If you’re beginning your search for the perfect house, you probably have a lot of questions. The first may be if you need to have a realtor to lease a property. What are the advantages and disadvantages to using a realtor when searching for your dream home. Keep reading to learn about realtors and what they can do for you.
If You Think You Can’t Afford a Realtor…
If paying for an agent is the only thing keeping you from using a realtor’s services, keep in mind that a landlord pays an expense to whoever helped someone discover their property to lease. The potential tenant does not pay. This isn’t the case everywhere though, so check in with your real estate agents before you use their services. In some cases, it may cost next to nothing for you to use the services of a professional.
The Pros and Cons of Hiring a Real Estate Agent
If you’re a first time renter, buyer, or seller, it can be tricky to navigate the complex and competitive real estate industry on your own. This is why many choose to use the services provided by a real estate agent or realtor. These experts can help you figure out how to sell your home as quickly as possible for the highest price. Agents can also help you find the perfect property, navigate tricky legal jargon, and actually find a property that meets your expectations. 93% of home deals have a specialist assisting. Having a realtor can be extremely helpful for anyone trying to sell or buy swiftly.
What are the Advantages of Hiring a Real Estate Agent?
If you find the right agent for your situation, there can be many benefits to utilizing a real estate professional.
By hiring a full-service agent (opposed to a discount broker), you’ll experience some of these upsides:
Save Time and Energy
Unless you enjoy devoting all of your free time on the evenings and weekends to house-hunting, saving time and energy is one of the biggest upsides to using an agent. This isn’t just on the buying end either. Utilizing a selling agent will take off the stress of staging, providing tours, and dealing with legal documents.
Avoid Repairs and Upgrades
A great agent usually has a network of professional contacts, including house inspectors, attorneys, landscapers, contractors, and agents in different places or who focus on different specialities. If you use an agent, you already have contacts to all the services necessary for home owning.
Have an Expert on Your Side
No one knows the local market better than a licensed real estate agent. They’ll know market trends, appropriate price points, and the best methods of advertising. It can be hard to find people you trust within real estate, so having someone you know is fighting for you can be comfortable for many first-time buyers of sellers.
Relax During Negotiating
Negotiating a property price can be an art in it of itself. Trained agents will take over negotiating and work to find the best price for your property that maximizes your profit. Usually, negotiating is the most stressful part of the process, but with a reliable agent, you can sit back and relax during the negotiations instead.
What are the Disadvantages of Hiring a Real Estate Agent?
If you find the right agent, you’ll most likely avoid most inconveniences. But keep in mind there are downsides to agents as well. This is not to deter you from hiring an agent (ultimately, we recommend it for those who can), but to help you understand the possible cons to enlisting a specialist.
Let’s take a look at some of them:
High Commissions
Like many services, the more experienced an agent is, the more they’ll charge. With real estate professionals, you pay for what you get. Be prepared to pay about 6% of the sale price of your house for the agent. That’s 6% of the total sale price, not just your profit from the sale. Commissions are usually lower for discount brokers, but in exchange for your savings, you’ll lose some of the benefits exclusively provided by experienced agents.
One of Many Clients
Agents usually have multiple clients at once, making it difficult for them to dedicate time to everyone evenly. Depending on how busy your agent may be, your home may not get the attention it requires to sell. If you’re interested in committing to an agent, do your research on them first. Check out their website and see if there are any testimonials. If you know someone who’s worked with the agent before, ask them a few questions about the diligence and organizational skills.
Having a “Middle Man”
If you’re selling your house, and one of your prospective buyers is also represented by an agent, any potential deal would go through the two agents, serving as intermediaries. This could facilitate a deal, or it could not, depending on the skills of both agents involved.
Someone Else’s Schedule
Many people, whether they’re selling or buying, are usually in a time crunch when searching for housing. When relocating to a new city, you won’t want to waste months and months searching for a home. Vice versa, if you’re on the selling end, you don’t want your home sitting on the market any longer than it needs to. When using an agent, you’re usually at the mercy of someone else’s timeline, which can be inconvenient for those in a hurry.
Surprisingly, many realize they’d found the wrong agent only when it’s too late. It’s important to think through what you want from your agent before you hire them. Keep in mind that agents are salespeople attempting to win over your business and they’ll be trying to sell themselves to you and persuade you why you should use their services.
Agents can be extremely helpful, especially for first-time buyers or sellers. Make sure to weigh all the advantages and disadvantages when deciding if hiring a real estate professional is the right decision for you.
