Bubba Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 1. Is an agent really needed? No, but as the buyer it is in your best interest. Seller pays the fees. Mary and Doc: Don't think this is correct. If you pick a second agent who will do the negotiating for you, he/she is still being paid for by the seller, i.e., the agent is legally bound to work for the seller's best interest. If the BUYER enters into a contract with a realtor/agent--NOT the listing agent--and is paying the fee out of their own pocket, then they're most definitely working for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary#17 Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Mary and Doc: Don't think this is correct. If you pick a second agent who will do the negotiating for you, he/she is still being paid for by the seller, i.e., the agent is legally bound to work for the seller's best interest. If the BUYER enters into a contract with a realtor/agent--NOT the listing agent--and is paying the fee out of their own pocket, then they're most definitely working for you. Yes, you are correct. You can get a buyer's agent that works for you but then you will be paying the fees on your own. You might also be paying a double commission as I'm pretty sure the buyer's agent still gets some of the original commission. I'm not as familiar with that so you should research that. Regardless, it's up to you to make your realtor work for you. That's why you should try to find a realtor that is recommended by friends and family. Make them give you the comps on homes beings sold in the area and one's that have sold and haven't sold. How long did they sit on the market? How many price drops? Did they sell for more than the asking price? Stuff like that. Then you can make a judgement call on the best price to offer. Sometimes pricing is a gut thing. If the house is exactly what you are looking for, you may be willing to go in at a higher price not to lose it. Banks have gotten pretty tough on appraisals so they won't approve a loan if the house isn't within a reasonable price point for the product/location etc... Hope that makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpoppa Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Experienced agent's bring a lot to the table. They know builders, neighborhoods, HOAs, market value, home inspectors, what banks to use, paperwork, contracts, etc. They know neighborhoods where flooding is common, reputations of builders, HOAs that charge much and do nothing, etc, etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 hahahI am trying to stay close to 11 as well as boardman due to being close to good day care etc, plus i will be driving between east liverpool, salem/ lisbon and boardman every dayAm i making a mistake by dealing with the realtor who listed the house for sale directly without my own agent?Realtor really should at least assign you another realtor from their own agency, too much of a conflict of interest playing both roles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBBaron Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Mary and Doc: Don't think this is correct. If you pick a second agent who will do the negotiating for you, he/she is still being paid for by the seller, i.e., the agent is legally bound to work for the seller's best interest. If the BUYER enters into a contract with a realtor/agent--NOT the listing agent--and is paying the fee out of their own pocket, then they're most definitely working for you.In all the home buying/selling transactions I have been involved in there are typically 2 agents involved. A sellers agent and a buyers agent. The commission is typically split between the 2 though the actual terms are in the sellers contract. If you sign a contract with a buyers agent it is typically an exclusive arrangement that they will represent you for a period of time in any real estate transaction, and thereby collect their share of the commission even if you find the house yourself.I found the buyer's agent useful in getting viewing appointments and leting me know what steps I needed to do for inspections, financing, etc as well as helping with much of that work. Not so much in finding a house.Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 CBB: It's a little confusing. In southern OH, a typical commission for sale of a home is 6-7%. [Note that there are some discount realty firms that charge less--maybe 4% or so--but they are not full-service realty firms.] The commission split is normally: 3-3.5% goes to the listing realty company, the remainder to the listing/selling agent(s). So, even if you arrange the sale with your own agent to help you buy a house, his allegiance is still with the seller. Obviously, if the listing agent is also the selling agent, he gets the entire commission. I'm no expert, but I would guess that you could write a contract stating that you (the buyer) would pay the portion of your agent's commission out-of-pocket and the seller would then realize a savings of a portion of his contract commission, which could be split between buyer and seller. That way, your agent would be legally bound to represent your interests. Finding an agent that comes recommended from a friend would also be preferable, as most agent's build a strong business via referrals....which obviously isn't gonna happen if the seller or buyer end up feeling screwed. This area of the country is one of few in the US that has some very odd "customs" when if comes to selling/buying a home. For instance, it's very common, at least in the southern OH region, for the seller to expect 'free' occupancy for 15-30 days post-closing and is often written into the sellers contract, but almost nowhere else in the country is this done. I think the expectation is slowly dying out, but it's one of the odd regional practices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gump Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Legal Paper works cheap. Screw a realtor for buying. Unless you're really uneducated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 BTW, I want to state up front that I'm in no way demeaning real estate agents. They work hard for their commission and are generally honest. Obviously, it's in the agent's best interest to bring the deal to a close, and that may not happen if both parties aren't satisfied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Legal Paper works cheap. Screw a realtor for buying. Unless you're really uneducated.As stated before, as a buyer it costs nothing, the seller has already agreed to pay when they listed with the agent. The only exception is if you find a fsbo home, in which case you're not going to ask a Realtor to show you this home because they would get no commission. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gump Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 So if your buying a listed house, the listing company realizes they don't have to pay the buyers agent, because you don't have one, from the fee % the listing agent set with the home seller and wouldn't they, the listing realtor, be more willing to persuade the owning seller to accept a private party offer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 (edited) So if your buying a listed house, the listing company realizes they don't have to pay the buyers agent, because you don't have one, from the fee % the listing agent set with the home seller and wouldn't they, the listing realtor, be more willing to persuade the owning seller to accept a private party offer?The listing agency has a contract for 7%, why would they accept less?The listing agent gets a couple, the listing agency gets some, and the buyers agent gets a little. But there is no reason the listing agency would give any back if the offer was for less. Edited August 24, 2015 by magley64 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gump Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 (edited) Of course you could assumethey wouldn't give any back but they get