Sam says, "It's about choosing well."

I would avoid using a realtor whenever possible, I have found they provide disinformation, and add little or no value to the transaction, however if you must use one, keep their involvement to a minimum. Just about everyone people can search online and narrow down their candidates for home purchase. The broker just has to show up and open the door. From there the buyer makes his offer, if accepted, they line up a financing source and home inspection (as a buyer NEVER accept the realtor's referral for a home inspection, or financing, get your own). Hire your own legal counsel and have him review the P & S, prior to signing as well as all closing docs prior to closing. I deally you want a realtor who is involved as liitle as possible, as they will merely put unwarranted pressure on all the involved parties (banks, lawyers, etc.)

Amen Mr. Wang-
Now I will wait for everyone to say "You must have had a bad experience with a RE, and you don't know what type of services they truly* provide, and how much training/schooling we have."

My answer: Could care less, it's not brain surgery. I have yet to see a list of things that they do that I can't do myself.

That's fine for you, Katt and Hung Wang. Some people don't haven the time or inclination to do the work of an agent themselves. You are looking at this from only your perspectives.

Sam's suggestions are very good for those who do choose to work with an agent.

Many of the regular readers of this blog know that Hung Wang is a veteran property owner/investor, and if I recall correctly, a former real estate licensee. He brings more experience to the table than many currently active Realtors. I find that people with significant experience in the industry, be they currently licensed or not, are a pleasure to work with. They know how to effectively reach agreements that are productive for all parties concerned.

We are an information based society. Most prospective home buyers and sellers are looking to be schooled in the process of real estate transactions. Most of that learning begins on the Internet. Over 85% of buyers/sellers use the Internet for real estate research. And of those, 87% purchased their home with the assistance of a real estate agent. Most homeowners rarely buy or sell real estate on their own and need help through the process. It can be complicated and if you make a mistake it can cost you thousands of dollars.

There are a number of resources you can use to find a qualified agent that can meet your real estate needs. There’s word of mouth from friends and family who are satisfied customers. There’s print advertising. And as I stated earlier, by far the most accessed resource is the Internet. There are web sites that feature both agents and Realtors giving information about their real estate specialties, years of experience, number of transactions, designations, etc. Connect2Agent.com is one such site that provides over 6,000 agent profiles from across the country. It’s a free research tool that can help a buyer/seller select a qualified agent you can
trust.S

There are many bank owned and short sale properties on the current market. I would say for those deals you very much need an agent because the seller's agent is going to be no help to you, the buyer, whatsoever. You have to be very savvy, tough and have lots of free time to spend on the phone to get through those deals.

And there are also pre-construction properties. You have to know what to ask especially where a mortgage is concerned for these properties.

I'm browsing the market as an eventual first-time buyer (still a year or two away -- waiting for prices to eventually settle while also growing a respectable down payment), and I'm finding the web to be extremely useful for finding good information, both for listings and for the buying process.

I'm wary of seeking realtor advice, as I think they'd be inclined to push a sale in order to make their commission. When have you ever seen a realtor or realtor assoc say anything other than "Buy now! It's a great time to buy!"?
However, I've only dealt with rental agents so far, who tend to be, well, jerks, so that could color my impressions a bit.

Sally/#3: Re "people don't haven the time": That rubs me a bit -- surely a typical buyer would be interested in getting some background before making such an important financial decision? I personally plan to be reasonably knowledgeable of the market, the buying process, and my options before I start seriously shopping.

Nick,
I was referring mostly to the part of the process *after* your offer is accepted. The period of time between that and the closing are what many people don't have time for if they work full time and can't be on the phone for long periods during the day. Buyers should most definitely be informed but they may not have time to follow up, negotiate,and manage the deal. That's all I'm saying. Some of my clients travel extensively for business, are in all day meetings or surgery! I have had seller clients very ill and unable to take part in the process. There are many reasons people use agents.

Ask for half your commission back Nick if you're going to use a RE...

Look up RE with "commission rebates" they're out there even if they won't admit it.

Save yourself some of your *own* money.

Sally one would like to think that people are smart enough to invest a little time, and effort in knowing as much as they can about a property before they make what for many is the biggest asset purchase of their lives. Sure people are always busy, but they have to make time, just like anything else (kids, exercise, etc). On a bank-owned deal, there is even LESS reason to have a broker involved. True, you need to be patient (which is a good thing!), but make your offer, stick to it, and have your lawyer do much of the leg work, it is hardly rocket science (I've bought over 20 bank-owned/reo's in my life) and I'm no Einstein.

"There are those that know they know, there are those who know they don't know, and then there are those who don't know that they don't know." -Author Unknown

Brian "Hunny" Mullen,

I work at my computer a good part of the day and check in to this blog sometimes. I am always looking to educate myself and this blog is part of that. There is much that can be learned here. I also see it as a chance to educate others, especially when people go on and on about how agency is not "rocket science" and so forth. Some people tend to see life only from their narrow perspective and cannot imagine that life is different for others. What are you offering of value here?

