Do you ever feel like you get lost in trying to buy or sell a home. It can get so overwelming and hiring a good Real Estate Agent helps the process go so much smoother and easier. I hear so many times that sellers don't want to use an Agent because of the expense involved in paying for the services of a Real Estate Agent but this can be a good or bad experience depends on the integrity of the Agent and can save a seller thousands of dollares.. So you ask, how can I know, the best way to find a good agent. See what they do for their clients.
For Sellers:
Is the Agent, advertising, on several, not just one, website, ask that agent how many websites they advertise on, do they advertise in the local paper, do they keep track of their signs, flyers in the box, hold several open houses, keep in constant contact with you, letting you know the progress and what is going on in the market, do a Free CMA (cCertified Market Analysis), so you know where you home stands on the market? Is that CMA an honest CMA or one they believe you will accept? Did you tell them how much you want out of your home or need? Too many times, I have come across Agents that will tell the seller exactly what they want to hear, not what they honestly need to hear. Do you want your home to sit on the Market or do you want to sell it? If an Agent is honest they will give you an honest assessment of the value of your home, not tell you what they think you want to hear, then place their sign on your property and your home sits for a long time, with several price adjustments that only frustrate you and the Agent. Is your Agent actively involved in selling your property or do they put a sign and you don't hear from them till 2 weeks before the expiration date of the listing of your home? Do they actively pursue avenues to sell your home, do they think out of the box ideas to sell your home or do they just do the normal, same old, same old and not look for different ways to sell your home? You need to ask a lot of questions like these and more. If you are in a financial bind with your home and don't know what to do, find an Agent who has been there and understands what you are going through. This is one thing that I know a lot about, I lost my home because of the ineptness of an Agent and the theivery of that Agent as well.
You Ask what do you mean?
Here is my Story, We lived in our home for 10 years and refinanced it in the last couple of years. We only owed 28k on the home, when due to work circumstances we needed to move. We put the home up for sale by owner but that didn't come about. We had moved out of state and tried Renters, that didn't work either, they destroyed our home and damaged it. So we got an Agent and asked him to clean it up and sell it. The Agent was a pastor's son and explained how honest he was,etc. He said he had cleaned up the home (I found out later this wasn't true), we set the price but the market wasn't doing well then either. He, owned homes for Rent and I offered for him to buy our home at cost, his father did habitat for humanity and I asked if his father couldn't purchase the home but Again our Agent said that wasn't possible. A month before the foreclosure of our home, I again, asked the Agent to buy my home at cost and he said there was no way he could do that. He told me the market was just so hard right then and that he just couldn't find a buyer for our home. I had asked him on several occasions how he was advertising and he siad that he was advertising our home all over the place, but there simply wasn't any buyers. The following month, our home was sold on the steps of the courthouse to.... OUR AGENT, he bought it at the courhouse auction and within 3 weeks had our home sold to some buyers.
So I know what it is like to suffer through a Foreclosure, to have an incompetent Agent that not only made us lose our home but dishonestly purchased it and had buyers waiting to buy it.
Yes, I know what it is like to have incompetent Agents so that is why I am placing this advise on this blog. Watch Carefully, does your Agent Walk the Walk, or just Talk the Talk.
My committment to all my clients are that I promise to Walk the Walk and Talk the Talk.
I work hard and do everythign in my power to make sure my Sellers home sell and my Buyers get the home they want.
For Buyers
In picking an Agent, make sure they LISTEN to you and are aware of what you are looking for. Agents can't be perfect in picking your homes, but they can email you homes that might fit your criteria, if they don't give you this service, they are not the Agent for you.
Make sure,your Agent asks you, if you are Pre-Approved, this process is SO IMPORTANT!!!
Pre-Approval gives you the freedom to know exactly what price range you qualify for and what you can look for. It helps, after you make an offer, in fulfilling your process in the purchase of the home. Get an idea of the areas of the county you would like to live in. Your Agent should be able to give you a list of Lenders to contact,if your agent doesn't do this for you, they aren't the Agent for you.
Your Agent should be able to help you know about the area, find out what you are interested in and what quality of life you are looking for. If you are a city person, you certainly don't want to live out in the country away from the city. If you are a more suburban person, you don't want to live in the heart of the city, but you want the city close enough that it isn't a huge commute to shopping. If you are an in-between city and rural person, in otherwards you want the best of both worlds, you might want a smaller community but something that is close enough to the shopping and arts that you can get there within a half hour drive. If you are very rural, mountain, outdoors person, you will want, a home with land, a rural setting, something that helps you to feel like you can breath but also, be able to go out for outdoors activities.
Another item to think about is do you want an older or newer home, do you want a fixer upper or do you want a home that is low maintenance?
