Thursday, August 23, 2007
Good Information: The Art of the Aggressive Offer
Posted by Suzette Monique at Thursday, August 23, 2007 0 comments
Labels: exclusive buyer agent, exclusive buyer's agent, exclusive buyers agent
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Good Blog: Fuzzy Distinction, but Clear Conflict of Interest
"In May, 2004, I began interviewing real estate agents to assist me in purchasing my first home. I interviewed Julie Tuggle, an exclusive buyer's agent, and two other real estate agents (who represented both buyers and sellers). During each interview I asked the agent what they would do if I liked one of the homes that they were listing. I was shocked when the two dual agents replied that they would be able to represent both sides. I am an attorney (licensed in Florida) and I could not fathom how this was not a blatant conflict of interest."
Read entire Blog: "Fuzzy Distinction, but Clear Conflict of Interest."
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Readers Respond: June Fletcher Tells it Like it Is!
When a Poulsbo, WA agent said, “If you never negotiate from the sellers agent perspective, you are less prepared to position negotiations effectively with sellers in service to your buyer….many [clients] can't buy until they sell. You're suggesting not to use one agent for both?” June answered, point blank, “Well, yes I am -- if you can find an agent who specializes in working just with buyers. The idea that exclusive buyers agents can't understand a seller's perspective is hogwash…”
Cite Source: RealEstateJournal.com
Kudos to June for setting things straight, and telling it like it is. The idea that an exclusive buyer's agent cannot possibly understand the seller’s perspective is untrue. As a matter of fact, they can offer home-selling guidance as a value-added bonus to buyer-clients who prefer to sell on their own--but it needs to be said that, as sellers, they would benefit from the experience of a good listing agent.
Listing agents and companies who dedicate themselves to the seller can bring advocacy to the table for the seller, which is invaluable. The same principle applies to exclusive buyer agents and their companies; they provide advocacy for the buyer, because they only represent buyers. The key is avoiding dual agency.
An exclusive buyer's agent can offer guidance without actually taking the listing--and therefore--without charging any fees. Some exclusive buyer agents may offer this guidance to loyal clientele, and again, it is only guidance--not advocacy. Most agents will frown upon this practice, and many would regard it as, “leaving money on the table.” However, an exclusive buyer agent could do this as an added value to their buyer-clients.
For buyer-clients who prefer to sell using the services of a listing agent (recommended), an exclusive buyer’s agent can refer them to the best listing professionals in the market. They can do this because they are in constant contact with them at networking events, real estate classes, and during the course of everyday business. The best listing agents are those forward-thinking professionals who understand and respect the new consumer-driven economy. They are not threatened by the change, and in fact, welcome it because they know that consumers will benefit greatly. They realize that when consumers are happy, trust is sure to grow, and when trust grows, the public's general perception of real estate agents will also improve. Everyone wins.
Bottom line, real estate is not a cut-and-dry world anymore. There are many more options available, and Old-school real estate agents need to update their out-moded ways of thinking. It is now more consumer-driven than ever before, and it is now up to consumers to educate themselves on the options available to them, and to decide for themselves how they want to be represented. A growing number of them are learning about the many options that were never available to them before.
An Interesting Discussion: Garbage In, Garbage Out - Getting the Best from an Agent
Every once in a while, a Blog pops up that really hits on some interesting points. This particular Blog entitled, "Garbage In, Garbage Out - Getting the Best from an Agent," Jessica Beganski, a Realtor and an exclusive buyer's agent from South Windsor Connecticut, discusses two common buyer perceptions and misconceptions that she has observed in her experience. This Blog is interesting because Jessica captures the core of how buyers can get the most out of working with an exclusive buyer’s agent:
From Jessica’s Blog:
“A buyer’s agent will not run out to the property because you are not our client (yet) and we haven’t even met you. I am my own product - I sell my services not the house you’re buying."
"So, if you want top notch service and a great house, think about how you are perceived by the agents you contact when looking for a house.”
