What Can Your Agent Do ?

Too often for both buyers and sellers the question "Why can't you take care of that, you are my agent!" Comes up during a conversation.  As your agent we do work for you, you in all reality are our boss and there are many aspects to our job that give us a large amount of control, but at the very same time their are parts that we do not have any control over.

Why Can't You Put More Information On The Listing ! 

• This is the toughest question to answer, because we are not only limited on the amount of room that is given on the description of your home but also what we can or can not say.  The Multiple Listing Service of Long Island has a very strict policy on what can and what can not be said.  Even a simple infraction can cost upwards of $250 for your Realtor.  Things like "Fantastic Schools" or "Up and Coming Area" are not acceptable on a listing so when reviewing your listing. 

• Affiliated sites like Trulia, Zillow, Yahoo Homes and many others pull their information directly from the MLS site, we do have control over whose information is listed for potential buyers to contact but we are not able to require specific information from a buyer who is placing the request.  These websites decide themselves on what is required from the buyer - some only require a name and phone number where others will require name, phone number, and email.  Coldwell Banker Residential does have a specific team for all inquiries placed through our direct site, these buyers are called immediately to get all the information for the agent.  

Why Didn't The Agent Know ! 

• This is a question that is not just frustrating for a homeowner, but for agents as well.  We do not have control over the knowledge of other Realtors, or even the way in which they show a home.  That being said that Realtor may not have control over a buyer insisting on seeing a property even if the Realtor knows it's not the right fit.  That saying you can lead the horse to water but you can't make him drink is the best fitting for this situation.

• We can speak to another agent about the great energy efficiency of a home, the recent upgrades, even simple aspects like the kind of sale the home is but we can not force them to relay this information to the buyers.  This is why many agents myself included prefer be there for all showings of our listings, unfortunately even than sometimes a lack of communication between buyer and agent can lead to a frustrating situation.  Try to give your Realtor a break, if they are attending showings they are trying to be as proactive as they possibly can be to make sure all showings of your home go well. 

Tell The Buyers/Attorney/Bank/Town To Hurry Up ! 

• Your agent will become the liaison between all parties during your transaction, communicating between all parties is actually the reason buyers and sellers opt to use an agent rather than trying to do it on their own.  It is important to realize and understand that sometimes even your agents hands are tied.  

• We can recommend to you our thoughts on a buyers offer but we can not negotiate offers or terms without you telling us to.  That is as much input we are legally allowed to is advise you on a situation, leaving the decision ultimately up to you.  Things like "low ball offers" must be given to you, even when we may clearly know that you will not counter or entertain - this can be frustrating for a homeowner but if you receive more than 2 or 3 of these offers you should take another look at your market to be sure your home is in fact priced correctly. 

• When reviewing contracts your agent needs to be very clear and specific on relaying the terms that were agreed upon to be sure they go into that contract.  The amount of time till commitment is required, closing date, concessions, permit & co information, and repairs are all important bases that are referenced in this contract.  Once you are in contract all of those items will no longer be able to be controlled by your agent once the terms have been set in place changing them is often not possible.  

• Let's look at an example of these, starting with bank commitment and appraisal.  We can not force updates on status commitment from the bank, not because of the buyer but because privacy laws will not allow even a status to be given to someone who is not the buyer.  Appraisals are actually done by 3rd party appraisers hired by the bank, the appraisal can only be ordered according to the process that the bank has in place not sooner or later.  The agent is also not in control of what comparable homes that are used, we will always offer them to the appraiser but we can not force them to use them -the agent unfortunately is not entitled to see the completed appraisal until the bank has received it. We also can not ask appraisers to leave items out of this report, every part of your home will be documented by the appraiser whether they are legal or not the appraiser also does not have a choice that is why they began using 3rd party appraisers to have a neutral party. 

