More consumers using Realtors (TM)
Actually, more consumers are using real estate agents or brokers, in general. Not just members of the National Association of Realtors (TM). corrected 1/27
I found a Realty Times article via my Linked-in account. So I took a look... It was a discussion of the results of the NAR (National Association of Realtors(tm)) annual survey.
NAR found that more buyers are using the services of an agent. Their figure is 89 percent, up from 69 percent a decade ago. According to the Realty Times:
"More than ever home buyers are relying on real estate agents and brokers to help them with their home purchase regardless of whether the home they are buying is a foreclosure, short sale, or even a FSBO sale because they need a real estate agent to help them through the process."
NAR says that an agent who can help a buyer discern the best type of housing, the best locations and help simplify the process is both convenient and valuable to consumers. Their research shows that members of the association are working heavily with buyers. This year, the market conditions made it more important to use an agent. Foreclosures and short sales further complicated the process.
This is all the same blah-de-dah to me until I got near the end of the piece. There, the research found that dual agency is not playing well with consumers. This, to me, is very good news.
The 2011 Profile found that more buyers are opting against dual agency, where the agent represents both the buyer and seller. This could signal that today's buyers are very cautious about getting into the market. While a dual agent isn't supposed to harbor any bias, buyers now want to be extra sure they are getting the best deal possible. In fact, "60 percent of recent buyers had an oral or written arrangement with the real estate agent or broker so that the buyer's agent only represented the buyer and not the seller."
I don't write about agency that much because exclusive buyer agency is central to my business model and I don't want to be tooting my own horn here.
Lance, and other pros here, do not want or need an agent's service. But, if the whopping 89 percent NAR figure is anywhere near accurate, many people do. (69 percent is a pretty high figure, too!) The more that a consumer depends on an agent, the more vulnerable he or she is, if the agent has a conflict of interest. Consumers who need the advice of an agent should know, up front, who the agent represents, and may represent later in the transaction.
Dual agency continues to be poorly explained and poorly disclosed. Do you have questions about agency in Massachusetts?
If you used an agent, did you see the disclosure up front? Did you opt for a written agency contract (and did it allow designated agency)?
