Any buyer's agent that tells you that they are free are full of it. In nearly every case, the buyer pays for everything. EVERYTHING. The commission the agents receive is reflected in the cost of the house, so the buyer is paying a higer price to cover the commission. If you already are dealing with the selling agent, why insert another agent in the process. Now you have two people in between you and the seller. I only want one person in the deal I don't trust. The buyer's agent is a made up job. You can get all the information on a house, and effectively handle the deal yourself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I love the "the buyer pays for everything" spin. I know a lot of agents say the same thing, and I can argue both sides of the fence here, because they are both correct. But the fact is, a house costs, say $500,000. Buyer brings 500,000 to the closing. Who cares if the seller agreed to pay 3 percent or 30 percent to the agent? It's still, costing the buyer 500,000. Buyer buys a FSBO, the FSBO is going to be generous and take that 3 or 30 percent off the price of the house? Not likely! Not any FSBOs I've known.

Another question: buyer pays 500,000 for a house. The homeowner has just put 4 kids thru college. Seller repays the loan from the proceeds of the sale of the house. Does that mean the buyer paid for the kids education, too?

Bottom Line: you can either have one agent on YOUR side, or BOTH agents on the seller's side. One agent working FOR you or both agents working AGAINST you. Makes no difference to me. And as Tim says, below, I don't cut my fee for handling both sides and I don't know anyone else who does either.

"9 out of 10 lawsuits involving real estate were the direct result of a fsbo deal....nuff said."
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Jason,

That's a total exaggerration. You post has been flagged as non-factual.

BTW, it also helps if you read the question. You answer is not even relevant to the question. Desidoc was asking about a buyer agent, and FSBO wasn't even mentioned. Normally when i respond to a newbie on this site, I welcome them. If this is going to be the quality of your posts, I think I will pass on the welcome.

Mark,

You didn't post that with a straight face, did you...?

http://www.johntreed.com/Kiyosaki.html



-

Sorry, but I don't know one single listing agent who cuts their fee in half if a non-represented buyer offers to buy their listing. I list a home for 6% planning on paying 3% out to agents who show the property, negotiate for their buyer, arrange inspections, appraisals, financing, etc. If I am going to do all that work for a non-represented buyer (not to mention expose myself to the potential legal problems) then I am going to get paid the full 6% that ther seller has already agreed to.

Any buyer's agent that tells you that they are free are full of it. In nearly every case, the buyer pays for everything. EVERYTHING. The commission the agents receive is reflected in the cost of the house, so the buyer is paying a higer price to cover the commission. If you already are dealing with the selling agent, why insert another agent in the process. Now you have two people in between you and the seller. I only want one person in the deal I don't trust. The buyer's agent is a made up job. You can get all the information on a house, and effectively handle the deal yourself.

Buying without an agent sounds very apealing at first, based on the commission savings alone. But good Realtors bring value to the table in exchange for the commission. They also give the buyer access to a broader range of properties as "listed properties" are all committed to pay a buyer's agent commission. You cannot buy a listed property without an agent. You can only buy "For Sale By Owners". But consider this... Most FSBOs are not listed with a Realtor for one of several reasons. 1) They want more than the property is really worth so they can't afford to pay a commission 2) There is something wrong with the house or with the title that makes it impossible for a Realtor to sell 3) Seller Greed.

Sellers do not determine the value of their home, the market does. The market is made up of buyers, most of whom are represented by professional agents. As an unrepresented buyer you are in competition not only with the seller, but with other buyers who are better represented than you are. Sellers do not "decide how much they will sell their house for and then add a commission". Buyers decide that once the house is exposed to the market, so smart sellers are willing to offer a commission to the buyers agents who will bring lots of qualified buyers because this is how their property will sell for it's true value.

If you run across a FSBO that looks like a good deal, there's really nothing wrong with buying it without an agent. The risks are yours to take and if you're lucky you may come out ahead. Most people don't have the luxury of waiting around though for the perfect deal to fall in their lap so they will use a buyer's agent. Most people are also not trained at protecting themselves from the various risks involved with a typical real estate transaction. Buyer's agents REALLY ARE free.

@ JR. I have sold 4 homes thus far. 3 condos and 1 townhouse. So if you are insinuating that i have never sold a property because i am answering a question
based on my experience then, yes Tman is right, "YOU HATE THE TRUTH".

