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 Linscott Real Estate
 
Selling Your Home
Brian Linscott
Phone (207) 767-3366 Fax (207) 767-5738 Linscott Real Estate 22 Cottage Road South Portland, ME 04106 |
What Can A Buyer's Agent Do For You? One of the most important decisions in our lives is to buy a home. It’s usually the single most expensive item we will ever purchase. During the course of the year we spend about a third of our income on our housing. When people make a decision to buy a home there are many factors to consider and a great buyers agent will help guide you through the process while looking out for your best interests. What can a buyer’s agent do for you? Buyer agents have full access to the MLS system, which automatically updates itself when new listings come onto the market. It’s not uncommon to check the MLS 6-8 times a day to see if any new homes are coming onto the market or if any current homes on the market come down in price. Most tech savvy agents have this information forwarded to their cell phones. Buyer agents should know the local neighborhoods; school systems and amenities to better help buyers locate the areas that are a better fit for their needs. If the buyer agent knows the area’s they are likely to maximize the buyers time to avoid wasting time looking at homes in area’s that are not a good fit for the buyers. When a seller hires an agent to list their home, that agent has fiduciary duty to try and sell the home for the highest amount of money and for the best terms for the seller. The buyer agent is obligated to work solely for the buyer trying to help the buyer negotiate and get the best terms and price for the property. After locating a property the buyers are interested in the buyer agent should start the process and do some research. A call to the listing agent to find out if there is any other interest on the property, if any offers had been made on the property, when the seller wants to move and any other particulars the listing agent wants to share. Another very important thing the buyer agent is obligated to do for their buyers is when a buyers wants to make an offer on the property the buyer agent should be doing a market analysis on the property to determine market value. This is a step that “Has To” be done! We are talking about the number one purchase most people make in their lives and thousands of dollars are at stake. After the home is under contract the inspections are done and the buyers agent should be there with the buyers and the inspector to learn more about the home. If the inspector identifies any hazards in the home, or items that have been neglected, the buyer agent should work with the buyer to and ask the seller to repair or compensate the buyer for them to do the repairs. This is a major step along the pathway to purchasing a home. We are not looking for some items at this point. We are looking for more significant repairs that we did not know about already before the inspection. A good buyers agent will be able to offer to their buyers a few options on financing. There are so many programs out there. From no doc loans, to balloon loans. Beware! The buyer agent will direct buyers to a few good and reputable lenders. There are so many things to consider when purchasing a home. Hiring a “Good” buyers agent is one of the first steps. Make sure the buyer agent has a team of support that will work in your best interest. Look for your agent to offer you names of lenders, electricians, plumbers, carpenter, handyman, and many other services you should have access to. Buying a home is a very rewarding process. Make sure you are surrounding yourself with “Top Notch” professionals that will always look out for your best interest.
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