These are just some of the common items that come up, the best way to handle these things is by asking your Realtor the open question of "Why can't you".  Many times it is not that the Realtor does not want to take action and remedy the issue it is many times out of our control.  

Commissions And What Buyers & Sellers Should Both Know !

I have written many blogs about why you should be using a Full Service Real Estate Brokerage for the services they are able to offer is so important.  Commission is always a top  reason for why homeowners may list their home with a company and buyers opt to not use a Buyer Broker.  I wanted to take the time to explain the pro's and con's and really break down who actually decides on the commission and ways to make sure you only pay what you are comfortable to the agent who works for you.  

Sellers: You Will Always Get What You Pay For

• When your interviewing don't ask about the agents commission until the very end of the presentation.  Review what they agent will be doing, and make sure you ask the most important question: What will they be doing that another agent won't be able to offer you to get your home sold ! Often times you will begin to tune out the agent if you do not like the answer on commission, but you should always make the decision based on the work the agent will put into your home.  

• If your list your home with a discount brokerage they will often "discount" the commission on the selling agents end of the deal, and many homeowners aren't aware that they are actually in charge of who gets what percentage.  This is very important because most listings on MLS offer out between 2.5% and up on selling agent commission if your home is only offering 1% - 2% you are less likely to get showings by agents other than your listing agent.  

• When you are working with a Full Service Brokerage you will also have something that other homes will not, and that is protection to hold your agent accountable.  Specializing in expired listings I hear all the time that the agent didn't do what they said they were going to, and unfortunately working at a discount the homeowners had no recourse.  ALL Full Service Brokerages will have a part of the contract apart from the listing itself that will be their guarantee listing all things they will be doing, and allow for release of the listing if the services are not being performed.  

• My friends uncles wife is an agent, she will do it at a discount because we are so close ! How many times I have seen friendships torn apart and families at battle all because they mixed their "business" with their personal life.  Not only the fact that some hurdles can cause a bigger issue when you use this method of choosing an agent, as a homeowner you will be less likely to hold the agent accountable.  You need someone one step removed from the situation to make sure you are looking at things from a reasonable perspective not only about pricing but even things like staging can become a bit awkward for everyone involved.  

Buyers: You Can See 20 Or 200

• The myth that has been depicted on Reality TV has led to so many misconceptions about home purchasing.  I have never in my entire career seen a buyer look at 3 homes and choose 1 but that is not to say that you need to see 200 either.  If your working with a buyer broker you will have someone who can look thru listings and have them immediately filtered for you.  How many homes you will see really does come down to what kind of home your looking for but usually between 10-20 is a safe number to figure.  

• You don't need to play phone tag with agents, every agent hears how that other agent didn't call the buyer back.  When you have a buyers agent it is almost like you having an assistant you have someone there to do all the legwork for you! They will call and make the appointments, they will check status, and you will have a buffer at open houses.  

• Most of my buyers come to me because of my designations as a Certified Buyers Agent, this is something that all buyers should be looking for.  There are a lot of things that a Buyers Agents can do that a Brokers Agent is not able to.  How the offer is presented, what information is relayed to the seller from financial information to the reasons for the move are all things that are determined by the agency.  If you are not working with someone who is well versed in the law they will not always have the knowledge to know what they can do differently to help their buyers ! 

• This is the best reason to use a Buyers Agent, but often overlooked.  Your paying for it whether you use it or not ! All sellers are aware that 95% of the time the agent who sells it is not the listing agent which is why their is commission offered to the other agent.  Now if your paying for something why wouldn't you take advantage of it and make your life and process easier ! 

• The famous last reason, the listing agent will get me a better deal ! I've spoken to buyers after they use this theory and they always feel the complete opposite after the fact, because of course the agent wants to sell their own listing BUT at what cost.  NYS Disclosure is very clear if the listing agent is working for the sellers and not you than their job is to get you the home at the HIGHEST possible price ! 

