Table of Contents
- What Are Netting Escrows & How Does It Work?: The Best Guide - January 2, 2024
- The Secret About Prescriptive Easement: Top Guide 1 Must Know - December 4, 2023
- About Home Equity Loans In Texas And How Can One Obtain It - November 27, 2023
About Real Estate Buyer's Agent
One of the most common questions which bother a lot of buyers is “Do you need a buyer’s agent to buy a house?”.
In today’s post, we will discuss if you need a buyer’s agent to purchase your home.
So we are going to break down different factors where you can find out in which situations you may or may not need a buyer’s agent in Texas!
Modern Ways
In this contemporary world, we are starting to get more and more apps and certain things in our everyday life to replace specific old ways. For example, Uber is replacing taxi drivers, and Turbo Tax is replacing CPAs.
So there are always these websites or apps which are coming to replace the traditional ways.
One of the recent ones replacing real estate agents is these e-home buyer’s platforms like open door offer pad, Zillow, etc.
and they are making it very easy to look at houses without a realtor. These platforms also provide options for potential home buyers to make an appointment at their convenience and make an offer all without a realtor.
Even if you are not buying your house for the first time, you are getting these thoughts or ideas in your head whether you need a real estate agent.
Buyer Agent's Role
It may seem that the buyer’s agent’s job is just to show you houses. However, there is a lot more to it.
The buyer’s agent’s role is first to educate and then help you show homes or arrange a showing. Once you are in a contract that is when the real value of the buyer’s agent comes out.
The purchase contract is a lot of pages that include addendums, counteroffers, and contingencies. An average person buys up to three homes in a lifetime, and a successful realtor will see up to five houses every month.
Having someone who has this experience of what to look out for in the contract, what doesn’t seem right is, what the seller is requesting, keeping you updated with your contingencies, would always be an added benefit.
It is also the buyer’s agent’s job in helping you navigate the escrow, inspections, appraisals, and lender. Because of these roles, you get a smooth process with an excellent home buying experience.
When Is It Worth To Not Hire Buyer's Agent
Let us say there is a situation where a family, a friend, or a neighbor nearby wants to sell their home.
And they come to you because you are looking to buy a house and have an excellent past home buying experience.
They approach you for the purchase and say that they don’t want any realtors involved and get it done between you and the seller with the help of an attorney. In this case, you might not need to hire a buyer’s agent.
There is a massive benefit for the seller as well as the buyer in this case. The seller won’t have to hire the agent and go through the process of marketing, showings, professional photography, etc.
They are also not paying commission for the buyer’s agent. As a buyer, you won’t have to go through house shopping, contracts, and contingencies.
However, you may still want to make sure you are paying the right price for the home because you really are not sure how much the sales price of the house is in the market.
How do you come to know if you are getting the right price? Well, maybe you want to look at other homes that are selling in that area, and how much are they selling for.
You want to make sure that you are getting the deal cheaper than them because the houses that are selling in that area are including the seller’s and buyer’s agent commission which is roughly about six percent of the home value.
Every house that sells has the buyer’s and seller’s agent’s commissions factored into the sales price.
If you are buying the house without the realtors, you should take the commission out of the equation and negotiate the sales price accordingly.
Conclusion
Technically, you don’t need a buyer’s agent in Texas to buy a house. However, it is better to have a buyer’s agent to tackle difficult situations that you might not be aware of.
A right buyer’s agent will be there to watch out for anything that seems odd, make sure they remind you of things, make sure you have been well taken care of.
When you are hiring a buyer’s agent, you are hiring his/her experience for your peace of mind.
