Common Mistakes Buyers Make
1. Calling the listing agent on the sign in front of the property.
The listing agent works for the seller, not you. Anything you tell the listing agent about yourself and your circumstances can and will be used against you in negotiations if you decide to make an offer on that house.
2. Allowing the listing agent to show you the house.
Again, the listing agent works for the seller, not you. Unless, of course, you’re willing to let him/her work for the seller and you (dual agency). Who do you think benefits most from that arrangement? Further, if a listing agent shows you the house you decide to purchase, s/he is the person who will be paid the buying side commission. In North Carolina, it’s the real estate agent that introduces you to a property that earns the commission, whether or not that agent is actually representing you. Once a seller’s agent has shown you a property, it usually means you won’t have the opportunity to be represented in a transaction on that property unless you are willing to pay the buyers’ agent’s fee yourself.
3. Visiting open houses and model homes without an agent to represent your interests.
The seller will have a professional agent there to represent his/her interests. Shouldn’t you have the same advantage? If you view a property before you have an agent of your own, you will be on your own. (See reason in #2.)
If you already have a buyer’s agent representing you, be sure to tell the seller’s agent prior to looking at the home, and present the seller’s agent with your buyer’s agent’s business card. (Ask your agent for a supply of their cards to keep with you in case you go to an open house or model home on your own.)
4. Assuming it will cost less money to work directly with the listing agent or the developer’s sales representative.
That would seem to make sense, but the seller or developer has already agreed – by contract – to pay their representative a predetermined fee for selling the property. If you have an agent, the seller’s representative usually shares his/her fee with your agent. If you don’t have an agent, the representative keeps the entire fee. But, there’s no savings to the seller or developer, so there’s no savings to pass on to you. The only difference is in one scenario, you have your own agent to watch out for your interests. In the other, you don’t.
(There ARE some instances, when you may be able negotiate a better price when you work on your own. Those instances are when you are a) working with a seller who is selling his home without the services of a real estate agent; b) working directly with a small builder who doesn’t have a sales representative. In those cases, if you are confident in handling the details of the contract, judging the fair value of the property, hiring inspectors, negotiating repairs, finding the best financing for your circumstances, hiring a closing attorney, etc., you may decide to make the purchase without using a real estate agent.)