Buying a home is an exciting time in a person’s life. However, this excitement is often paired with a little bit of stress. This is because it is a long process, and there are a lot of things to handle. As a result, many people will look to get some assistance. Some will work with real estate agents, while others will decide to enlist the help of brokers.
These brokers play a versatile role, from helping people who want to sell houses Brevard to assisting those who want to buy. While they can have value at times and certainly make the process easier, they might not be giving you the full story about things. With that in mind, this blog post is going to look at the top five secrets that most brokers won’t tell you before buying a home.
You Don’t Need to Use Their Inspector
A home inspection is an incredibly important part of buying a home. This process will help ensure you get a home that doesn’t have any major underlying issues or problems. When you are working with a real estate broker, many of them will have an inspector in their back pocket that they generally work with.
While this isn’t always an issue, many will prefer to work with inspectors who will find small problems, but ignore larger ones that could slow down or stop the transaction altogether. Instead, be sure to seek out your own licensed and legitimate home inspector to carry out the inspection.
Their Service Isn’t Actually Free
It is common knowledge in most cases that it is generally sellers who pay both the buying and selling agents or brokers. As a result, many brokers will market their services as free, to entice buyers to work with them. While you won’t be directly responsible for paying these brokers, you may be indirectly responsible.
This is because many sellers will work these costs into the final selling price of the home. So you won’t be directly sending a check to the broker, but their services will not be free. Also, while there is a standard commission of around 5-6%, this isn’t set in stone. While most brokers won’t tell you this, many are negotiable and will be willing to take a smaller commission in some cases.
They Want to Work Quickly
Brokers make their money when a home is sold. As a result, many will want the home buying and selling process to go as quickly as possible so they can get paid. While they will generally give good advice, some brokers will attempt to rush you through the process a little and make a deal that might not be right for you.
They are there to help you, but not make the decision for you. Don’t pay more for a house than you are comfortable with, simply because an agent says the property is competitive and you need to act quickly. Take as much time as you need to make a decision that you are comfortable with.
What Their Jargon Really Means
Real estate agents and brokers will use a lot of terms and jargon that you might not fully understand. A lot of it sounds good, but might have a deeper meaning that you don’t notice. Unfortunately, many won’t tell you what these terms really mean when using them. Agents and brokers want a deal to get done, so will generally use “fluffy” terms to describe less-than-ideal parts of the home.
We have all heard the terms “charming”, “mature landscaping”, or that a home has “potential”. While these may sound good, that isn’t always the case. Homes with potential are often in a bad state of repair; mature landscaping generally means dead trees or shrubs and a charming or “cozy” home often means small.
The Size of the Firm Doesn’t Matter
A major way that many brokers or agents will try to sell you on their services is by talking about the size of their firm. Large firms will boast about all of the available resources they have to help, while smaller firms will tell you they can give you a more personalized experience.
However, the firm itself isn’t going to help you buy a home, it will be the individual broker. Instead of worrying about the firm size, choose a broker who can dedicate the time to helping you out. While large firms have a lot more business, it is spread out over more brokers or agents. Choosing a broker that isn’t overworked with numerous other clients is generally a good idea.
In conclusion, we hope this post has been able to help you learn some of the secrets that many real estate brokers won’t tell you. Now, this doesn’t mean brokers are a bad idea, but it is important to ask the right questions and do your homework, even if you have someone working with you.
We hope you found this blog post 5 Secrets No Real Estate Broker Will Tell You Before You Buy a House useful. Be sure to check out our post How to Choose a Good Realtor: Major Client Misconceptions for more great tips!
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