Cite Source: Real Estate in Connecticut
Posted by Suzette Monique at Tuesday, August 21, 2007 0 comments
Labels: exclusive buyer agent, exclusive buyer agent seattle, exclusive buyer's agent, exclusive buyer's agent seattle, exclusive buyers agent, exclusive buyers agent seattle
Monday, August 20, 2007
Good Information: How to Shop for a Mortgage Today
Is it worth waiting to buy until I can improve my credit score?
“Probably. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is typically at least 1.5 percentage points lower for someone with a credit score of 760 to 850 than for someone with a score of 620 to 639. On a $216,000 loan, a borrower with a top-tier score would pay $232 less per month -- a saving of $2,784 per year -- than a borrower near the bottom, according to MyFICO.com.”
Cite Source: Klipinger.com
Posted by Suzette Monique at Monday, August 20, 2007 0 comments
Labels: exclusive buyer agent, exclusive buyer's agent, exclusive buyers agent, mortgage crisis, mortgages
Saturday, August 18, 2007
One Bad Apple Don't Spoil the Whole Bunch
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
United We Stand, Divided We Fall: Buyer Agency and the Fragmented World of Real Estate
This was a three-day class, and each day was eight hours in length. It was just enough time to experience the “niceties” of certain traditional Realtors, who demonstrated their narrow-minded worldviews, values, and norms. Some had behaved abrasively, as well as, condescending. They revealed their own prejudice beliefs, as many before have done in the past, that unless one is part of the herd, they do not deserve any professional courtesy.
It was an eye-opener to see the friendly expressions of certain Realtors suddenly change into seething animosity, when told of the decision to represent buyers only. You would have thought a mortal sin had been committed. The consumer value of having the option to avoid dual agency completely did not compute within the minds of these people.
Some traditional agents have gone as far as to say that dual agency is not even an issue, as long as consumers liked them. However, it is an issue when the dual agent cannot negotiate for either side; or when a dual agent company has to remain neutral in the midst of a transactional conflict. What are dual agents being paid for, if they cannot provide the valuable service of negotiation, and if they cannot provide advocacy for neither side?
Now we turn our attention to the culture of exclusive buyer agency. This culture is small, but growing—struggling for recognition and acceptance by Realtor associations that normally favor traditional real estate brokerages. The associations they struggle with do little to educate the public about the option of exclusive buyer agency. Furthermore, they add to the confusion by blurring the real meaning of this agency option. For example—the Washington Association of Realtors has a standard pre-printed form called an “Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement,” yet there is a clause within this form that gives the option to consent to dual agency. If an agreement is truly for exclusive buyer agency, then dual agency should not even be a part of it, because dual agency is a non-issue where this agency option is concerned.
Honestly, a buyer agency agreement becomes exclusive only when the option of dual agency has been removed--otherwise, it is just a buyer agency agreement.
Delving further into the world of exclusive buyer agency, we see a rift within the fragment. This culture is centered on an association that has let former members down in the past. This association is NAEBA. Instead of unity and camaraderie, there were arms-length adversarial attitudes within the group, and no support—as promised in their membership literature. When an exclusive buyer agent breaks away from the disappointing experience, they are then discredited for not belonging to the organization anymore. For example—in a recent Blog—an exclusive buyer’s broker touted the news of an article he claimed was recommending that buyers only work with exclusive buyer agents who are members of NAEBA. However, upon review, it was realized that the article only mentioned that buyers can find an exclusive buyer’s agent through NAEBA. The article made no specific endorsement advocating the sole use of NAEBA members.
It needs to be said that not all professional exclusive buyer agents are NAEBA members, mostly for the reasons already mentioned above.
The final fragment we will explore in the real estate industry is the culture of the discount brokers. Like the exclusive buyer agents, they are new to the industry, and they have also drawn the ire of the industry for going against the traditional ways of doing business. However, they have taken an adversarial position against all Realtors, including buyer agents, and inadvertently exclusive buyer agents. They have unfairly shrouded the entire industry under a cloak of suspicion—leading many consumers to believe that they are the only credible option available. Because certain discount brokers have ties to the media—which is notorious for delivering biased information—they are able to spread their inaccuracies nationwide. They profess that consumers are victimized by the industry, yet they fail to take into consideration that not all real estate professionals are alike. They are content to make sweeping generalizations about matters they are not fully informed on. Certain discount brokers contradict themselves by claiming that they do not practice dual representation (dual agency), yet if a buyer purchases a property through them, and the property is listed with their company, this is dual representation on the part of the company.
