Maui Homes Guide - Chapter 5 - Choosing A Realtor
Anthony Freda
I am a Devoted Dad, an Active Supporter-Volunteer with the Maui Humane Society, and a Committed Pursuer of Lifelong Learning: Hospitality Leadership CHA?| Association Management CMCA?, AMS? | Real Estate RSPS?
If you are like many people, the chances are good that you looked around multiple neighborhoods, saw some homes on the market, possibly visited an open house or two, and then felt stalled. What is the next step? Approach the homeowner? Visit a Realtor?
Finding the right Realtor when buying a home depends on what you are looking for in a home. You may have to visit several agents before finding one that listens attentively to get a proper understanding of your wants and needs. After all, you will probably be paying them a commission once you have found your home, so you should feel comfortable working with them during the home buying process.
Choosing a Realtor
There are a few ways to find a reliable Realtor. Some examples are:?
Asking plenty of questions before looking at houses may seem like a lot of leg work, but when you meet with a Realtor for the first time, you should ask questions that will help you get to know the person you will be partnering with finding your ideal home. The six best questions to ask are:
Once you have asked these questions, you should be looking for honest and complete answers, good communication skills, and eye contact. These are questions that the Realtor should have practice in answering and should not have to give you a standard "salesperson" response.
Once you feel comfortable in this new relationship, ask to learn more about the homes that meet your criteria. Typically, if a Realtor does not have sufficient properties that fit what you are looking for, they will recommend you to another Realtor in their group. It is a good sign because it shows that your business partner and brokerage are looking out for your interests and employees.
Pay attention to the following:
Ultimately, you will have to be the judge of the real estate agent. If they know their stuff, are resourceful and responsive, and listen intently, you have a solid foundation from which to continue.
Many agents ask you to sign a listing agreement, indicating that you are committed to each other in pursuing your real estate goals. Understandably, a Realtor will desire you to complete such a document before they devote their professional time and efforts on your behalf. While you are under no obligation to sign a listing agreement during your search, it demonstrates your belief in the partnership. It will certainly motivate the agent to meet your objectives.
All Kinds of Agents
You will find various experiences, personality styles, and productivity levels during your search for a real estate agent. As with most decisions in life, choose who and what feels best to you; the value proposition holds here.
Experienced Agents vs. New Agents
This debate is as old as the ages themselves. While an experienced agent may have sold more homes and earned more commissions, new agents can be just as helpful and need to get some sales under their belt, which often prompts them to work harder on your behalf.
While you should ask about their real estate experience, you should also consider other relevant experiences and core traits, such as abilities to listen and present only homes in your price range actively. Experienced and new agents receive similar ongoing training; their personalities and work ethic are often essential tiebreakers.?
Pushy Agents
Unfortunately, you may meet real estate agents who want to see you more of a home than you need. A pushy agent will try this tactic to earn more massive commissions or sell those more difficult to market properties. Your time is precious, so if an agent keeps showing you homes that are in no way close to your stated range or do not meet your requirements, you should look to work with a different agent.
Hard Working Agents
These are the agents that will follow every lead, pass your wants and needs to another agent, and try their very best to find you a home. You should expect to see a handful of homes when working with an agent like this one. These are the best agents to sign with; don't lose them if you find an agent like this.
Now that you know more about what to look for in a real estate agent, I hope you feel more comfortable working with one. Realtors are invaluable sources of information when you want to learn about homes, neighborhoods, and other details required to make a well-informed decision.?
Preparing to See Homes with Your Realtor
Once you have found a Realtor you are comfortable with, you will want to make the most of your house-hunting time. Giving your Realtor a list of what you are looking for will help narrow the search and save everyone some time. Your plan should include:
Giving your real estate agent a list of preferences will allow them to spend quality time researching homes that fit the criteria. It would be best to list the amenities from greatest to least important because no house is perfect, and you want to focus on your priorities. Let your agent know that you are flexible, but you want to concentrate on specific items when looking for your home.