Also, ask about interest rates, this is important, especially right now, interest rates for this week are"
Product Rate
Conforming < $140k 4.375
Conforming > $140k 4.375
FHA 4.25
Rural Development 4.25
IHA 4.25
Interest Rates will make the difference in your qualifying process as well because of the difference between your quote received at your pre-qual and the interest rate at the time of your offer acceptance, sometimes interest rates change during that time period, there is a great program out there that is allows you to keep the same interest rates for 90 days while you go and look for a home. The good news is that if the rates go down, you get that lower rate but if the rates go up, you still keep your same interest rate. So talk to you lender about this. Also, the offer process is like a game, two players trying to come to common ground and both come out the victor. So sometime this process will take more than one offer exchange, usually both can come to a mutual agreement.
After the offer is accepted, you will start the Buyer's Due Dilligence process, your Agent should have had you sign this at the time of your first offer. The Buyer Due Dilligence entails a step by step process that helps the Buyer to know exactly what they are taking on with the home.
Your next important action to take is a Home Inspection, this is something I insist all of my Buyers do, it cost around $300 but well worth the money. I have had Buyers' pay as little as $250 for an inspection, but that amout of money, saved them thousands of dollars, in repairs, they would have had to make. SO make sure you know that when you go for a home, you will definitely put on your expense list, a Home Inspection. Your Agent should be able to give you a list of inspectors to contact. Your next big process will be your Appraisal, never purchase a home without an Appraisal, especially a For Sale By Owner.
Just to give you an example:
My client made an offer on a home, after an extensive, game process, her offer was accepted at 125k, we had an Appraisal, it came back at 136k (not a bad deal). My client was talking to her neighbor, who had just moved in and purchased their home, their home was exactly like hers, they had bought it from a FSBO (for sale by owner), didn't have an Appraisal, they paid 175K for the exact same home that my buyer purchased at 125K. ALWAYS GET AN APPRAISAL.
The next phase that you should be working on through all of this is the financing. Make sure you get everything into your lender, as quick as possible, this makes your purchase process go faster and easier, and you will also, learn early on, in the process, what items need to be taken care of . The reason this is so important, is if glitches in your financing are going to occur, you want to know about them, earlier than later. Keep on top of this process, it will save you a lot of time and money, don't forget that your Earnest Money is at stake at all times.
The final item is the closing, if everything is in order, your Agent should have received a HUD statment, your Agent should get that to you as quickly as possible and makes sure there isn't any errors or over charges on it.
Example:
I had a HUD statment that showed my Buyers owed 1200 more than they should have. Come to find out, the Bank (that owned the property) was trying to go against our agreements and have my Buyer's pay for their closing cost. I was able to get it fixed, before we closed and my Buyers' were able to purchase their dream home. Make sure your Agent is on top of this, it could save you in overages.
This part of my blog has just given you an outline of things. Contact me with more questions. I would be more than happy to answer your questions or Help you in Real Estate Needs.
For Sellers:
Is the Agent, advertising, on several, not just one, website, ask that agent how many websites they advertise on, do they advertise in the local paper, do they keep track of their signs, flyers in the box, hold several open houses, keep in constant contact with you, letting you know the progress and what is going on in the market, do a Free CMA (cCertified Market Analysis), so you know where you home stands on the market? Is that CMA an honest CMA or one they believe you will accept? Did you tell them how much you want out of your home or need? Too many times, I have come across Agents that will tell the seller exactly what they want to hear, not what they honestly need to hear. Do you want your home to sit on the Market or do you want to sell it? If an Agent is honest they will give you an honest assessment of the value of your home, not tell you what they think you want to hear, then place their sign on your property and your home sits for a long time, with several price adjustments that only frustrate you and the Agent. Is your Agent actively involved in selling your property or do they put a sign and you don't hear from them till 2 weeks before the expiration date of the listing of your home? Do they actively pursue avenues to sell your home, do they think out of the box ideas to sell your home or do they just do the normal, same old, same old and not look for different ways to sell your home? You need to ask a lot of questions like these and more. If you are in a financial bind with your home and don't know what to do, find an Agent who has been there and understands what you are going through. This is one thing that I know a lot about, I lost my home because of the ineptness of an Agent and the theivery of that Agent as well.
You Ask what do you mean?
Here is my Story, We lived in our home for 10 years and refinanced it in the last couple of years. We only owed 28k on the home, when due to work circumstances we needed to move. We put the home up for sale by owner but that didn't come about. We had moved out of state and tried Renters, that didn't work either, they destroyed our home and damaged it. So we got an Agent and asked him to clean it up and sell it. The Agent was a pastor's son and explained how honest he was,etc. He said he had cleaned up the home (I found out later this wasn't true), we set the price but the market wasn't doing well then either. He, owned homes for Rent and I offered for him to buy our home at cost, his father did habitat for humanity and I asked if his father couldn't purchase the home but Again our Agent said that wasn't possible. A month before the foreclosure of our home, I again, asked the Agent to buy my home at cost and he said there was no way he could do that. He told me the market was just so hard right then and that he just couldn't find a buyer for our home. I had asked him on several occasions how he was advertising and he siad that he was advertising our home all over the place, but there simply wasn't any buyers. The following month, our home was sold on the steps of the courthouse to.... OUR AGENT, he bought it at the courhouse auction and within 3 weeks had our home sold to some buyers.
