Real Estate question

[Vishenka69]

We're total novices at this real estate acquisition process. Since many of you have done this several times and are pros, I have some questions.

Background info: prices in our area are still falling slightly and houses sit on the market for months. We're also looking outside of developments which aren't going well right now. So we're at an advantage in that area.

1. Can we have more than one real estate agent? What are the pros and cons of that?
2. Does it matter which agency the agent is with?
3. Should we wait until the market bottoms out? Or start looking now?
4. We need to renew our lease and I want to do a 9 months one and DH wants to do month-to-month and get a house within a few months. I guess we could do a 6 months but the thought of moving in the middle of winter isn't sitting well with me.

Thanks for all the help. Any other words of advice are highly appreciated.

Re: Real Estate question

1. No. You have to sign a contract w/the agent.
2. Can't think of a reason why it would. I chose based on my agent, not the agency.
3. How will you know it when it has bottomed out? If the prices have fallen and you can get a good deal, take your time and find a house you love.
4. Maybe the 6 month is a good compromise. Moving sucks no matter what time of year. :huh:

[Momo]

Re: Real Estate question

1. Can we have more than one real estate agent? What are the pros and cons of that?

Being property virgins we made the innocent mistake of having 2 different realtors help us out...neither knew of the other, but it soon became apparent to us that this was a no no, when one faxed us a formal contract. We dropped them both when we came across a partime realtor that was offering to refund 1/2 of his commisson to us...he did this as a gimmick to attract business, when he was first starting out.

[Vishenka69]

Re: Real Estate question

The problem is that we really liked the agent who showed us around when we first came to scope out the area but she's been extremely hard to get in touch with for the past two weeks. She takes several days to reply to both emails and voice messages. It just doesn't seem that she's very interested. Another agent replied to our inquiry almost immediately and seemed very on the ball. I guess we can meet with her and see if we like her in person before making a decision.

[Deebs]

Re: Real Estate question

I would look for an exclusive buyer's agent. You avoid any of the dual agency issues, and their only vested interest is you. We used one to buy here and had great success!

Re: Real Estate question

I don't think I signed an agreement with our realtor until we were putting an offer on a house -- it was part of a big stack of papers we signed. There were a few times I wanted to see a house and I called the listing agent to show it. I did that a few times and then found someone I liked and stuck with him.

I think you want someone who is going to really advocate for you during contract negotiations even if it means more work or possibly walking from a house and continuing to look. I would go more with the agent than the firm they work for.

Re: Real Estate question

I wouldn't use a realtor who's hard to reach. I think we also signed our contract with the buyer's agent when we actually made an offer on a house.

As far as the lease goes, if the monthly amount is very considerable, I'd do month to month. If you end up finding a house you love, you'll want to put an offer on it before it's snatched up. Making duplicate house/rent payments is no fun.

[poky]

Re: Real Estate question

As far as the lease goes, if the monthly amount is very considerable, I'd do month to month. If you end up finding a house you love, you'll want to put an offer on it before it's snatched up. Making duplicate house/rent payments is no fun.

I'd look at the lease closely; I think most leases I've signed have had a no-penalty out if you leave to move into a house you bought (as long as you still give adequate notice, of course). At least, I know we didn't pay any extra when we moved out in the middle of a lease because we bought a house (but then our landlord was just a guy down the street, not an apartment complex management company, and this was in Oregon, not the east coast). Worth checking, though; might make things easier.

[DCJenn]

Re: Real Estate question

I've found that I prefer to have a buyer's agent who works FOR ME. Even if it's the same company as the listing agent, it's been better.

When we bought the house we have, our friend Laura represented us, our friend Julie represented the buyer and we all hang out at the same watering hole. But, when Brian (the owner) was freaking out about not getting stuff done before settlement and he called Laura in a panic, she made him call Julie since Julie was his agent. It just made everything cleaner.

As for the agent you like- if she's not returning calls in a real estate downturn, how unavailable would she be during a busy time? Interview a few- they have to work for you so you need to be comfortable with them. These people know a LOT about you, after all.

Jenn

Re: Real Estate question

I've found that I prefer to have a buyer's agent who works FOR ME. Even if it's the same company as the listing agent, it's been better.

ITA. To clarify, I was calling the listing agent to see the inside of the house. If I had actually wanted to pursue it, I would have found a different agent.

I agree too about interviewing. I would want to know if she will really go to bat for you, in an ethical way, if the seller is being difficult. BTDT, you don't want someone unavailable, spineless or weasel-y which can be surprisingly hard to find.

[Vishenka69]

Re: Real Estate question

What kind of questions should I ask when I interview an agent? What does it mean she's willing to go to bat for you? How do I know if the person is a buyer's agent? You guys are confusing me. Can you dumb it down a bit? Thanks.

[DCJenn]

Re: Real Estate question

The Buyer's Agent- is the agent who works for YOU. You sign the contract with them with the understand that they will not work both sides of a transaction- i.e. if they show you a house that they are listing, they have to come clean about it and you can choose whether you want another agent.

The listing agent's goal is to get the best price for the house for the owner's. the buyer's agent is to get the best price FOR YOU. They are often incompatible goals.

Also, having a buyer's agent who is yours is helpful in situations like the one we ran into in DC when the buyer backed out. My agent (the lising agent) dealt directly with the buyer's agent and our lawyer dealt directly with them both. The buyer's agent (in this case, the man who had been OUR buyer's agent when we bought that house- and we would have used him again, had he not shown up at our house on Christmas, drunk out of his mind, to give us a FIVE POUND box of chocolates.)

Some kinds of questions to ask would be 1) how long has he/she been an agent (it really doesn't matter- sometimes the newer ones are super gung-ho, sometimes the older ones take stuff for granted, the older ones have lots more experience in dealing with crazy stuff, etc.) 2) ask to speak to former clients (references) 3) ask for copies of their current listings- I'm always nervous about someone who only lists the kajillion dollar houses as much as I'm nervous about the ones who only sell the crap. (your buyer's agent will be a listing agent, too. Very rarely are brokerages big enough to support agents who are JUST buyer's agents. DC has a few and I'm sure Manhattan does.) 4) Ask if they're willing to negotiate on the percentage they get. With out listing agents, since it was the beginning of the downtown, they agreed to take a half percentage off their part of the fee and give it to the buyer's agents to get more traffic. Some people want this information to be disclosed. If it were me, I'd want to know whether I was being shown a house because the seller was offering my agent more to show it to me. that said, there's really no obligation for them to tell you.

I'll think of more stuff later-

Jenn

Re: Real Estate question

Jenn, you have a good point about negotiating on the listing fee but that won't be an issue for you, Vishenka. The seller pays the commission for the buyer's and seller's agent.

I agree that a buyer's agent has the price you pay as their main interest BUT since they get paid on a percentage basis there is still some incentive for you to pay more.

By go to bat for you -- the main thing that comes to mind is negotiating and pushing back on the seller's agent for things like the closing date, rent back period, repairs or credits to the price based on the inspection. That is where a reference from previous buyer's would be helpful. You will likely come across someone who had an issue with a seller over a needed repair and you can ask if they were happy with how the agent handled it.

[DCJenn]

Re: Real Estate question

The seller pays the commission for the buyer's and seller's agent

Actually, there's some regional variation in that- in DC it's negotiable and is typically split between the two parties. What conveys also has a regional difference- in Texas, at least in San Antonio- people take ALL of their applicances with them. In DC, no one does.

Jenn

[Cumberland]

Re: Real Estate question

What about built in appliances? Like if you have a wall oven, does it go with you?