Using a Real Estate Agent

When it comes to trying to land a mortgage on a new home or property you can either go about the process of shopping for the property you are interested in, negotiating with the owner for an acceptable price, and then finding the proper loan, or you can take it easy and engage the services of a licensed real estate agent.

Buying a home is likely to cost you at least $100,000 and may be more than $1,000,000, depending on your income and price-hunting range, but would you attempt to tackle a tax issue of $100,000 on your own or would you get the help of a CPA? If you had a $100,000 lawsuit filed against you, you wouldn't attempt it without the help of a licensed attorney, would you? In a similar manner, proceeding to try to find the right home and negotiate the right price for it without the assistance of a realtor can be a monumental mistake and cost you money and time.

A good real estate agent brings more than just listings to the table for you to decide from, they will spend a good deal of time getting to know you, your wants and your and the prices you can truly afford. Rather than simply presenting you with a list of homes that are nowhere near what you really want, a good agent will only present the homes in your price range that match the type of home or property you are interested in. In addition, they will walk with you through every step of the home-buying process from figuring out what you want, to shopping for the home, to negotiations on through escrow and closing. Here are 5 key reasons to consider using a real estate agent:

1. Agents have greater resources. If you are searching for a home on your own, the number of places you can look for homes for sale is limited and probably will not reflect the full range of homes available. Real estate agents are practiced in finding homes for sale through a variety of methods, some of which you will not have access to, including communications with other agents and their clients who are interested in selling their home.
2. Agents have experience with negotiations. Negotiating for a house is not like negotiating for a car. There are many factors involved that can change negotiating power including the financing, date of possession, price, whether or not certain repairs will be taken care of and other terms. A real estate agent will help to make sure all of your bases are covered in the negotiations and you aren't leaving some critical piece of the puzzle unconsidered.
3. Agents do the research in evaluating the property. For you the house may be pretty and in the right neighborhood and that's all you need to know, but there is more to it that your real estate agent will be looking into, such as the house's recent inspections, whether the is a history of termites or other pests in the home, zoning laws and restrictions, etc.
4. Agents help evaluate the sales contracts. The initial sales agreement will contain a lot of confusing language to it that is likely to leave the average person's head spinning. A qualified real estate agent will be there to help you decipher all that information and know what it is you are looking at and getting yourself into.
5. Agents have researched everything about the neighborhood. The schools, the zoning laws, the crime rates, the history of the land you are buying if it is of any value and significance, as well as key information about the home that is revealed during disclosure.

Before making any decisions about realtors or mortgages, be sure you know some information about what is available. This may include information like types of mortgages, and other terms you should know when dealing with the business.