Whether you are a buyer or a seller the most important part of being comfortable with the agent and the commission is to have open communication.  If you have a set plan of how your going to get your home sold or home found and purchased than knowing your getting the job done correctly will always be worth paying that little bit more in commission.  The reality is most commission objections are normally only over minimal amounts of commission of only 1% - 2%.  This is money that will be lost if your home sits on the market without selling because you will be keeping it for 6 months or longer than expected ! 

So Many Houses, How Do You Make It Easier ?

With so many homes on the market, buyers have more than a few homes to choose from.  The larger area you are looking in you may find it a bit overwhelming getting in to see them all, as well your agent will be calling you with much more in the way of updates on the homes.  This blog will help you make it through the process of finding the right home, and keeping it from being an overwhelming and sometimes confusing process.

Decide What Kind Of Sale You Want & Timeline ! 

• Even if you don't have a rush on your move, you should have a ideal timeline in which you want to compete your purchase.  This will help your agent narrow down homes by the type of sale and put them in an order which will allow you to know what homes will be quicker sales than others.  
• The type of sale is also important for what kind of representations you want the seller to provide.  Typically short sales and estate sales will not be willing to do any work or repairs to a home, verse a homeowner who normally will be willing to do repairs or treatments to the home.  

Set The Time Aside For Your Agent

• When your looking to set up private viewings of homes, your agent will normally need to give at least 24 hours notice to get into listings, but we will need another 24 hours to be able to get status updates and get those appointments confirmed.   This is something that is very important because you will not want to rush through the homes so your agent being able to schedule them with time in-between is very important.  Typically I always figure that we will be in the home for at least 20 minutes, but remember that their will need to be travel time as well.  
• When you are heading out with your agent you may not want to see too many in one day.  The reason why is because you will begin to forget what homes had what, as well as your true feeling for them.  After seeing anything more than 6 houses we find that buyers and agents alike begin to rush through them, although not on purpose and it is always best to not overwhelm yourself.  

Let Your Agent Do The Work 

• Trulia & Zillow are very informative websites but you should be utilizing a Buyers Agent.  As agents and brokers the information we are able to see on listings are not the same.  We are able to go thru listings and see if the home is a strictly cash deal , in some cases it might be sold with tenant still occupying, or simply temporarily off the market.  You will also see that those sites will have homes listed as "pre-foreclosure" which means that they will not have typical showing instructions because they are not currently listed they are based on foreclosure notice. Allowing your agent to pull the listings for you, not only will you get listings but they will be the kind you are looking for ! 
• You will be receiving hi-lite sheets from all homes, you will want to let your agent keep track of those that you did not like this way their is a record of them, and keep only the homes you liked.  I provide all of my buyers with copies and binder to keep all of the information we receive in, this also helps when it comes to placing offers.  

The best piece of advice I can give to any buyer who is thinking about buying a home is to unitize the experience of a Certified Buyer Representative and sign into a Buyer Broker Agreement.  There are many reasons why we recommend this to you which you can find the blog HERE. 

Who Does Your Agent Work For ?

Many of my readers as well as my colleagues know that I believe in open houses, holding not only my own but for other agents in my office as well.  During these open houses I meet many buyers both whom have agents and ones that do not, and some that don't actually know what they have !

I've written many blogs explaining how and why it is in my opinion all buyers should use a buyers agent and that this relationship is created by a conversation not by assumption.  Many buyers have attended my open house and than come back with their agent but I can see my the representation that they are actually working as a brokers agent.  Often times buyers assume if an agent that takes you into a listing other than their own that they will be representing the buyer but this is not always the case.  

Today's blog I want to focus not on the legal state terms used to decide or explain representation but how the buyer has all of the control of their representation but aren't aware of it.  

When Attending Open Houses, Hosted By Another Agent Who Do They Represent ? 

