Reasons to Use a Real Estate Agent - In Their Own Words

© 2009, Brandon Cornett. All rights reserved.

Do you really need to use a real estate agent when buying home? I’ve always recommended it. It’s even more important to use an agent if you’re buying your first home, buying in a new city that’s unfamiliar to you, or a combination of these things.

What are the benefits of using a real estate agent? How do I find one in my area? What questions should I ask when choosing an agent? These are some more common questions among first-time home buyers. I could offer my own answers to these questions, as I’ve often done in the past. But instead, I thought it would be more interesting to see what the agents have to say on this subject.

10 Good Reasons to Use an Agent

So what’s the big deal about having professional help? Why do you need a real estate agent to help with the home buying process? Here’s how some agents across the country have weighed in on this question:

1. Your Advocate. The whole point of using a buyer’s agent is to have your own advocate during the transaction. Your agent will look out for your best interests, and only your interests. As real estate adviser Steve McLinden puts it, a good agent will “make sure your position is not compromised by any behind-the-scenes maneuvering or buddy-buddy agent collusion.”
2. House Hunting. Louisiana agent Barbara Domingue explains how an agent can “work out a realistic idea of the home best suited to your needs.” This is the key to a successful house-hunting process.
3. Narrowed Search. The Dallas agents at Intown Properties explain how a buyer’s agent can “preview the properties on behalf of the client to insure that the identified criteria are met.” This helps you save time by weeding out any homes that don’t meet your needs.
4. MLS Search. The Multiple Listing Service is a huge database of homes for sale. And your real estate agent will be able to access this database. And as Shelley O’Hara from HomeFinder.com points out: “your agent is the best point of access for all homes and can arrange showings for houses of interest.”
5. Listing Updates. New houses come onto the market all the time, so when house hunting you must keep a constant eye out for these new listings. A good agent will handle much of this for you. For example, real estate agent Jo-Anne Smith says: “I register my Buyers on a Listing Update Program through our local real estate board that provides them with all of the new listings that meet their criteria.”
6. Future Vision. Agents will know about “new developments that might affect a property’s value.” This comes from Bill Jones at Virginia Real Estate Auctions. Good point Bill. After all, if that beautiful meadow across the street is scheduled to become a parking lot in three years, the home buyer would want to know about it!
7. Pricing Research. The HomeGain blog points out that an agent will do the necessary market research “in order to make an educated offer” on the home.” This will help you avoid overpaying for a home.
8. Trained Eye. Your agent will have an eye for property details, says Brandon Cornett over at AdviceForAgents.com. He or she can “point out all of the pros and cons of a particular house and neighborhood.”
9. Negotiation Skills. According to the agents at ForHomeBuyers.com, the research and negotiation skills of an exclusive buyers agent “truly levels the playing field when it is time to make an offer.”
10. Seller Paid. The Bank of America Home Loans website (formerly Countrywide) points out that real estate agents typically get paid by the seller, “from part of the commission taken from the sale price of the home.”

What Did We Forget?

We welcome input from real estate professionals. If you have another good reason to use a real estate agent when buying a home (one that’s not already on this list), feel free to leave a comment below.