Viewing Homes
When you and your agent are looking at homes, be sure to ask any questions you have as they arise. While some items may seem small, they may be essential to your happiness. Common questions people ask their Realtor are:
While your agent may answer some of these questions before you ask them, you should ask questions that influence your home buying decision. If you do not want to put too much work into fixing up the home, you may want to buy a home that is ten years old or less or an older home that has already benefitted from quality renovations and upgrades.
If your agent does not immediately have answers to all of your questions, a hard-working Realtor should be able to find out most and respond to you in a few days.
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Taking Pictures
One of the best ways to remember the homes you have seen is to bring your camera/phone and take many pictures. Get permission from your agent before taking photographs inside another person's home.?
After looking at a few houses, you will often forget details such as how big the kitchen in home number two was, compared to home number five. Having pictures will give you a better idea of the square footage and how much room you will have to work with?
Narrowing Down Your Choices
After a few weeks of viewing homes that fit what you are looking for, you should be close to finding a home that you will want to make an offer. If you have other homes you would like to see, or you have changed your mind as to what you are looking for, you should tell your agent so that they can look for other homes.
If a person likes the neighborhood but not the home they saw, they will want to see other homes in the community that are for sale. It would be best to see all of the homes available in a neighborhood that you like.?
If you are still not finding a home you like, you may need to tour other neighborhoods. While this can seem disappointing, your real estate agent will be happy to show you homes in different communities. Sometimes if you compare homes to one another, you will find redeeming qualities in a home you have already seen.?
Once you have found a home that you like, you should make an offer. Contact your Realtor as soon as you can so that they can draw up the paperwork, contact the buyer's agent, and make an offer before another person does. Make an offer as soon as you can to avoid a bidding war. Also, getting pre-qualified for a home loan puts you a massive, time-consuming step ahead of your competition.?
Information, Your Realtor, Should Tell You
Your real estate agent should be there to guide you along during this time. Ask all the questions you have before making an offer on a home.?
Usually, if a Realtor does not have the information on hand, they can easily pull it up after returning to their office. You should find out all the information you need to decide about buying a home confidently. Laws require realtors to provide you with information about repairs, damage, and the history of the house, including any incidents, such as criminal activity, fire, and other events.
Other information a Realtor can tell you include:
Your Realtor is a person that should be well acquainted with the neighborhoods you are looking at when buying your home. The best ones specialize in specific areas so that they are always on top of the most current data, trends, and changes in your preferred neighborhood. Don't be afraid to ask questions.
Working with Sellers and Buyers Agents
As a home buyer, your Realtor is considered the buyer's agent. While some people will forego hiring an agent at first when looking for a home to save money on commission costs, they will usually end up hiring an agent to:?
Negotiations with Sellers
Most people who sell their homes are also working with a Realtor, and this person is known as a seller's agent. If you choose not to hire a Realtor, you will be dealing with a seller's agent looking out for the homeowner's interests and not yours.
Negotiating with agents can take a week or more, depending on how high you are willing to go and how low the current owners can lower their price expectations. This can become complicated once you introduce home inspectors. If you feel that the initial home inspection identifies required repairs before the home sale, you will have to negotiate with the owners to settle on a fair price. Without an agent, you will have to do all of this work yourself.?
Paperwork
When buying a home, there is much paperwork to complete before the closing. Such paperwork can include:
Completing the paperwork is not overly complicated if you have the training and guidance, but it can take some time. Working with an agent will save you time and money when creating and sending out various documents.?
Survey Neighborhoods
Another advantage of hiring a Realtor is that you will not have to do as much legwork initially. You may have a few neighborhoods in mind, but you will be able to leave it to your agent to find homes and set appointments to see them.?
This is another time-saver, especially if you have to work, live outside of the chosen neighborhoods, or have other life priorities that command your attention.?
Realtors save you time, instill confidence in the decision-making process, and provide excellent value.
Anthony Freda | RS-74661
Aloha Group Maui | Keller Williams Realty Maui
MauiHomesGuide.com | 808-990-2961