Who are the Players? 

I have written about the value in assembling the A-Team and I’ve detailed those who touch your loan. I’ve advocated vigorously for using local lenders (here are two).

But Who are the players involved in the transaction/real estate experience?

Your Agent

The person you hire to represent your best interests, whether a Buyer Agent or Seller Agent, this person should be the first person you interview/hire. Your agent (I am one) should always be looking out for you and be in a position to advise you on pricing, negotiating, what to offer, what to accept, and so much more.

The Managing Broker

The person who is overseeing your agent; you likely won’t have direct interaction with this person, although if you have a significant challenge develop that your agent cannot or will not attend to, you may want to reach out to this person.

The Lender – The person/team who will be either (if you’re the buyer) lending you the money for the house or (if you’re the seller) lending your buyer the money. Either way, local lenders matter.

The other agent

The transaction is only as good as the other agent. Really. One of the things that I help my clients evaluate is the quality of the other agent. Will they be able to manage their client? The transaction? How will they respond when a challenge arises?

Attorney

You’re going to need an attorney to close the transaction. There are some great title companies in Charlottesville, but I recommend attorneys over title companies. If there is a challenge, the title company is not able to give legal advice — at that point you’re going to be asking me if I can find you an attorney. Today.

Home inspector

Get a good one.

Appraiser

The unbiased person who determines the value of your home. They are hired by your lender (you pay for it) — through a third-party. More often than not, the appraised value is very close to the purchase price.

Your friends, peers, parents

These folks, while most often not directly involved in the transaction, will likely be giving anecdotal advice. Listen, take in what they say, filter it through your experiential lens, and please, please, please, ask me clarifying questions.

The Internets

Perhaps one of the biggest unknowns is the Google and the Interwebs. There’s a ton of information out there (about 1.6 million results for “real estate Charlottesville”) and some of it is relevant and useful. Most of it isn’t.

These are some the things I advise buyers moving within or to  Charlottesville to read.

A lot of what you’ll read online is worse than worthless – it’s unintentionally deceptive. One representative question/statement I hear often is “I’ve read that I should offer X% less than the asking price; is that right?” Short answer: Nope. There is no rule as to how much you should offer (or accept if you’re the seller) to start the negotiations.

“I’ve read that I should never be honest with my buyer’s  agent/seller’s because they just want me to buy/sell a house.” If you believe this, and you have chosen your representation poorly.

Questions? Ask me anytime (434-242-7140).