[Realtors] Buyer's Agents

I would wait a little while before buying a home with all of the sub-prime issues going on. Housing prices may fall over the next year and you could get a house on the cheep if you wait.

 

Buyer's agents are totally legit. When we bought our first house back in 1992, the concept was new and highly resented. Unless things have changed, buyer's agents are paid by the seller (NOT the buyer) and split the commission with the seller's realtor. I would never purchase a house without an agent.

Don't let the propaganda affect your decision. I have completely lost respect for the real estate industry and their steadfast resistance to change. It's understandable because people that have benefited so much from the old ways want things to stay the same. Fortunately, there are many good realtors that will work in YOUR interest when you buy a house.

Before choosing a buyer's agent, make sure they aren't working for the seller in any capacity. When looking for our first house, the lady supposedly representing our interest actually was not. What a close call! A realtor friend of mine stepped in and saved the day. A few years after that, we found another realtor we can trust and have retained her since.

Like I said, buyer's agents are paid by getting a split of the commission with the seller's realtor. Therefore they cost you nothing. Maybe someone more in tune with things can say if that is still true in all cases. The looks we got from sellers agent's when they found out we had an agent also were priceless. Before purchasing the house we're in now, the seller's agent waited several weeks before telling the selling family about our offer. She was hoping an unrepresented buyer would walk in so she would get the 6% all to herself.

 

I'm an Realtor. You should go ahead and interview as many as you can. Ask them how long they been in the business? What will they do for you? Study up on the types of loans out there so you know what you're getting yourself into. Educate yourself so the Realtor won't take advantage of you. As in any profession, there are bad ones out there and there are good ones. You just have to ask questions to separate the good ones from the bad ones.

Tell the Realtor how much you are comfortable paying each month and he/she should find you a loan that fits you.Foreclosures are coming at a high rate right now so you need to be careful in the type of loan you get. Lock in that rate, don't get an ARM loan. Since foreclosures are plenty out there, you might be able to get a good deal on a foreclosed home. Find some Hud foreclosures or some Fannie Mae foreclosures. Ask your Realtor if they are eligible to sell HUD homes.

First time Home Buyer? Check the programs available for your area through Government programs. Usually you have to sit through a lecture and get a certificate to be eligible for the program. Down here in Houston, there's a program called Acorn and their rates are 1 % lower than the going rates right now. There are plenty of programs out there. Just look and look hard. Or tell your Realtor to get that done for you.

 

It's still the same.The buyer's agent gets paid from the seller.

If you find the Realtor is working with both the buyer and seller without informing you of an intermediatary relationship, they are breaking the rules according to TREC and could get their license suspended. Same with the Seller's agent not presenting your offer right away.They have to present the offer to the seller as soon as they get it, unless the seller has in writing that they don't want to see any offers lower than a certain amount.

Buyer's agent are totally legit, just find the right agent. They can also help you with new home builders as well. Builders give plenty of upgrades and incentives if your Realtor knows how to work it.

 

I am terribly cynical of the NAR, but people like you are a reminder there are good realtors to be found. So you agree buyers agents are a good idea. I can't understand why a person or a couple would ever purchase a house without one. It's always good to have someone on your side that knows more than you do, especially when it costs nothing.

Now, when it comes time to sell a house...

 

Now it's the time to buy.

The housing market will pick it up sooner than you expect.

In fact, last month, the housing market seen a strongest grow in 4 years.

 

How do you know? Where did you heard it from? News? Newspaper?

LOL...

 

the sub prime market has taken a tumble....its hard to get people loans on a stated program as the requirements have increased quite a bit.

the numbers will soon drop

 

Well, if you can't even qualify for a 20/80 conventional loan, why are you even looking in the first place?

And if you're first time home buyer, there's something call FHA.

 

People blame the sub prime lender for all the foreclosure and the housing slump, there's no difference between blaming other people for their own failure.

 

Yeah, when it's time to sell the house that's a different story. Interview as many realtors as possible and again ask them questions. Their commission is negotiable as well. The bad side about this is there are some Buyer's agent out there that will show only houses that pay more.

Say if you negotiate 5% to sell a house instead of 6%.

3% to the seller and 2% for the buyer's agent. The buyer will go ahead and show houses where he gets 3%. It's sad but it happens. So when negotiating the commission to sell a house, make sure you know how the commission is split.

 

what if you don't have 3% to put down?
Or if you have high debt ratio?

 

Then stay at where you can make the payment until you save enough or be prepare to blame the lender when you fail.

 

More foreclosures are popping up due to homeowners who can no longer make payments on their nothing down and 9-10% interest loans. This is increasing the supply of houses on the market. Also, it's now becoming much harder for these subprime candidates to get loans which is causing there to be a decrease in demand for houses.

Higher supply + Lower Demand = Prices go lower.

 

Yeah, nice to know that you keep up with the newspaper.

But did you know that just couple years ago, we have higher foreclosure rate than it is now? The foreclosure is high because the sales are up triple than it was before during it's peak time, so it make it seem like the it's high now.

I don't know about your area, but here in Central CA, the price in fact had gone up in the recent month or so.

Also, the supply of homes is less and less than it was couple months ago, people are starting to rent it out instead of selling it. Look around, and you will notice the difference.

 

And I mentioned that just last month, the grow in housing market is the strongest in couple years.

One of the Realtor that I knew has work in this arena for over 30 years, he's probably the most reputable and well known Realtor in my area, and he sold over 350+ homes during the peak time last year, and he average about 250+ homes year, the price is somewhere between 200K - 1.5M.

 

Around here (Beaumont-Port Arthur), the real estate market is unreal. A buyer's agent was an absolute necessity, because by the time a good house made it online or to an ad, it already had a contract on it. The only way to get a house was to have a buyer's agent watching the MLS (and his/her agency's) listings every day.

Mine was great. I chose her based on recommendation. She stayed on top of everything, and helped me out with appointments. For example, when I couldn't get an appointment with an engineer in a convenient time for me, I gave the money to her and she scheduled a meeting when she could get free.

 

and thats the reason why the numbers are going to be harder to reach this year

 

thats why you get a house when ur single