Lets do the math here. Remember every seller has a number in mind that they want to get as their final price.
So i am going to assume that the seller in this case
knows what he wants from a deal and as such he is going to list his property as a price point to reflect what he wants to receive ultimately.

Take this case in point.
Owner has a property and wants to receive $390,100, he ask himself/herself, ok, i am willing to give-up/contribute to the buyer, in this case he/she decides it going to be $10,000,
he/she will then list his property at say $425,000. Why? well here is the math.

$425,000 - $10,000 (contribution/willing to give up) = $415,000 (sales prices seller is willing to accept)
$415,000 * 0.06 = $24,900 ($12,450. seller agent and $12450.00)
$415,000 - seller agent commission (3%) - buyers agent commission (3%) = $390,100

So what did we learn :

sellers agent would get $12,450
and your agent would get $12,450
and you would be either financing $415,000 or paying that cash.

SO HOUSE WOULD COST YOU $415,000
SELLER WOULD NET $390,100

If you do this without an agent.

Now make the offer without your agent.

Take the $10,000 the $425,000 that leaves us with $415,000

Now is where the real fun is, You already did the math and know that the would have to netted $390,100 if you had an agent, now since you don’t have a agent,
take another $10,000 off the $415,000.

NOW YOUR OFFER WILL BE FOR $405,000 - $12,150 (seller agents 3%) = $392,850 (seller recieves this amount)

$415,000 - $10,000 = $405,000 now seller pays his agent 3% ($12150)
$405,000 - $12150 (sellers agent commission ) = $392,850 seller receives.

BUT THE IMPORTANT THING TO NOTE HERE IS THAT THE COST PRICE TO YOU IS $405,000 AS OPPOSE TO $415,000 WITH A REALTOR.

Buying a house is one of the biggest financial decision you will ever make, DO THE MATH.. IT will save you money. I just showed you how to save $10,000 easy.

I have personally bought and sold 4 properties.

My final piece of advice, "Do the Math"

Snore, so you're saying you made an offer for $300,000 (just to pick a number)... with your realtor, and the seller turned it down, because the numbers didn't work for him, (in part because he'd have to pay the Realtor's fees).

Then, you came back without your Realtor, offered 3% less than the $300,000 ($291,000 exactly what he would have been paying with the Realtor in place) Deducted an additional 1% ($288,000) and then they threw in a little toward closing costs. (Let's call it another thousand... for a total of $287,000).

So... with a Realtor the seller receives $291,000
Without the Realtor the seller receives $287,000...

$4,000 less than they would have gotten, if you'd purchased through the Realtor. And you say he did this because his bottom line number didn't make sense.

Sorry, this just doesn't make any sense. Unless, of course, quite a bit of time expired between the time of the first offer, and the time of the second offer, and the seller was now more motivated to accept a lower offer (which he likely would have accepted with or without a Realtor).

yeah... I just hate truth.

Good post Snor,

No matter what .. realtors just hate the truth.



:^)

Desidoc,

Take it from someone who has purchased with and without an agent. I know i will get flamed for this but "ITS NOT WORTH IT TO USE A AGENT", here let me show you why. Don't buy into this crazy stuff about "Sellers agent pays the commission" you do. If you dont believe me, ask yourself this question, who brings the money to the closing table, ops surely not the seller. Its you, so you are paying both buyer and seller commissions.

I was able to save $17k on a property i bought, here is how i did it. First in my offer, i reduced it by the so call 3% my agent would have received, then i further reduced their asking price by another 1%, plus they paid a few dollars on the closing.

I was able to save over $17k, by doing it myself. So my advice to you, if you know how to use the internet and have a few hours a week, buddy do it yourself, you will come back and thank me later.

Buyer's agents are worth hiring. All kinds of things can go wrong and they have the expertise to
help solve problems. If they don't they will know someone who will. Also in most cases the seller pay's the commission, so why not work with a buyers agent.

The seller pays for the buyers agent fees. Unless you are a trained professional do not take any short cuts.

Get a great buyer's agent and protect yourself. The seller will have protection with their listing agent if the home is listed with a realtor. Don't get yourself in an unnecessary pickle.

Below are grammar corrections to my previous post, and a spelling one as well. In my defense, given the blatant exaggeration that I was responding to, it was a wonder I could think straight at all.

"exaggerration"= exaggeration

"You post has been flagged as non-factual." = Your post has been flagged as non-factual.