Just because this agent is not the listing agent does not mean they automatically represent the buyer.  The action of holding an open house other than your own does not make you a free agent, because listings are actually owned by a company rather than agent therefore the representation is Brokers Agent.  This simply means they will still be working for the seller, when attending an open house when you have no representation I say listen more and talk less.   

If your interested in that home and want to put in an offer, the brokers agent can present the offer for  you but be careful of the information you give away. Disclosure dictates that any information pertaining to the sale must be passed along to the seller, so simply not giving away too much information is in your best interest.  

Can That Agent Represent You As A Buyers Agent On Another Listing ?

Absolutely but this shouldn't be assumed, you should call the agent and express interest in meeting with them to discuss what they do when working as a buyers agent, their commission, and most importantly what will they do for you.  

Just like when we take listings our terms and marketing plan are very important so is our plan for our buyers.  There are specific things a buyers agent should be expected to do like find you listings to view, attend private showings of these listings, help you find a reputatable mortgage broker.  These things in my opinion are truly the most important parts of having a buyers agent. 

I Have A Buyers Agent, But They Aren't Doing Anything ! 

Well the great part of taking the time and having a buyer broker means there should be a document stating what they agreed to do.  This also means they will have to either start doing there job or you can find another agent.  The best way to make sure this doesn't happen is give it a test run sign a short contract say 2 weeks to try it out, if it's a good fit and if not simply have the awkward conversation.

Just like with any relationship there are just some that don't work out, you may not mesh well with your agent.  Considering that this is a huge decision and investment I always say find one that is a good fit.  I have worked with a large amount of buyers and sellers, and can admit that there were a few of both over the years that I did not work with because we just weren't the right fit for each other.

In many cases where I see buyers agents not doing what is expected of them is because the assumption was that they were using a buyers agent, and the reality was they had a brokers agent.  The way we can see this is when your agent schedules an appointment they will need to inform our office of who they represent.  I would say in 95% of the cases the dis-pleased buyer was working with a brokers agent without being aware.

Taking the time to have the conversation will outline what you expect of your agent than have it documented, this way all parties are aware of what is expected from one another.  Almost all offices have a buyer broker agreement available, mine is available on my website for PDF Download.  I recommend looking it over and discussing each of the important points with a few different agents and than choosing one that you would like to go see a few homes before committing to a long term contract with them.  

Why Should I Use A Real Estate Attorney ?

There are a lot of important decisions that come with any real estate transaction, after you decide on a real estate agent next you should begin looking into real estate attorneys.

Notice that I did not say "attorney", there is a saying and it is "You can only do one job well" and that goes for attorneys as well! Their are many areas of law that an attorney can go into divorce, elder law, criminal, family ect. for any real estate transaction you want to use a real estate attorney.

There are 3 circumstances that you absolutely, positively must use a real estate attorney:

• Cash Deals: These deals can be tricky because they have very specific terms as far as what is being represented and your closing date.  The perk of these deals are that they move very quickly so you will want to make sure your attorney moves at the same pace, which only a real estate attorney will understand.  

• Short Sale/Foreclosure: Banks are hard to deal with, and in this case it is who you are not only buying your house from, but it also who is financing your loan.  There must be a direct line of communication to all parties, in a timely manner and with someone who is well versed in what is or is not to be expected.  

• Estate Sales: This is where it gets tricky because there is usually more than one seller, it usually involves family members who may not be aware of what the condition of the house is and what was not legally or not.  There are potential title complications from how the home is deeded or how many beneficiaries there might be.  You will want to have the real estate attorney also have open communication with the attorney who did the estate filing as well.  

I happen to be very lucky and work for a company that our clients experience is top priority.  We have had our clients refer us the attorneys that they felt gave them the best representation in their transactions.  Our company also knows that keeping the agents up to date and informed is also important so we have attorneys come in to keep us educated and answers any question we may have, which of course helps us better represent our clients.

