You have been living here for 25 years. You brought up your children in this home but now they are gone and have their own lives. This house is far too big for the two of you and it requires too much care.
You are thinking of selling and buying a condo. Which should you do first - sell or buy? Where do you begin?
Your family is increasing. You need more space. What is your home worth? Can you afford a larger home? Where do you begin?
You are being transferred and have to find a home in a new city. Your company is allowing you several days for ‘house shopping’. You will have to locate a REALTOR® to assist you. Will the REALTOR® accommodate you with the time you require? Where do you begin?
With the exception of a transfer, most consumers are able to look for a home on a more leisurely basis. As the thought of buying materializes, many consumers start browsing through real estate papers and other real estate publications. They may access the various internet sites including the MLS® System - www.realtor.ca - to see what properties are available in their neighbourhood of interest. Some may drive around favourite neighbourhoods to check out homes with for sale signs.
There are many ways to proceed but the most effective way is to find a REALTOR® that you are comfortable with and in whom you have confidence to represent you.
Consumer Concerns
Some consumers avoid contacting a REALTOR® because they are uncertain of what this entails.
Seeing All Listed Properties
I have had clients who asked me up front if I would show them other properties besides my own listings or the company’s listings. The misconception is that REALTORS® don’t wish to show other properties or that they don’t have information on other companies’ listings. The fact is that all REALTORS® have access to the information of properties listed on the MLS® System. REALTORS® often promote their properties to each other in the hope that one of them may have a suitable buyer for the property. REALTORS® are a cooperative group.
Availability of Information
Similarly, others only contact listing REALTORS® because they feel that REALTORS® from other companies may not have all the information and, specifically, may not have some helpful inside information that would assist the buyer. Personal information about the seller cannot be disclosed by the listing REALTOR® to a potential buyer or to any other REALTOR®. But, all property information must be shared.
Obtaining Addresses
Other consumers like to use the real estate paper and do their own drive-bys before they contact a REALTOR®. Often the address is not in the paper so they call the real estate office with the listing and ask for the address. If the MLS® number is in the ad, they can search it on www.realtor.ca and generally find the address. Because there are several days of lead time required to publish a paper, in a fast market some of these properties might already have pending offers. This is a very time consuming way to search for properties.
REALTOR® Fees
Another drawback for some consumers deals with their uncertainty of how a REALTOR® gets paid. This is easily clarified. In most instances, when I represent a buyer, my fee comes from the proceeds of the transaction. The listing REALTOR’S® Brokerage has a listing contract with the seller which specifies the dollar amount or the percentage of the selling price that the Brokerage will be paid upon the completion of the transaction. Out of that, it stipulates the dollar amount or percentage of the selling price that will be shared with the cooperating Brokerage - if different from the listing Brokerage.
The respective REALTORS® also have agreements with their Brokerages as to what percentages they will receive for their services. These agreements vary within a real estate company and among real estate companies. By the time the property is on the market, these contractual fees are already established, and, in most instances, are outside the buyer’s sphere of influence.
‘Pushy’ REALTOR®
Consumer concerns wouldn’t be complete without addressing ‘pushy’ REALTORS®. For the most part, this perception is generally due to the buyer and the REALTOR® working at different speeds. Some consumers only take a few moments to go through a home and decide whether it is on their potential list or not. Others scrutinize a property much more carefully before coming to such a decision. Some buyers spend a great deal of time evaluating their choices before making an offer. For others, it is a straight forward decision.
REALTORS® have to adjust to the pace of their clients and, generally, do. A little communication usually clears up the problem. REALTORS® are there to facilitate the process by ensuring that you, as buyers, have all the information necessary to make informed decisions -- at your pace.
The ‘Door Opener’
There are times that I receive a call from a consumer who wishes to see a property. I don’t normally respond to such a request but ask the potential buyers to first come to my office to discuss their requirements. Often they do and occasionally they don’t.
In the past, I responded to such requests but soon learned from them. The following is an example of what transpired on one occasion.
The caller wanted to see a property later that same day. I agreed to this instead of suggesting that we should first meet. It was my listing, close to my office and it was vacant. I asked the caller some important questions: “Are you working with a REALTOR®?” The answer was “No” and so I felt I was not infringing on another REALTOR® or wasting my time.
There are occasions when a consumer calls on several REALTORS® to view properties. If that is the case, it is only the REALTOR® who eventually writes the offer who is not wasting his time. All those who show homes that are not of interest are simply ‘Door Openers’. They are wasting their time and really have no recourse because they know nothing about the buyer’s wants or needs.
Another question: “Have you been pre-qualified for a mortgage?” “Yes, up to $500,000.” A good answer since it attests to the seriousness of the buyer. So, I agreed to meet Joyce, this potential buyer, at the vacant house at 4:30 p.m.
I arrived a few minutes ahead of time to open the house and put on the lights. Shortly, a gentleman came by but I wasn’t sure why he was there. I was expecting a female. I soon found out, that this was apparently a relative of the potential buyer who might co-sign for the mortgage and was, therefore, previewing the home.
At this point, I was somewhat uneasy as I knew nothing about this person or the person who actually made the call. Nor did I notify anyone in my office that I was showing a property. As he viewed this house, I allowed the gentlemen to browse through this vacant home on his own as I stayed close to the open front door with my cell phone in hand with the emergency number on speed dial. When he was finished, he simply thanked me and returned to his car. He had no questions nor was I prepared to address anything either. I was simply glad that he left.
I didn’t know how serious these buyers were or what their timing might have been. They obviously didn’t want a REALTOR®. They wanted a ‘Door Opener’! In not having buyers first come to my office where I could have obtained information about them and their housing needs, I not only wasted my time but could also have unnecessarily exposed myself to danger.
Meeting with the REALTOR®
Now when I get a phone call from you, the consumer, indicating that you plan on making a real estate purchase, I ask you to come to my office. This is