Bottom line:
The real estate industry is about serving the best interests of our clients, period. It is not about our egos. It is not about our “net gross sales last year,” nor is it about out-selling “Sally Sells-A-Lot” next door. It is not about spreading deceitful propaganda and half-truths to induce consumer action, and it is not about suppressing valuable agency options—nor alienating the practitioners that choose to make these agency options available. It is only about the welfare of consumers, respecting their right to be represented, and respecting their freedom to choose how they want to be represented. They have a right to full disclosure as to what their agency options are, because without full disclosure, they cannot make fully informed decisions on matters that can materially affect them.
Food for thought:
Will the real estate industry ever gather and reconcile its fragments for the sake of consumer welfare? Will real estate professionals ever learn to respect each other, and the diverse cultures that have evolved within the industry? Will old-school Realtors ever learn to understand that these diverse cultures are no less deserving of professional courtesy and mutual respect? Will certain discount brokers ever stop spreading inaccurate propaganda and half-truths to induce consumer behavior? Time will surely tell.
Positive change in the real estate industry will require integrity, diplomacy, transparency, tolerance, mutual respect, and understanding. Until we have these ingredients, we cannot fully serve the best interests of consumers, nor can we become a united industry.
Posted by Suzette Monique at Tuesday, August 14, 2007 1 comments
Labels: buyers, exclusive buyer agent, exclusive buyer agent seattle, exclusive buyer's agent, exclusive buyer's agent seattle, exclusive buyers agent, exclusive buyers agent seattle, real estate
Saturday, August 11, 2007
The Mortgage Meltdown, and What it Means for Homebuyers
With the loss of available cash for new loans, lenders have tightened their lending requirements, and some lenders have been forced to go out of business—filing for bankruptcy. According to an article by RISMEDIA entitled Mortgage Mayhem, the reason for the fiasco in the mortgage market, “…is largely based on the fact that market conditions in both the secondary mortgage market and the national real estate market have deteriorated to the point that many mortgage businesses are no longer viable or as profitable as before.”
So what does this mean for homebuyers?
It means that it is now more difficult for buyers with less-than-perfect credit to qualify for a mortgage. The Associated Press had quoted George Hanzimanolis, president of the National Association of Mortgage Brokers , “lenders have raised the minimum credit score that qualifies for financing. Most lenders now require bigger down payments, he said, and are eliminating exotic loans or making them more difficult to qualify for.” He mentioned, “The silver lining is that people with good credit who can document their income have the same access to home loans as they did a year ago.”
First time homebuyers will have a tougher time buying their first home, but hope is not completely lost. The condition in the mortgage market now requires first-timers to do a little more planning, and more saving for the future. Buying a home is not only one of the biggest financial investments of a person’s life, but it is also one of the biggest responsibilities. It is worth taking the extra time to plan and wait—making sure that all financial considerations are in order, saving enough money for a larger down payment—with some savings left over—and making sure that credit scores are brought up to justify a lower interest rate.
If a buyer's income is good, but for whatever reason, they cannot qualify for a mortgage, then there is the option of lease-to-own. This is a good way for buyers to be in a home, while improving their situation to qualify for a mortgage in the future. Considering the current condition in the mortgage market, more sellers might be willing to entertain such an arrangement if buyers can demonstrate that they have a steady job situation, and they can support the monthly lease payments.
Posted by Suzette Monique at Saturday, August 11, 2007 0 comments
Labels: exclusive buyer agent, exclusive buyer's agent, exclusive buyers agent, first time homebuyers, home buyers, mortgage crisis, mortgages, mortgages loans, real estate