to keep it instead of giving it to a buyers realtor. So take that % off the sell price. Literally or not. 2 offers to buy at exactly the same purchase price. One buyer has a realtor, the other buyer does not. The buyer without a realtor has a higher chance of getting his offer accepted. Edited August 24, 2015 by Gump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Of course you could assumethey wouldn't give any back but they get to keep it instead of giving it to a buyers realtor. So take that % off the sell price. Literally or not. 2 offers to buy at exactly the same purchase price. One buyer has a realtor, the other buyer does not. The buyer without a realtor has a higher chance of getting his offer accepted.If you're dealing with slimy real estate agents maybe, Realtors have higher ethical standards. My mom was a realtor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gump Posted August 24, 2015 Report Share Posted August 24, 2015 Everyone's greedy, when no ones looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 Everyone's greedy, when no ones looking.That's fine, but in a realtor's office, all the Realtors are looking, and they've all taken oaths to uphold specific ethical standards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zx3vfr Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 That's fine, but in a realtor's office, all the Realtors are looking, and they've all taken oaths to uphold specific ethical standards.Lolololololololol. Their all scuzbuckets like all the politicians. You would spew something off like that. Their only interest is their commission Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeavyDuty Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 Talk to the owner if they did a lot remodeling themselves make sure you get a good inspector to check the place out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 Lolololololololol. Their all scuzbuckets like all the politicians. You would spew something off like that. Their only interest is their commission*They're And no, they're not. As I stated, my mother was a realtor, as are several friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloodninja420 Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 Of course you could assumethey wouldn't give any back but they get to keep it instead of giving it to a buyers realtor. So take that % off the sell price. Literally or not. 2 offers to buy at exactly the same purchase price. One buyer has a realtor, the other buyer does not. The buyer without a realtor has a higher chance of getting his offer accepted.You seem to be the only one in this thread that understands this concept. Lol.I've bought my last 2 houses without a buyer's agent, and saved a lot of dough.In the purchase agreement (your written offer) you need to make it explicit you are offering less with the understanding the listing agent will reduce their commission by half.If you don't get this in writing, the selling agent (Magley's paragons of virtue) would gladly collect the full commission without even broaching the topic with their client. They hate it when buyers circumvent their little cartel, but at the end of the day they're getting paid the same, so they'll play ball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zx3vfr Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 *They're And no, they're not. As I stated, my mother was a realtor, as are several friends.So where were the good honest realtors that said no to people buying 10x the house they could afford priror to 2008?That's right all they care about is their commission. Andthe realtors are the one advertising on radio, especially stations that have a lot of minority listeners, that it is everyone's right to and part of the American dream to own your home and get, contact a local realtor today and they'll get you in debt for the next 30 years....Also it was the Clinton administration that threatened the banks into approving loans to people who could not afford them. And the realtors who just went a long with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 So where were the good honest realtors that said no to people buying 10x the house they could afford priror to 2008?That's right all they care about is their commission. Andthe realtors are the one advertising on radio, especially stations that have a lot of minority listeners, that it is everyone's right to and part of the American dream to own your home and get, contact a local realtor today and they'll get you in debt for the next 30 years....Also it was the Clinton administration that threatened the banks into approving loans to people who could not afford them. And the realtors who just went a long with it.The good Realtors were there giving good advice. Then you got slimy real estate agents like asa Cox who promise $100,000 homes for zero down and 300 a month, and her clients are 95% in foreclosure... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh1234 Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 definitely don't use the sellers agent. And dont let your realtor dictate price. I've bought 2 houses in the last 3 years and both realtors told me my offer was a low ball and would make the sellers mad in which neither happened and I paid what I wanted for it. Had I listened to the realtor I would have paid 10-15k more I saved $5,000 but making my offer lower than my realtor suggested, also, on my condo. I'd strongly recommend using a realtor, though, since you're new to the process and have so many questions. Find a local Howard Hanna office and give them a call. There's a good chance they'll work for the commission, so it won't cost you anything. It's their JOB, so they might know one or two important things you don't know, or forget about. If worst comes to worst, and you have to pay (I don't think you will, they all work on commission), you won't remember what it costs, down the road a year or two, and the potential benefits outweigh any drawbacks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nautical1 Posted August 25, 2015 Report Share Posted August 25, 2015 Talk to the owner if they did a lot remodeling themselves make sure you get a good inspector to check the place out.This is sound advice as well. Even if you can't talk to the owner you'll probably be able to tell what work someone has done themselves whether it was half assed or not. The first house we out an offer on years ago you could tell the guy tried to do the work himself with little things here and there. At the time I was young and didn't think much of it, so we put an offer in contingent on inspection. During the inspection the inspector found foundation cracks in the crawl space and when on the roof noticed the fireplace was separating from the house pretty badly. We also realized that the walkout basement that the listing agent said was new was also done by the homeowner. The problem was the guy never put proper support in and essentially just tore the wall down, and as the house ended up settling the sliding door wouldn't even open. Needless to say the inspection saved us a ton of headaches and money, so now I thoroughly look for anything that someone may have messed with and if stuff looks like it was half assed throughout the entire house I'll just walk away and not risk the potential headaches. It's amazing what some people will do to their house, I've had my share of "wtf were they thinking" moments.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
max power Posted August 26, 2015 Report Share Posted August 26, 2015 Before looking at anything else, Check the water. Wash your hands in it, smell it and taste it.Many things can be fixed, but bad water is always going to be bad water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bad324 Posted August 26, 2015 Report Share Posted August 26, 2015 get something with a 3 car garage and big shed. you'll thank me later Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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