Benefits of Using a Realtor When Buying a Home

Homebuyer Education Jun 11, 2021 0 2014 Add to Reading List

We all love the DIY movement and being empowered to do things ourselves so we can save money. This is an area where hiring someone to do something for you will actually SAVE you money!

Hiring an expert has historically been expensive in any field - the real estate industry is a little different if you are a buyer.

Buyer’s do not need to spend anything to hire a buyer’s agent. Their paycheck comes from the seller! The buyer gets all the benefits without the cost. We know it sounds crazy, but it’s true.

We want all buyers to have a great experience with buying a home and the chances of that happening are much higher when you have an experienced and knowledgeable individual on your side every step of the way.

Let’s dive into what the benefits are to using a Realtor when buying a home.

1. Negotiation

This is an aspect of the home buying process that buyers can forget about. When you have your own agent that can speak on your behalf, they go to bat for you while understanding if the seller’s agent is trying to take advantage of the buyers.

The seller’s agent does not have any commitment to the buyers, and will always do what is best for the seller if they can get away with it. By having an agent on your side, you have a knowledgeable and trained individual who can speak with the seller’s agent, keep them accountable and identify issues that might come up that may not be in the buyer’s favor.

Not only can you ensure your protection, but your agent can get your purchase price lowered with effective negotiation. No one hates saving money, right?

2. Save Time and Money

Did you know it doesn’t cost you anything to hire a Realtor when you are a buyer? It’s the seller who will be paying the commission and the seller’s agent will decide how much they will split their commission with the buyer’s agent.

Hiring an agent will save you time because they will fill out all the necessary paperwork needed for the transaction, then proceed to ask you for just your signature. Every detail will be taken care of by a professional who is trained to identify if the seller is asking something of the buyer that is unethical or costly without them knowing, and they do not have a problem with asking the seller’s agent to correct the paperwork.

Your time will be saved from doing hours of paperwork, so you can focus on your job and family.

3. Exclusive Access

Realtors have access to the MLS, which is only available to certified Real Estate Agents. This is a listing site that will only have houses for sale that are listed by a Realtor, no for-sale-by-owners.

This is helpful for avoiding scams or people who are not serious about selling their homes on Zillow or another platform.

Agents use the MLS to alert other agents of open houses or changes to their listings. Some sellers have a preference to only have their home listed on the MLS and not on Zillow, so there will be homes you might miss if you are only looking at other websites.

4. Professional Connections

Realtors are always looking at properties and have relationships with other agents who have current or future listings. They will be the first to know when a great house is hitting the market...before it ever hits!

Even if you don’t see a house you like on a listing site, they most likely remember one from showing it to a previous client.

Realtors are also well connected with small businesses and services needed within the homebuying process. This means that when a seller has a certain inspection company listed on their contract and the Realtor has had a bad experience with them, they will most likely request to have their own inspection done by someone they know and trust to get a second opinion. Having the knowledge of reputations in the community is a must in this business!

Not only this, but when a Realtor is well connected, this means they will be friends with many other agents. If your agent happens to have a great relationship with the seller’s agent, you have a great chance of having a very smooth transaction and negotiation process.

5. Accountability

Realtors are required to maintain a certification that gives them legal permission to practice real estate and have access to certain things such as the MLS (Multiple Listings Service), key lockboxes, title information and more. They are required to pay for a membership to Realtor associations every year as well. If their ethics are in question or they are reported to the Board of Realtors for less than appropriate behavior, they can lose their license and be banned from practicing real estate, with a hefty fine.

This means that Realtors will go above and beyond to ensure your paperwork is correct to avoid legal repercussions, and that you are treated with respectable and knowledgeable behavior. Part of their Code of Ethics is that Realtors will always do what is best for their client, even if it means that it will not benefit the Realtor at all.

When you hire a Realtor, you’ll have the peace of mind knowing that someone is holding them accountable for their actions and you’ll be able to have support from an association if something goes wrong with your transaction.