For Buyers
Services
Buying Residential and Investment Property
The services of a buyer’s agent have come under fire as Internet tools get better and better for the consumer. My value to buyers is not that I can find you a house or that I can do the contract paperwork. That side of the job has been pretty much commodotized and in some cases automated. My primary value is all of the work that is done is done once a property is targeted as a potential winner. This includes, but is not limited to:
- pricing and property research
- market analysis and appreciation trends
- research for negotiation leverage
- strategizing and assembling a competitive offer
- be the 3rd party system of checks and balances so the buyer doesn’t get too emotionally carried away
- be the trained eye to see potential flaws in a house that could cause issues later
- participating in the inspection of the property
- participating in the escrow signing (you’d be surprised how many escrow or lender errors I’ve caught at the signing table)
Buying Commercial Property
As a business owner or investor, buying commercial space is a huge step in the growth of your business. The services I offer for commercial buyers are fairly similar to residential buyers. The emphasis however is in the numbers. You’re running a business and therefore the numbers are the most important thing.
Costs
The current industry model for compensating the buyer’s agent is quite backwards. The seller pays for their listing agent and the buyer’s agent out of their proceeds of the sale. That’s like you suing me and you’re going to pay for both your lawyer and mine. It makes absolutely no sense. (Check the blog content for more on this topic). Yet it’s how it’s been done for years now.
Each listing on the MLS (of CBA for commercial) has a commission amount already pre-set for that listing. Most of the time, the amount being offered to the buyer’s agent is an acceptable amount for me. If or when that amount is not enough or is non-existent, it will be brought to your attention. If you would like to know what that amount is for a particular listing, or every listing we look at, I have no problem of disclosing that information. In my mind, I’m working for you (even though somehow I’m being paid by the other team) and I’ll do what’s necessary to make sure your needs are met first.
If you only require specific parts of my services for buyers, the cost for the selected services will be determined on a case-by-case situation. For example, you’ve located the property you want to buy and you need me to handle everything after that to closing.
Business Philosophy
*note* Some of this is a slight re-hash of the content above, but in more depth and detail.
Not too long ago, a significant portion of a real estate agent’s value to a client was the information they had on what homes were for sale. That information was kept in a system accessible only to agents called the MLS. With the advent of the Internet and the plethora of real estate websites that feed off of the MLS, most of that information has become readily available to the public.
Many agents do not like how the information that was once only ours is being shared to the public. My guess as to why these agents are upset is that they see their value diminishing as more and more people turn to the Internet to search for homes instead of turning to their agents. I see the Internet as a blessing to my business philosophy. If I have clients asking me to look at a set of homes they found online, it keeps me from having to play a guessing game as to what kind of home my client really likes. The less time I play games, the more time I can spend analyzing market data, picking out market trends, determining what the best price is for a particular house and digging for information as negotiation leverage. That is something most people do not have the time nor knowhow to do (it’s also not as fun as looking at houses online).
My value to my clients is not how well I can navigate a web-site, but it is gathering and interpreting all the information that is available for a seller, for a home, for a neighborhood, or for an entire market. Of course, I can still “find” houses for them as my online tools are more detailed than what the average buyer has access to, but even that’s starting to change as the consumer tools online are getting better and better. I just don’t consider that part of my job as the biggest asset to my clients. When I’m hired, it’s not usually to surf the web for listings (though I still do it anyway).
There’s a saying that “Information Is King.” While that may be very true, my value lies more in what I can interpret from and do with that information.
The other value I bring to the table is my experience in seeing the houses for what they are …good or bad. I make it a point to try and follow an inspector around and learn as much as I can. I have no intention of taking over an inspector’s job, but it’s more knowledge and experience I bring to my buyers while they are shopping.
My goal is for my clients to achieve their goals. My real estate license may say “real estate salesperson,” but I consider myself more of a consultant or an adviser than a salesperson. Houses, for the most part, will sell themselves. What you need is a trained eye and someone that knows the numbers inside and out.