"Normally when i respond to a newbie on this site, I welcome them." = Normally when I respond to newbies on this site, I welcome them.

All sellers sign listing agreements with their agents agreeing to pay a set amount of commission to both the listing agent and selling agent. It would be wise to have a buyer's agent represent you in the transaction. Not only would you have someone guiding you through the process, negotiating on your behalf, but the commission paid would be through the seller,not you.

It is definitely a good idea to have a buyers agent. If you would like to speak with a good buyers agent, contact Tony Cogliandro at 281-994-5184.

It is definately a good idea to have a buyers agent. Even though there is a standard contract in Texas, there are still many things that are negotiable. The agent for the seller is bound to keep the contract negotiations in favor of their seller. So the question is, who is representing your interests. Please let me know if I can help in any way.

the botton lins is that the sellers have a botton line and they going to sell the home for x ammount of dollars on terms they can live with. Any realtor who doesn't treat both parties in the transanction with the same amount of respect is a fool. You must be honest to everyone or you lose out in the long run.

Please take this unprofessional responses to another forum or just exchange emails.

Absolutely ! I know of a couple properties near the Medical Center in you rprice range.
Let me know if you would like for me to email you some listings.
My service will not cost you anything - the seller pays my fee.

Hope this helps!

Juan Carlos

WORTH IT!

It does not cost you to have a buyers agent! Your Buyers Agent can provide critical information when purchasing a home! And the seller pays, so you get this service for free!

WHY NOT?

There are over 100 listing avaiable within your price range from $29,000 to $150,000, with 1-bedrooms plus located within the Medical Center market area. If your like I'll be happy to email you the listings?

usually you don't buy apartments
they are called condos
buyers agent is worth it
but renting is cheaper right now
much cheaper
wait for housing prices to fall
median home should be about 180K
then ok to buy
currently it is 205K
which is an improvement of 219K from last year
wait
be patient

anyways

good luck

As a Realtor who offers "buyer representation" I can tell you lots of reasons why having a qualified agent working for you is smart. Here are just a few from my experience:

1. If you are looking at FSBO's with a good buyer's agent they will take advantage of the fact that most people trying to sell their homes themselves don't really know what they're doing, but just believe they are saving money by doing it themselves. If I am your agent I will work their inexperience to your advantage during negotiations. There are so many traps that these people fall into.

2. Buyer's agents are an absolute necessity when buying a property that is listed with a seller's agent. Most people simply do not realize that the Seller's agent works for the seller. No matter how nice and honest and fair they are, they will not represent you adequately in negotiations.

3. Without exception, the best agents in our industry do not cut their fees because they do not have to. If I have a home listed for 6% I will pay buyer's agents half of it without blinking an eye because buyer's agents are the ones who bring me the buyers. The other half is mine because as a good listing agent I have spent time and energy and resources to attract the "buyer's agents" instead of just looking for buyers like the FSBOs do.

Tman:
Good post Snor,

No matter what .. realtors just hate the truth.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Can you clarify this, Tman? What truth is it that realtors hate?

All am saying is tell the guy the truth, the SELLER DOESN'T PAY THE COMMISSION the buyer does, since he is the only person who brings money to the closing table.
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Come back and check in with us again when you SELL a house.

The real problem is as i pointed out, the buyers agent get paid when the deal closes. If the deal doesn't close then the agent won't get paid. Now Elvs i don't know about your math but the seller is always looking at the net cost. In my situation, I did use a Realtor in the beginning, and the seller rejected the offer, why simply because his bottom line number didn't make sense.

All am saying is tell the guy the truth, the SELLER DOESN'T PAY THE COMMISSION the buyer does, since he is the only person who brings money to the closing table. You see once i learned and understood that, i never used a realtor again to buy.

It is always good to have an agent in your corner to negotiate on your behalf. After all, it doesn't cost you anything to have a buyers agent; the seller is paying the commission to sell his/her property. Why not have someone negotiating for your best interest. If you need an agent in the area give me a call at 281 794-9169 or email me at Destiny@SanJacRealEstate.com I would love to assist you.
Best wishes and good luck!

Your agent is there to work for you, protect you interests and get you the best price possible. I can't imagine wanting to buy a house without one. The good news is the seller pays the cost. By all means please have an agent represent you. Good luck.

The most common reason tht a seller takes on the chore of advertising and marketing their home, along w/ the liability, is their belief that they (the seller) will save money on Realtor expenses and pocket those savings.