There are of course plenty of real estate transactions that have not involved a real estate attorney, and have gone to closing with no issues.  In my opinion whether your buying or selling it is an important process and you would want it to go as smoothly as possible, so using a real estate attorney will be your best option.

Here is an example of what could happen if a real estate attorney was not involved:

Buyer and Seller agree on the price, and conditions of the home and contracts are sent out:

1. The agreement was the home would close 45 days from contract signing, and the home inspection did not show any structural or safety issues.  
2. Buyers attorney receives contracts and makes the following changes, closing date has been changed to 60 days - a heater is required in the den/family room - down payment has been reduced from $30,000 to $10,000 - termite treatment is required.  
3. Sellers attorney receives this information, and the deal comes to a stand still because of the extreme changes.  

Now if your not using a real estate attorney this can very quickly end the deal, these seems very extreme but the most important reason a real estate attorney is needed for this is because: 

•  The real estate attorney would have been aware that you receive a standard 30 day commitment, with the additional 15 days is standard.  Attorneys will be willing to provide extensions if need be after the fact.  
• The real estate attorney would also be aware that only "live termites" are required to be taken care of, or if their is extensive damage that has caused structural damage to the home.  
• The real estate attorney would have been aware that the den/family room was a converted garage in which no heat is present or required, as long as the garage conversion was done legally.  
• Down payment amount could also change the loan amount, a real estate attorney would be aware of the change in financing and the possible stricter restrictions of the lender.  
• Lastly but most importantly if both attorneys had been real estate attorneys, they would have spoken to both the listing agent and buyers agent before adding or removing anything from contracts so they would have all the information available to them ! 

Buyer Broker VS Buyers Agent

As many buyers are beginning their spring search, I want to take a moment and explain a specific piece of paperwork that you should be seeing quite a bit of, and that is the New York State Disclosure.  This paper specifies what kind of relationship you have with the agent that you are in communication with.  You should always remember that even if you are working with an agent as a buyer there are still 2 different kinds of available agency with some very important differences ! 

Brokers Agent

This Agent Is Only Working With You 

• The seller’s information is 100% confidential including but not limited to reason for moving, health, or flexibility in price.
• Can send you listings but are not allowed to disclose any information about previous listings, or owner motivation due to disclosure laws. 
• Set appointments on any listings that are being advertised or marketed with the Multiple Listing Service, this excludes any homes with Exclusive Listings & Unrepresented Sellers.
• Will attend showings of homes with you but is unable to give any sort of advice or council on any particular area of the home from price, to functionality for prospective buyer.
• You will not be exempt from being contacted by other real estate agents regarding their listings that you have viewed, the brokers agent & listing agent with this kind of agency are representing the seller. 
• Offers can be placed with a Brokers Agent, comparable homes can be provided to support the seller’s price.  Offer will be placed with the listing agent, who will pass it along to the homeowner.  

Buyers Agent

This Agent Is Working For You !

• Your information is 100% confidential including but not limited to how much you can afford,you reasons for the purchase.
• The seller’s information is no longer confidential if they share why they are moving, or price flexibility you are now entitled to know.
• I will do the “homework” on all the properties that you want additional information on (EX: How long & how many times the home has been on the market).
• I can give you advice and council regarding a home that you are interested in (EX: What home of 3 is a good value in my opinion).
• I am able to bring you into homes of Unrepresented Sellers while reducing your risk if/when you choose to purchase.
• Facilitating you being able to view and place offers on “Exclusive Listings” that are not available to the general public or other real estate agents from non-affiliated brokerages.  
• I can be the “liaison” for not only those involved in the transaction once you find a home but for other agents during the search (Agents You Meet At Open Houses).
• Beginning with placing an offer pulling 3 comparable homes to help you to get the home for the lowest price possible. 
• Presenting the offer in person to the homeowner giving them all information you would like disclosed making sure the terms are clear and understood. As well I have the right as a Buyer Broker to keep the name of my client anonymous from the homeowner and still place the offer.