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Working with a Realtor
Working with a Realtor, does it cost me
anything?
Unless you have signed an agreement to the
contrary, a Buyer does not have to pay a Realtor
for their representation on the purchase of a
home. The Buyer's Realtor is generally
compensated by the Listing Realtor.
Can I not just look on my own and call the
specific listing agents of houses that I like
rather than choose a Realtor to represent me a
Buyer.
Although you could do this, it is not the optimal
way to buy a home. Although this list could be
much longer, they key reasons are;
How are you finding the listings? You do not
want to miss a great home!
The Realtor version of the MLS has much more
detail and can be sorted and searched on fields
other than the basic mls.ca criteria that you
use. You don't want to risk missing your dream
home by not taking advantage of all the search
tools available. Also, a Realtor can use their
experience to make suggestions about similar
properties that you may otherwise not consider.
You want someone representing your interests,
not the Sellers.
The Listing Agents may not offer you an agency
relationship, instead providing you only with customer
service and being responsible for the
Vendor's best interest. In this case everything
you say and do is to be used for the best interest
of the Seller. When you are working with a
Realtor and they are your Buyer's Agent (i.e.
legally responsible to you as a Buyer) it is their
responsibility to protect you, not the Seller.
Their job is to help you find a dream homes, as
opposed to sell one specific listing to you.
There are numerous other points including;
Saving Time - Realtors are well know to
save consumers time throughout the process.
A Buyer's agent can help you tie up loose ends
along the way.
Saving Money - Reduce the risk of possibly
paying too much for a home or making other costly
mistakes
Create an offer in your best interest - You
want a Realtor that understands your needs when
structuring an offer so that it is your best
interest
Reduce Stress - Buying a property can be
stressful, it is important to have someone on your
side who can advocate for you.
Receive Advice - A Realtor is there to
provide you with information and knowledge
Choose your representation - Working with random
Listing Realtors means that someone else has
chosen the Realtor for you - you are using their
Realtor. By choosing your own representation you get
to pick someone that makes you comfortable and
you feel is right for you.
Do I have to sign an agreement when working
with a Realtor?
This is an ongoing debate that centers around
a document called the Buyer Agency Agreement.
The debate should not be whether a Buyer Agency
Agreement is positive or negative, it should
center on how it is used.
This is because almost all areas of organized real
estate now require a Buyer Agency Agreement to be
signed at least before an offer is created so that
the Buyer can be positive that they are properly
represented in a transaction. This agreement
legally requires the Realtor to be looking out for
their Buyer.
But this document should not be used as a tool for
low service Realtors to lock Buyers into a
contract regardless of the service they provide.
There are several key points on the Buyer Agency
agreement that are important to understand. These
points are completely negotiable and
include whether the buyer has any financial
responsibility with regards to their Realtor's
compensation, which property or type of properties
the agreement applies to and for how long the
Agreement runs.
For your information, the Buyer Agency Agreement
can apply specifically to one property only. This
effectively creates a Buyer Agency Agreement as
required by organized real estate, but does bind
the consumer to an agent for any other real
estate.
What should I look for in a Realtor?
Everyone has their own criteria, but these three
criteria are a critical start.
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-Does this person conduct themselves in a
professional manner?
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-Are
they competent discussing items such as market
conditions, the real estate process and
financing?
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-Will I enjoy working with this individual?
Should I work with more than one Realtor?
Keep meeting Realtors until you find one that you
want to work with, and at that point you likely
want to have an exclusive relationship.
In most markets the difference between Realtors is
in professionalism and service, not the houses
that they have access to. Every Realtor
registered to the local board has MLS access.
So if your Realtor is looking after you and
getting you listings, there is no need for someone
else to do exactly the same thing.
You will also find that a majority of competent
Realtors will not be keen on investing time and
resources into you when you use multiple
Realtors. Just like any busy professional, they
will give their highest level of attention to
committed clients.
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