Most FSBO sellers eventually list w/ a Reatlor.

Most FSBO sellers will pay a buyer agent commission. A buyer agent will help you understand the area quickly and direct you to various independent sources for information. A buyer agent is usually paid from the seller proceeds at the time of closing.

Some FSBOs are unaware of disclosure laws - a few are aware, but choose to ignore them.

Having a buyer agent will most likely not cost you any $$ out of pocket, aid you in quickly becoming familiar w/ the area, provide you credible straightforward info on housing stock, prices, days on market, average and median selling prices, activity levels, and trends. Having a buyer agent will reduce you risk, limit your liability, and your buyer agent will be working to protect your best interests all the while. A buyer agent will work to negotiate the best sales price and terms, and protect you through inspections, work with you to solve any problems to reach a successful closing.

Chances are minimal that you would pay any $$ out of pocket for these services. The fees are paid from the seller proceeds at closing.

Snor: I was able to save over $17k, by doing it myself.
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So you see, Desidoc, whether you buy from someone who is with a realtor or buy a FSBO...whether you use an agent or not, the seller is not going to just hand away their money...no matter who brings it to the closing.

Good morning Desidoc,

"If" .. you can't spend the time, or your schedule is too busy and you really don't know the area, then you'll be better off going with an agent.

"But" ... if you've been studying the market in Houston, you know the area and what the prices were doing 18 months ago 8 months ago and now, and you're confident with your negotiation skills .. then you'll be better off doing it yourself ... why spend an extra $9,000 on agents when quality real estate attorneys are only $900 away.?

Desidoc, as far as "Having a buyer's agent costs you nothing." ..that really is a very camouflaged and untrue statement, of course it costs you ... whether it comes from your left pocket or your right pocket, it comes from the same pair of jeans - you just never know how much.

If nothing else, you can save the 2 or 3% off the selling price (after the negotiations with the seller) that would have gone to the buyers agent ....


Good luck and happy hunting.!


:^)

150K would buy you a very nice 2/2 apartment in Medical Center area up to 1600sqf, commuting is only a few minutes to the heart of Medical Center. Another good thing is very easy access to light rail system if you don't want to drive. I used to lived in that area, very nice, quiet and convenient. When you're not so familier with the area you're moving to, you would definitely benefit from a local buyer agent who knows the area. I can run you some listings to help you get an idea about the housing market in that area. Feel free to drop me an email from my website below. Happy Easter!

Hiring an agent is a great idea as it is no cost to you. They should know the area and be of great help.
Good luck and if you have any more questions please email or call.
J.

remember the movie, "The Matrix"?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not particularly. Why don't you go try to disrupt some other forum?

Having a buyer's agent costs you nothing. Why would you decide to risk all the pitfalls in a big decision such as homebuying without a licensed individual's help? I wouuld be happy to assist you in this process.

Are you wanting commercial property? Or will this property be for your use? Please contact me if you are looking for a commercial or residential specialist. I am able to refer you to the best agents available for your real estate needs. In Texas all agents work for the seller, unless a buyer has signed a buyers rep. agreement with an agent. If you wish your interest to be represented at the highest level then you should hire a buyers agent.

Hello Desidoc,

You should only hire an agent if you want to protect yourself and probably the biggest investment in your life. As mentioned before, if you do not know the pitfalls, you could be in for some real trouble.

remember the movie, "The Matrix"?
remember the advice about agents?

anways

hasta luego

Desidoc,
Having bought many homes prior to being in the Real Estate profession, and prior to the evolution of Buyer Agency - I feel that having a Buyer's Agent represent you is invaluable.
That agent not only has a vested interest in guiding you through the process, informing you of all the aspects of the purchase that can impact you, but could possibly save you $$$$$$.
I am not familiar with any agents in the Houston area, but I'm sure there are several here on Trulia.
I hope that your relocation goes smoothly. As a buyer- you have many options, so take advantage of the knowledge of a good Realtor to help you find the perfect fit.

1st place never purchase a new home, new condo, or a pre existing home unless you have a real estate agent representing you. We know the markets, know how to work with builders. If anything should happen you are covered under a real estate agents e & o insurance.

You will need to be pre-approved prior to looking I am a Texas loan officer contact our office
972-699-9111
Lynn
911@lynn911.com
http://www.lynn911.com