It's easy to understand that the agent who has listed a home for sale represents the seller of that home. The agent is obligated to protect the seller at all times throughout the transaction, even as he or she takes you through the home as a potential buyer and answers your questions.
What about when you have an agent who has spent weeks taking you through countless homes and learned a lot of personal information about you? It may be a surprise for you to learn that the agent may represent the seller of every home you have gone through, not you.
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Does it matter? You be the judge. When the agent represents the seller or is a dual agent, the agenct cannot fully disclose essential elements to you:
Understanding who their real estate agency represents in a transaction can be complicated for buyers.
the seller's reason for the sale (unless he or she authorizes this disclosure)
any knowledge the agent has about the seller's willingness to accept a lower offer or terms that are better for the buyer
any information that could give you, the buyer, an advantage in the transaction, including a Comparable Market Analysis (CMA) that tells you what other homes in the area have been listed and sold for
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When you have a Buyers Agency arrangement, the agent represents you entirely in every aspect of your home purchase. Your agent will be able to:
* keep your personal information confidential from the seller, not disclosing any of your financial information, motivation to purchase a specific property
* negotiate with every effort and ability to secure the best price and terms of sale for you
* Acclimate you to the general layout of our city and surrounding areas, including highways and commute times, school districts, neighborhood character, etc., to give you an understanding of the area and insight about where you want to focus your search
* Using the Lifestyle Assessment tool, with our Designed to BuyTM partner, identify everything that is important to you in your new home, and prioritize it, so we can show you the homes that come closest to what you want.
* Preview properties on your behalf, and send you information in advance of a tour by email, as you prefer. We know your time is important, and we want to show you just those homes that you are interested in seeing.
* Calculate the fair market value of the home for you, and assist you in developing an offering price by using comparable sales data.
* Provide expert negotiation on your behalf throughout the process Recommend all the types of inspections that are appropriate for the home, so you have the greatest amount of protection and peace of mind
* Be with you on every step of the journey to resolve any issues that arise and make sure you are happy in your new home.