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We are moving to a new city most likely this summer. We did a real estate blitz and saw quite a few homes. One of the ones we liked best was also being sold by our agent. I'm not sure how to proceed... whose interest does he prioritize? Any advice would be great.
What percent off the listing price would be acceptable? I don't want to lowball and have them tell us off, but I also don't want to overpay on something that has been sitting on the market. I am not sure how this would work with the Realtor as well? They know how much we can afford, how motivated we are etc...
Some details:
-The house is in the midwest, not the hottest market, the town is around 100k
-It has been on the market for 9 months or so, leading me to assume it is overpriced
-Sellers are motivated, house is not occupied they have moved to another city for a job.
-House is move in ready, maybe put in new kitchen counters and a fence is all it would need.
Google "real or acting as an intermediary".
The agent represents seller, but if they act as intermediary, they cannot disclose any confidential info to either of you, nor can they tell you anything to suggest a price, or tell sellers anything about your upper limit.
However, you can ask for their broker to appoint an agent from their office to help you, which is what I would do, because you will get more negotiating help from them.
Also check zoning, flood zones, city permits if there are empty lots nearby, school system, etc. Get all inspections relevant to the area...home, termite, radon, mold. If an older house, I'd probably also have a plumber come inspect sewer lines with a camera.
Make a low offer and see what happens. Dance with the one who "brung" you. Unfair to switch realtors when a licensed realtor showed you that place among others, even if it was her listing.
If I ask for another agent will it tick of the original that has the house now? They spent a whole day with us showing us housing.
Will it tick them off? Possibly. But hey, you know, that's the risk that an agent takes. And I say that as an agent. Do you really want to work with an agent who gets ticked off when someone doesn't take 'advice' that is not in their best interests?
What you are looking at is a possible dual-agency situation. Which, IMHO, is basically a person who cheats on two spouses at the same time. :-) Consider this: The listing agent currently has a fiduciary relationship with the seller. It is almost impossible to serve two masters - who do you think is going to get the short end of this situation, no matter how much an agent protests that they can look out for you?
You have a couple of choices. 1) Don't use an agent (not a good idea in your case, if you aren't real estate savvy). 2) Do what spottednike suggests and ask the broker to assign a different agent (how they split up the commission is not your problem), or 3) You could duck around the whole "get another agent" situation by hiring a real estate attorney to review paperwork and manage the process for your side. You'll have to pay the attorney, but in the end, I suspect you will come out ahead.
Here's the thing: This is a business transaction, in which trust is a key component. Instead of worrying about hurting the agent's feelings, I'd be considering who I could trust to be looking after my interests in this transaction.
I would stick it out with your agent. The conflict is real, but hardly scary. The agent must see to the seller's interest. That doesn't mean you are some idiot without a brain.
Your agent already has insider information on you. Modifying your relationship then entering into a negotiation with the same person really doesn't negate the agent's knowledge of you as the buyer. The agent hauled you around, knows your rough financials, your search parameters, what turned you on and off...pretty sure you were setting them up to leverage as much as possible into negotiating a deal--so you cannot "undo" what the agent knows about you.
Offer what you are willing to pay for the house. If you go low, but within comp range, the worst that can happen is a rejected offer. Your agent already knows what happens if the seller says "no'. Move on to the next property.
Thank you all for the advice. Some to keep the original and some to dump, it obviously isn't a simple solution. I was thinking like WVREDLEG, the agent already knows so much about us, to change to another agent wouldn't change that. If we have a strong 2nd option house, the worst thing is we move onto the next house I guess.
The issue here is not whether to keep or dump the realtor, but, whether to conduct the purchase as a business transaction, or an emotional decision.
9-months is long enough to determine the local market and area sales for similar homes (Check the County Tax Appraiser's online site). From there, you will be able to determine how much homes are selling for and can physically compare them.
You can also speak with neighbors or recent buyers about appraisals. Has the realtor received and rejected other offers or had other offers fall through? Are those inspection and appraisal reports available? How much do you really believe the home is worth (less major repair items)?
The "Asking price" on homes is not necessarily the "Selling price." What did the Realtor pay for the home? (You can also ask or find that out on the tax appraiser's site ... or from the neighbors or prior owner).
Make this a business decision and a lot of the issues about how the realtor "will feel about things" will become non-issues.-- Remember, YOU will have to live with your decision, long after the realtor is no longer in the picture.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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This is the biggest financial transaction of your life. The agent is not your friend. The agent doesn't have your best financial interests at heart. He/she has a fiduciary duty to the seller, unless otherwise noted. That means anything you've told the agent will be told to the seller and used against you.
Did you tell the agent that you can pay $300,000, but will offer $280,000? The agent will tell the seller that. Get a buyer's agent and/or consult with an attorney.
I don't care how slow of a market it is, if this isn't a high six figure sales price or higher, if the home hasn't sold in 9 months, it's priced too high.
Ask the Realtor to pull comps, closed sales in that zip code, using the same key features of the home you are considering (you can potentially limit yourself if too narrow). Expand to neighboring zips if insufficient # of sales. An amatuer can usually extrapolate an offer price. And I would request seller to pay 5K closing for good measure. If that Realtor has been sitting on that for 9 months, they'll recommend they take it. Exception: if this is a potential short sale for the seller, that contract can be tied up for many months to a year.
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