are just too many nice places, you might as well stick a pin in a map!
I would also add that you might consider engaging a Buyer Agent who ALSO functions at times as a Seller agent (not necessarily in a dual agent scenario) -- I think that one important aspect to being a good buyer agent is to also be a good seller agent -- I believe an Agent needs to know both ends of the deal (the buy and the sell) in order to be able to broker a good "buy" transaction.
As someone who has seen this from the consumer side IMHO I say buyer beware. Please keep information on your employers and any personal information that can affect what you pay for a home confidential even to a buyers agent. Remember despite all the laws the agent who is your buyers agent gets paid by the seller. Remember your purchase of a home is a business relationship. I will reiterate what has been said here. Go to Open Houses and get to know realtors. Use buyers agent from the town you are buying in or at least live nearby. Of course get pre-approved by a bank and work with a financial institution that will issue you pre-approval letters based on different asking prices. For the sake of an easy example lets say your house buying budget is 230-250K. Again keep your house buying budget confidential even when working with a buyers agent. If you find certain house lets say for 240K then your financial institution will issue a pre-approval letter to you for 240K. My last word right now is unless you have to it is better to wait in this market, good luck
Kelticnomad is correct, and you by all means should keep certain information to yourself. It's unfortunate, but not every agent is as diligent as they can be to protect their client's (be they a Buyer or Seller) interests at all times. We've all met or heard of the sleazy operator who is simply looking for that next pay check, and ethics be damned...
Yes, the Buyer's Agent typically is paid from the Seller's proceeds, but remember that the difference in commission to that agent from a sale price of 350,000 vs. 360,000 is under $300. Tis much better to negotiate for the Buyer's best interest, getting the best possible terms and conditions for the client, and close the transaction having earned trust, respect and the possibility of future referrals. A couple hundred bucks of commission pales in comparison...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kelticnomad
As someone who has seen this from the consumer side IMHO I say buyer beware. Please keep information on your employers and any personal information that can affect what you pay for a home confidential even to a buyers agent. Remember despite all the laws the agent who is your buyers agent gets paid by the seller. Remember your purchase of a home is a business relationship. I will reiterate what has been said here. Go to Open Houses and get to know realtors. Use buyers agent from the town you are buying in or at least live nearby. Of course get pre-approved by a bank and work with a financial institution that will issue you pre-approval letters based on different asking prices. For the sake of an easy example lets say your house buying budget is 230-250K. Again keep your house buying budget confidential even when working with a buyers agent. If you find certain house lets say for 240K then your financial institution will issue a pre-approval letter to you for 240K. My last word right now is unless you have to it is better to wait in this market, good luck
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Be Careful on Buyers Agent
