Is it that “experts†will tell you to hold the stock in hopes of it going up in value and then explain that those with homes worth less than their mortgages shouldn’t feel bad about breaking their mortgages and defaulting ? … … But – start here – Assessments, property taxes and shifting market values in Albemarle County The new bailout/foreclosure prevention bill – start here to educate yourselves – Calculated Risk This is intended to help “thousands” (a drop in the bucket unless it is several hundred thousand), and seems to encourage homeowners to stop making payments until they are 90 days late. and Rain City Guide This is the beginning of massive government intervention to try and slow foreclosures.
Browsing Category dual agency
Posts with Enduring Interest – Take Two – Just for Buyers
Choosing the Right Buyer’s Agent Proof that Gas Prices are affecting buyers in Charlottesville area A Cautionary Tale – Yet another Due Diligence Question for Buyers, Sellers and Realtors You’re Buying Your Monday Mornings Online Buyers’ Habits Changing Why take a Buyer’s Agent to New Construction? … Questions to ask your agent in Charlottesville – hiring representation should not be taken lightly Default Position – one of many posts written on the perils of Dual Agency – for the frequently unsuspecting Buyers but for the Realtor profession as well.
Choosing the Right Buyer’s Agent in Charlottesville
Last week’s article in the Daily Progress was good, but as I told the journalist at the time – there is so much more I wanted to go into that article, and newspapers are so limited by what they can offer in print. They deal in inches, and for better or worse, bloggers don’t have those limitations. With that preface, this is one of things that didn’t make it in the article due in part to space limitations – My advice to buyers in the Charlottesville area –
Choose the right representation. Choose the right buyer’s agent. Choose someone whom you trust and get along with and like – not just because you met them at an open house, or because they have a blog, or because they are your sister’s husband’s friend who is just getting started and needs a break. Choosing the wrong representation is not just not worth it.
A good (great) buyer’s agent is someone who will advocate 100% on your behalf – simple. Contrary to public opinion, a good buyer’s agent is focused on the client’s needs more than their own. If you feel that “your” Realtor is focused more on the “sale” than your best interests – tell him.
Going waaay back in the archives to 2005, citing a WSJ article –
“Finding a real estate agent is kind of like dating. You have a small window to make an impression and then you’re with that person for a long time.
Here is my business philosophy when I work with buyers – I want to sell their house when they move. Every buyer client represents a minimum of three transactions –
1) The house they are buying right now.
2) That house when they move (everybody moves, even if “this is the last house I am going to buy”)
3) At least one of their friends or family when my clients proselytize for me
I work with Buyer-Broker agreements with my buyers for a variety of reasons – first and foremost because we negotiate my fee upfront, and I am free from the perception that I am not showing unrepresented sellers’ (FSBO) houses or those houses that are offering lower commissions in the MLS than many Realtors are used to. And – it formalizes the contractual relationship that I have to my clients and that my clients have to me.
You can find a sample (although a bit dated) Buyer-Broker Agreement here.
Updated – this is a current sample Buyer-Broker Agreement. Note that it takes two sections to warn/educate about Dual Agency.
My advice is this – do your due diligence. If you have questions about the process, what questions to ask (or if you have an experience you would like to share) please contact me anytime.
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And the coup de grace with regards to what blogs have over print – here are a bunch of very relevant links to help you get started in your research:
Here are some questions to ask when hiring a Realtor, courtesy of Redfin.
Do you like/do Dual Agency? One of my favorite posts I have written about Dual Agency is this – Dual Agency – Who Benefits? —- The Realtor.
Great Questions for a Seller to Ask
Questions to ask your (potential) agent in Charlottesville
The Single-agent Dual Agency debate is revitalized at VARBuzz
I know some members of the Virginia Real Estate Board have opinions; why don’t they share them now?A sampling:As a listing agent, how can I promise to do the best job possible for the seller, who hired me to protect his interest and sell his home for the best price and terms, then turn around under dual agency where I cannot give him any advice that would harm the buyer?… As the seller’s agent, if I think that the buyer is in love with the house and would come up $20,000 to avoid losing it, I am in a much stronger position to negotiate. As a dual agent, my hands are tied and I become a mediocre agent for both parties and truly feel I have been stripped of all my skills and have to keep tape over my mouth. I have to walk a fine line that serves no one except filling the agent and brokers pockets….Sellers see right through greed and self serving agents.
Seeking a defense of Single-Agent Dual Agency
Will anybody defend the practice of the same Realtor representing both a buyer and seller on the same transaction? Find out at VARBuzz.
Why Should You Use a Realtor instead of a Builder Sales Agent?
Simple. If you hire an exclusive Buyer’s Agent to represent your best interests, you will have representation. If you work with a builder’s sales agent, in my opinion, you are on your own. (Thanks to the person in Las Vegas who came to my site searching for this answer)I mentioned this a few weeks ago as well.
Stupid is as stupid does
Recounting a tale from the trenches in the Charlottesville Realtor/real estate world …Another Realtor was showing buyers a development in Charlottesville and an agent was onsite holding an open house. As the buyers looked around, the Buyer’s Agent (BA) and the sellers’ agent (SA) got to talking.BA: This road in front of the development: It goes into a neighborhood, correct?SA: Yes, but you don’t want to take them that way. It looks much better the way you came in.BA: I understand, but I want them to see what’s around this property, going both ways.SA: If you go back the way you came, you can show them how close the grocery store is.BA: Thanks, but I can do both.SA: You should really go out this way – it’s much better.When the Buyers and the Buyers’ Agent got in the car – the wife asked, “Which way are we leaving?”… Then, I’ll show you how close this is to grocery store, restaurant, etc.” Turns out, the wife had heard the Realtors’ conversation.1 – Your Buyer Agent is supposed to look out for your best interests.2 – Had this been a Dual Agency situation, do you think the buyers would have been more or less likely to see the “other” areas?3 – Realtors don’t have an obligation to assess an area’s safety level, but they do have an obligation to be the “source of the source” – provide references by which the clients can determine for themselves.4 – Recognize two things – not all Realtors are focused solely on “making the sale”; but some are.