10 Questions to Ask a Buyer's Agent

10 QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD ASK A BUYER'S AGENT   In any market it is invaluable for buyers to hire a buyer's agent.  There are many ways to locate one.  Perhaps you were at an Open House and made a connection with the Listing Agent.  Perhaps a Realtor showed you a home and you liked their style.  Or perhaps you see a Realtor's name all over town and have decided he/she is the one.   Here are 10 Questions you should be asking a Realtor prior to hiring them as your Buyer's Agent....   1.  When are you available to answer my questions and show me homes? 2.  Are you experienced with Foreclosures and Short Sales? 3.  How many homes have you sold in the area I am searching? 4.  Are you a Full-Time Realtor?  Is this all you do or do you have another job? 5.  Are you reachable by email, text messaging and cell phone? 6.  Will I be working with you directly or someone on your team? 7.  Do you charge a Broker Transaction Fee? 8.  Do you have experience with FHA and FHA203K financing? 9.  Will you go through every new listing that you send to me or will you have it automatically sent to me? 10.  Will you explain all aspects of the Agreement of Sale to me; all of the addendums, keep track of contingencies and attend settlement?   All of these questions will be very important and the answers even more important.  What you should be hearing from the buyer's agent is...   1.  A Realtor should be available during the day, the evenings and weekends to answer your call and show you homes.  You should expect to receive a call back within 1-3 hours of your initial phone call to the agent.    2.  Even if you are not searching for Foreclosed properties or short sales the house you fall in love with may be just that.  You don't want to find out months later that the Realtor you have chosen has no experience in that type of home as it will be a disaster for you as a home buyer.  And if a Realtor is not experienced in Foreclosures and Short Sales by this point in time, chances are they don't have much experience.   3.  It's important to know how many homes an agent has sold in the areas you are searching.  They will then know and understand that particular market.  Why would you choose a Realtor from Philadelphia to sell you a home in Phoenixville?  It doesn't make much sense.  Not only are they further from the market, they won't have much knowledge of the market.  There are exceptions to this point so ask about their experience.   4.  It is so important to hire a Full-Time Realtor who devotes his/her time to Real Estate.  They have more time to stay up on the trends and the constantly changing market and you won't have to wait until they are done their "other" job to see homes or have a question answered.  Also those who are Full-Time tend to have much more experience and treat Real Estate as a Career instead of a part-time job or hobby.   5.  You want to be sure your Realtor is tech savvy.  If you are on the train returning from work and want to send a quick text or email to your Realtor they should be able to immediate access that information mobily and they should be able to respond.  There are Realtors who still do not give their cell phone number out.  Is that the type of service you want?   6.  If you are hiring a Realtor to represent you in purchasing a home why would you want to work with one of their team members?  In a team situation there is a lead agent who produces the leads and then gives those leads to other team members.  Some will work with buyers and some will work with listings.  It's really important to know that the Realtor you choose is the one you will be working with.  It just makes sense.   7.  It should cost you nothing to purchase a home.  A Broker Transaction Fee is just a fee that Realtors/Broker's collect.  I firmly believe there is no reason at all for Buyer's to pay this fee.   8.  If an agent has FHA and FHA203K experience then chances are they are an experienced Realtor.  And experience does not mean they went through that type of transaction once.  Experience means they have done this type of transaction over and over and understand the hurdles that can come into play and know immediately how to handle them.   9.  The MLS allows Realtors to be notified when a home that is similiar to what their buyers are searching for comes onto the market.  Some Realtors will set this search up so that they automatically just get sent to you and the Realtors don't even see the listings.  Others will be alerted themselves, take the time everyday to go through the listings to be sure it is what their buyers are searching for.  What type of service would you rather have?   10.  Your Realtor should be able to explain every aspect of the Agreement of Sale including contingencies and addendums.  They should keep track of when each contingency is due so that you the buyer do not end up in default.  They should also attend settlement with you in case a situation happens at the table.   If you follow this advice you should have a pleasant, exciting and smooth home buying transaction.  For any questions contact me at 610-999-7693 or at Sellinghomesjenn@aol.com.     Jennifer Daywalt, Realtor RE/MAX Results Realty Top Realtor 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009  www.JenniferDaywalt.remax.com Author of "Ask The Realtor" Saturday The Phoenix Newspaper Main Office 610-489-7355 Direct Line 610-999-7693 Follow me on Facebook   Read my Real Estate Blogs