Why have an agent?

You probably know that not everyone wants to have a real estate agent, and that is perfectly o.k., as long as the decision is made knowingly.

In the example of a journey, I have taken minor trips to a place I haven't been before and simply let the local events and culture guide me, with the result being a good time. However buying a home is not a minor trip, it is more like a long journey, half way around the world, where the consequences of not planning or not having accurate information, could lead to many unpleasant surprises.

Lets take a moment and review, what the implications are for going through the process of buying a home with no or partial representation (customer) versus full representation (client).

CUSTOMERS are SOLD, CLIENTS are REPRESENTED.

Look at a scenario that occurs everyday. A buyer walks into an open house or a model home, they are greeted by an agent that quickly tries to establish some rapport. After the agent is able to establish rapport, they start to ask some probing questions, about what the buyer is looking for, and their ability to buy the house that the agent is selling. The questions will include such things as features, price range, mortgage qualifications and on and on.

Now it is the job of that agent to utilize the information they gather to sell the buyer the house, or one of the builder's houses with terms that are favorable to the seller. If the buyer has volunteered that they can afford the list price or more, and offers less than the list price, it is the legal responsibility of the agent to relay that information to the seller, so that the seller can negotiate price and terms favorable to themselves. On the other hand, if the seller is willing to take less than list price, it is the legal responsibility of the agent to withhold this information from the buyer.

Many times the buyer does not even know that this is occurring, because the seller's agent has established rapport and is working with the buyer to solve any problems that might prevent the buyer from purchasing the house.

Nevertheless, in this scenario, while the agent is working with the buyer, they are working for the seller and will represent their client's best interests, in this case selling a customer a home.