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Do I need one and how do I choose one?
- Who pays the Buyer Agent?
- Can I save money by not using a Buyer Agent?
- How is a Buyer Agent different from a traditional Realtor®?
- The "team approach"--your Buyer Agent and Loan Officer working together, for your benefit
- Buyer Agent Referrals
Who pays the Buyer Agent?
You are normally under NO OBLIGATION until you decide to make an offer on a home.
All real estate commissions are paid by the sellers (including new homes). It typically costs the buyer nothing to have the services of a qualified Buyer Agent to find their home and negotiate the best price possible!
Can I save money by not using a Buyer Agent?
Probably not. See above answer.
Certain FSBO (For Sale By Owner) homes may be an exception. However, most homes listed FSBO end up being listed by a Listing Agent (Seller's Realtor®) because of the complexities of selling a home.
And many FSBO sellers will pay a Buyer Agent, they just don't want to pay a Listing Agent to sell their home for them.
Buyer Agents have access to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service), which lists virtually all homes available for sale, except some FSBOs and except for some newly built homes.
Buyers working without a Buyer Agent only have newspaper ads, posted signs, limited internet listings and word-of-mouth to find homes. They miss the majority of homes that are like what they're looking for!!
By using the MLS, your Buyer Agent can monitor past sales prices in the neighborhood(s) you're considering. By doing so, they can help you decide what a fair offer is, when you find the right house and decide to make an offer. You are normally under NO OBLIGATION until you decide to make an offer on a home.
For most buyers, they save both time and money by using a professional Buyer Agent. Not to mention a lot of stress.
How is a Buyer Agent different from a traditional Realtor®?
Traditional Realtors® represent both buyers and sellers, sometimes in the same transaction.
When they represent both buyers and sellers in the same transaction, they typically earn 6% commission, instead of the normal 3%. This motivates some Realtors® to show their buyers primarily homes where they represent the sellers.
Many consumer experts consider this a conflict of interest.
A Buyer Agent typically only represents buyers (or if helping former buyers sell their homes, will not show their current buyers homes where they represent the seller). A Buyer Agent usually has specialized training representing buyers.
A good Buyer Agent will show you ALL eligible homes equally without bias, independent of real estate commissions or bonuses. They will point out the good AND bad points of homes.
How can a Realtor® do this for buyers when they are representing the seller?
A buyer who has the same Realtor® as the seller may pay too much for the home and miss having necessary repairs made. They may not even be shown the best home for them.
Remember, it is the seller who pays real estate commissions. It would be logical for a Realtor® who is representing both buyer and seller in the same transaction to have more loyalty to their seller than their buyer.
The "team approach"--your Buyer Agent and Loan Officer working together, for your benefit
Often buyers who have the best experience use a Buyer Agent and Loan Officer who often work together as a team. There are several areas where the real estate and the loan process "jurisdictions" overlap.
It is necessary for the Buyer Agent and the Loan Officer to work together, although too often this isn't the case in the real world.
Buyer Agents and Loan Officers who have experience working together make the process easier for their buyers.
They can strategize about how much home the buyer can afford, what closing costs the sellers can pay for the buyers, when the transaction can realistically close, how long repairs may take, and when the loan interest rate can be locked, etc.
Buyer Agent Referrals:
SmartHomeBuyersDFW.Com is proud to offer referrals to affiliated Buyer Agents who provide the finest in service for our home buyers! We have carefully screened these Buyer Agents and have selected them from dozens we have interviewed.
FREE to our members--The licensed Buyer Agent Realtors® affiliated with SmartHomeBuyersDFW.Com offer our members FREE personalized home searches. Members will experience friendly, low-key, professional service and can start shopping for a home from their computer.
And ALL the homes our members see are homes they would want to buy, saving our members time and frustration!
You are under NO obligation and there is NO cost until you decide to make an offer on a home.
DISCLAIMER: No information on this website is intended as real estate advice. For property specific or general real estate questions, you should consult with a Texas Real Estate Commissioned (TREC) licensed real estate agent who is a member in good standing with the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).
Nothing on this website is an offer to sell nor an offer to enter into a buyer representation agreement.
Many consumer experts recommend buyers choose an agent who has specialized buyer representation training and who agrees to show buyers ALL eligible homes equally, without bias because of real estate commissions or bonuses.
Some terms used to describe these special consumer-friendly Realtors® are: "Buyer Agent", "Exclusive Buyer Agent", "Buyer Broker", or "Exclusive Buyer Broker".
 REALTOR® -- A Registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics. Inquiries regarding the Code of Ethics should be directed to the board in which a REALTOR® holds membership.
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