There are many things to consider when buying or selling a home. First and foremost is your choice in a Real Estate Agent. Why is this such an important choice? Your agent is obligated to your best interests, both financially and ethically, but there are complications; First by market conditions ever changing, Second, does your real estate agent have knowledge of what they can and should ask for on your behalf during the transactions. You need to be able to trust your realtor and have faith in their knowledge of market conditions. For example, if we are in a "seller's market", you cannot make the same demands, offer the same type of offers as you could if we were in a "buyer's market." You need to be able to trust your real estate agent's word and put some type of trust into the information they give you. You cannot expect an offer $20,000 below list price to be accepted in a "seller's market." Similarly, in a "buyer's market" there is no need to offer $20,000 over list price to make sure you get the property. As a general rule, Realtors take an oath and abide by a code of ethics. It would be foolish to think that all agents abides by the code of ethics 100% of the time. After all, we're all human, we all make mistakes. But that being said, your agent should know the potential dangers and help steer you clear of those pitfalls. While it is important that you have a good working relationship with your Real Estate Agent, you also need to know that they will "go to bat" for you if worse comes to worse.
I can tell you that I have saved many deals for the many short comings of other agents, I have saved buyers and sellers countless dollars in the form of knowledge of impending dangers and pitfalls, avoided costly escrow extensions, loan lock extensions, and "penalties" for contractual errors.
The bottom line is that there are TERRIBLE Real Estate Agents out there. Save yourself some time and money and hire a professional. There is an old saying that basically says, "If you think hiring a professional is expensive, see if you can afford hiring an amateur."
So how do you know the good agents from the bad ones? Ask around! Ask your friends who they have used. Ask them what they thought of their agent. If they did not have a good experience, take that into consideration. If they DID have a good experience, also take that into consideration.
Is number of years in business a "good" barometer for whether you are dealing with a good Real Estate Agent? Yes, and No! Yes, number of years in business shows experience, but I will warn you that I know of MANY agents who have been in business more than 10 years who I would NEVER want to do business with. There are also young agents I would LOVE to do business with. So again, how do you know? You can also ask for references, you can also look at the other areas of their life. If they are "well balanced" that is usually a good sign. I also like to live by the old adage, "by their fruits ye shall know them." But I would caution you strongly again; Don't automatically associate someone who goes to church every Sunday with someone who truly has a big heart. Also, by the same measure, don't automatically associate someone who doesn't ever go to church with someone who has a small heart. Look at how they live their life. Look at the charities they reach out to. Listen to the words they speak. Do they match up with their actions? In my book, Actions speak Louder than words.
One more thing to think about... even a broken clock is right twice a day. There are bad agents out there that may have a "good day", and there are great agents out there that may have a bad day. Consider yourself lucky if you got a bad agent and everything went smoothly, and be forgiving to the good agents who are dealt a bad hand on your particular transaction.
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