The point of this blog post was to provide some advice to those that would like to explore the option of finding an agent that will do more than make appointments, drive them around and pressure them. While some readers don't want to deal with agents, others do.
Considering that the majority of property is listed with agents, that means that the majority of buyers will have to interact them. Those buyers have the choice between dealing with a listing agent that will, by the nature of their job description, pressure the buyer. Since the buyer is paying for the property which includes the brokerage fee, why not at least try to find an agent that you think will actually advocate for you?
If, like Hung Wang and Katt, you can not find an agent that you can trust and will live up to your expectations, you should not hire them or try using an agency whos maodel is to give you some of their commission back, but be sure that someone is looking out for your deposit. (HINT: many attorneys and agents do NOT monitor P+S contingencies after they produce the P+S. That is left to the buyer, who is supposed to understand all 4-12 pages of the P+S that he/she has signed.)

Sam-
Don't spin what I say, nor what Mr. Wang says. It's not a 'trust' issue, and there are NO expectations that I expect from an agent. They're simply not necessary. BUT since the majority of sellers (We weren't one of them- we used an "entry only" listing selling a condo, all we wanted was the MLS) use RE's to sell their property, I say, "yea use one, but find one that you can at least get 50% of your commission back from them (like we did, when we purchased 'our' first home) and have them fax a thing or 2, or make a phone call here and there just to make them work a little for their cash. I wouldn't trust an agent with anything concerning the P&S except faxing it.

We bought our own attorney- not a bank's attorney to look over all of our paperwork, because honestly, a bank's attorney could care less about your well being. Money well spent- they were working for US. So, long story short- find a buyer's agent who will give you your own money back and hire your own lawyer, your own home inspector, your own EVERYTHING.

It's not a trust issue- I don't have those. It's more like "you deserve to keep some of your own money" issue. Having a few extra thousand dollars in your pocket AFTER a home purchase is a good thing in my book.

If you can't understand the P&S, you shouldn't be buying a house in the first place.

No trust issues?
katt says: "I wouldn't TRUST an agent with anything concerning the P&S except faxing it." and "It's not a TRUST issue- I don't have those." Huh?

Sam , of course it is important to monitor your financing commitment date, as well as your deposit (the buyer should always be aware of this date), if there are delays in financing, the buyer can always ask for an extension (in this market, if the buyer is financially capable, he will most likely get it), however, if not a buyer can always have their lender deny their loan prior to commitment expiration and protect their deposit. There's always a few financing conditions one can exploit to get out of a deal and the lender if he wants your future business will gladly provide you with a denial..

You're missing the point Confused in Boston.

Trust issues are things you have with a spouse, and need to be on Dr. Phil. I'm good on those. The language that Mr. Schneiderman uses is PURE RE spin. I bet he says, "Welcome home!" when a person enters a listing to view it. Gross.

Not wanting/trusting a RE to do anything more than fax a paper or make a phone call is CYOA, and it's common sense. If you want something done right [and you can do it yourself] you do it yourself. So if having common sense and a trust issue are the same thing....I'm at a loss

Here's my problem with agents. I've been going to open houses for a few months now trying to figure out what I like. I'm unrepresented. It seems like the seller agents (with very few exceptions) don't give a rats ass about their sellers and are just using the open houses to get more buyer clients. Every week from the 5 to 7 open houses I go to, I get 4 emails offering me unsolicited advice in the hopes that they become my agent (not to mention sign me up for updates...I think i'm getting email updates to my house search email account from 6 or 7 different agents). Some are more smooth about it but others flat out say "I noticed on your information sheet that you are not working with a Realtor and I wanted to let you know that I’d be glad to help you with your home search if you’d like."

I've only gotten 2 emails out of at least 20 that are actually agents doing anything on behalf of the property I've seen (saying there's an offer, asking if I want to put one in). If at any point I want an agent, I'd be more likely to trust them then those who sell their sellers down river by only following up on the fact that I'm unrepresented.

Also agents that hear I'm pre-approved are even more aggressive about it. Mentioning that many properties are under agreement before they hit MLS " I would hate to see you miss out on something because you are waiting for Open Houses. Please reconsider a meeting so that I can assist you."

This agent may be right, but I probably wouldn't want that property anyway because I wouldn't get the best value from it if it has suitors right away. Whereas a property that's been on the market for 150+ days, I'll be able to negotiate (or even lowball).

As for bringing my own lawyer, inspector, etc, I don't understand why you wouldn't. A lawyer/inspector that works with the agent on a regular basis most likely won't have your best interest in mind. If an inspector is thorough and scuttles several agreements because of that, do you think an agent will risk recommending him again? Probably not and I bet inspectors know that too. Similarly with lawyers. Not that they'll lie, but they may minimize something that's not trivial that may cost you in the long run. My roommate, who owns the condo that I live in right now, got burned by an inspector who was recommended by his agent because he completely missed several major problems with the place.

Also, I plan on using the fact that I'm unrepresented to get a few more % knocked off the price in my negotiating.

LG-
Prolly won't work like that unless the seller's agent is going to say that they'll cough up some of their 5-6% full commission which they'll tell you they are 'under contract' to get. They're not going to give that up unless they're completely honest about their desperation.