hiring a real estate agent | Green Real Estate Appraiser

1. I’m Using Your House to Sell Myself.

I’m not sure if I understand Mr. Burton here when he says,”Some Agents See Only the ME in HOME!” OK, there are plenty of over inflated egos practicing real estate. Many of which you can see on cable television. But why would someone waste their time and money pumping up their ego when they could be making a sale?

2.You Might Never Get the Chance to Buy Your Dream House!

Yes, if you do not have adequate resources or a good credit score you may have trouble competing in today’s real estate market. Any real estate agent not properly preparing you for what lies ahead is not helping you. Also, the market has recovered to where we’re starting to see Pocket Listings unofficially come onto the market. Mr. Burton sees this as a threat to prospective buyers since there does not appear to be a level playing field, and to some degree Mr. Burton is right. This is why working with a local professional came make all the difference!

3. Our Commisions Aren’t Set in Stone

If Mr. Burton were to review the California Association of Realtors listing agreement he’d see that this is spelled out in the listing agreement. Historically the standard residential commission has been 6 per cent – which is typically split between the two brokers (unless the broker has both sides of the sale which oftentimes is called “Double Ending” ).Then if the agent is not the broker, that side of the commission is split again. Also, there are “Discount Brokers” that will list your house for a smaller commission. Lots, acreage, and commercial properties may also have different commission ranges.

4.Your Home Isn’t Worth As Much As You Think

Here Mr. Burton may have some insight. Some agents will tell you whatever they think you’d like to hear your house is worth to get the listing. Then wait for the seller to drop the price to what the market will pay. That’s no way to list a home for sale. Pricing it as close to the threshold of what it eventually sells for – when you first list the property – will get you the best price for your property. That would take an ethical realtor that knows what they’re doing.

5.Young Buyers Don’t Want Your Old House

Mr.Burton explains that young buyers don’t want to do a lot of work and repairs. Who does? Unless of course you’re willing to pay less for something you can add value to? Generalizing what young buyers wants is at best curious, and humorous. In fact, I think Mr. Burton is way off the mark without going into recent surveys about what young buyers are really looking for. In the end, it’s all about price.

6.Another Agent Can Get You More Money

Mr.Burton suggest you should chose a successful local real estate agent with a good track record. Duh!

Disclaimer: for information and entertainment purposes only

A home is a financial nest egg, so commit some time to researching an agent who’ll get you the return on investment that you deserve – whether you’re a buyer or a seller.

This is where an appraiser can be extremely helpful. The appraiser can do an appraisal of your property before you even contact an agent. Contact the appraisers at: www.socalappraisalserv.com for more information. You can find out what your property is valued at and then when you interview agents you can use this knowledge when discussing listing prices, days on market and compensation. Would you go to buy a car and not look-up to see what your trade-in is worth?; why do this with your biggest investment?

As the buyer you can use an appraisal as ammunition when you negotiate. Your appraisal for your loan usually comes after the price has been agreed upon; what happens to your loan if the house does not appraise? Usually no loan, deal killed, etc. The appraiser that does the appraisal for your loan is usually not the only appraisal done. The lender usually does a review of the appraisal and depending on your loan several appraisal may be ordered. Appraisers do not kill deals; we do not have that kind of power.

Remember the agents commission is usually based on the sale price….motivation to get you lower price????….. watch this video to explain commission: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17jO_w6f8Ck

10 Things to Know When You’re Hiring a Real Estate Agent – Thanks to “Homes Magazine” for the list.

Work exclusively for the buyer. Unlike the traditional relationship with agents who owe their allegiance only to the owners of properties they list, these so-called buyers agents represent your interest during a house hunt.
Track down building permits. (An appraiser usually does this as part of their scope of work) If you are house hunting and need to know if permits were pulled for work done on the house you are considering, put this request to the listing agent first, they have incentive to put your mind at ease about the home’s renovation history.
Only work part-time. That schedule means less attention for you. Some agents just sell real estate as a hobby and you don’t want to miss out because they have not checked new listings for a day or two.
Live where they sell. Start looking with one of these. They, for example will be more likely to know zoning constraints affecting the property and could give you an insider’s view of the thinkings like schools, police records and traffic patterns.
Have special access. Licensed agents can get extra-detailed information through password-protected listing services. Ask yours for a printout of the latest comparable sales.
Outranked other agents. Brokers are licensed to manage their own businesses and have logged more classroom hours studying property appraisal. Agents must work with a broker, never independently.
Visit as many open houses as you do. Special broker open houses are typically held each week to give agents a look at new properties on the market. The more an agent sees, the better they can advise you about a house you may like or new members of your competition.
Still run prints ads as well as advertising online. Sounds counterintuitive but using these traditional marketing channels expands your listing’s exposure. Find out how often he or she advertises and where. Magazines’ classifieds are a good showcase.
Prioritize listings. Especially if you’re selling, it does no good to sign on with the biggest listing agent in town, they may have no time to show your house. Twenty listings mean 20 showings, and yours may fall through the cracks.
Welcome reference checks. An agent shouldn’t mind if you ask to speak to former clients. Good questions to ask “what impressed you about the agent’s service?” and did they respect your taste, budget and time?”

A good agent does not mind any questions or inquiry. Good agents depend on word of mouth for much of their marketing. There are plenty of good agents out there but like anything worth having (a good agent) will take time and research on your end. BUT remember this will probably be the biggest investment you make in your life; take some time and research, you will sleep a lot better at night.

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