So I know what it is like to suffer through a Foreclosure, to have an incompetent Agent that not only made us lose our home but dishonestly purchased it and had buyers waiting to buy it.
Yes, I know what it is like to have incompetent Agents so that is why I am placing this advise on this blog. Watch Carefully, does your Agent Walk the Walk, or just Talk the Talk.
My committment to all my clients are that I promise to Walk the Walk and Talk the Talk.
I work hard and do everythign in my power to make sure my Sellers home sell and my Buyers get the home they want.
For Buyers
In picking an Agent, make sure they LISTEN to you and are aware of what you are looking for. Agents can't be perfect in picking your homes, but they can email you homes that might fit your criteria, if they don't give you this service, they are not the Agent for you.
Make sure,your Agent asks you, if you are Pre-Approved, this process is SO IMPORTANT!!!
Pre-Approval gives you the freedom to know exactly what price range you qualify for and what you can look for. It helps, after you make an offer, in fulfilling your process in the purchase of the home. Get an idea of the areas of the county you would like to live in. Your Agent should be able to give you a list of Lenders to contact,if your agent doesn't do this for you, they aren't the Agent for you.
Your Agent should be able to help you know about the area, find out what you are interested in and what quality of life you are looking for. If you are a city person, you certainly don't want to live out in the country away from the city. If you are a more suburban person, you don't want to live in the heart of the city, but you want the city close enough that it isn't a huge commute to shopping. If you are an in-between city and rural person, in otherwards you want the best of both worlds, you might want a smaller community but something that is close enough to the shopping and arts that you can get there within a half hour drive. If you are very rural, mountain, outdoors person, you will want, a home with land, a rural setting, something that helps you to feel like you can breath but also, be able to go out for outdoors activities.
Another item to think about is do you want an older or newer home, do you want a fixer upper or do you want a home that is low maintenance?
Also, ask about interest rates, this is important, especially right now, interest rates for this week are"
Product Rate
Conforming < $140k 4.375
Conforming > $140k 4.375
FHA 4.25
Rural Development 4.25
IHA 4.25
Interest Rates will make the difference in your qualifying process as well because of the difference between your quote received at your pre-qual and the interest rate at the time of your offer acceptance, sometimes interest rates change during that time period, there is a great program out there that is allows you to keep the same interest rates for 90 days while you go and look for a home. The good news is that if the rates go down, you get that lower rate but if the rates go up, you still keep your same interest rate. So talk to you lender about this. Also, the offer process is like a game, two players trying to come to common ground and both come out the victor. So sometime this process will take more than one offer exchange, usually both can come to a mutual agreement.
After the offer is accepted, you will start the Buyer's Due Dilligence process, your Agent should have had you sign this at the time of your first offer. The Buyer Due Dilligence entails a step by step process that helps the Buyer to know exactly what they are taking on with the home.
Your next important action to take is a Home Inspection, this is something I insist all of my Buyers do, it cost around $300 but well worth the money. I have had Buyers' pay as little as $250 for an inspection, but that amout of money, saved them thousands of dollars, in repairs, they would have had to make. SO make sure you know that when you go for a home, you will definitely put on your expense list, a Home Inspection. Your Agent should be able to give you a list of inspectors to contact. Your next big process will be your Appraisal, never purchase a home without an Appraisal, especially a For Sale By Owner.
Just to give you an example:
My client made an offer on a home, after an extensive, game process, her offer was accepted at 125k, we had an Appraisal, it came back at 136k (not a bad deal). My client was talking to her neighbor, who had just moved in and purchased their home, their home was exactly like hers, they had bought it from a FSBO (for sale by owner), didn't have an Appraisal, they paid 175K for the exact same home that my buyer purchased at 125K. ALWAYS GET AN APPRAISAL.
The next phase that you should be working on through all of this is the financing. Make sure you get everything into your lender, as quick as possible, this makes your purchase process go faster and easier, and you will also, learn early on, in the process, what items need to be taken care of . The reason this is so important, is if glitches in your financing are going to occur, you want to know about them, earlier than later. Keep on top of this process, it will save you a lot of time and money, don't forget that your Earnest Money is at stake at all times.
The final item is the closing, if everything is in order, your Agent should have received a HUD statment, your Agent should get that to you as quickly as possible and makes sure there isn't any errors or over charges on it.
Example:
I had a HUD statment that showed my Buyers owed 1200 more than they should have. Come to find out, the Bank (that owned the property) was trying to go against our agreements and have my Buyer's pay for their closing cost. I was able to get it fixed, before we closed and my Buyers' were able to purchase their dream home. Make sure your Agent is on top of this, it could save you in overages.
This part of my blog has just given you an outline of things. Contact me with more questions. I would be more than happy to answer your questions or Help you in Real Estate Needs.
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