How to Hire a Real Estate Agent — and Be Their Best Client Ever

Being a good partner to the agent you pick will make you both happier house hunters.

When you buy a home, your agent is effectively a business partner. You’re both working toward the same goal: Closing a real estate deal. That’s why it’s in your best interest to to know both how to hire a real estate agent and how to build a good relationship with them.

Because the better an ally you are, the better an ally your agent will be. Here’s how to pick a real estate agent and work well with them.

1. Know What You Want

A lot of home buyers dive into the house hunt with no idea what they want, so the first and best way to be a good client is to know exactly what you’re looking for in a house.

Ask yourself a couple of basic questions. What’s my budget? What type of house do I want, single family or town home? Is there a design style I must have? A neighborhood I need to be in?  

Knowing these specifics – and telling them to your agent – will help him find homes that match your criteria. Because neither you nor your agent wants to waste time looking at dozens of houses that aren’t even close to what you have in mind.

“Over-communicating your intentions and goals is a really good idea,” says Ashton Gustafson, an agent with the Bishop Group in Wichita Falls, Texas. 

Knowing exactly what you want can help you know how to pick a real estate agent, too. Some agents specialize in certain neighborhoods, and some specialize in old houses or particular architectural styles.

2. Meet Agents In Person

It’s fine to start off your relationship with an agent via email, text, and phone, but before you hire him to work with you, set up a meeting. Yep, do a face-to-face interview.

It’s a good idea to interview three agents before picking one. Here are some questions you should ask:

• How long have they been an agent?
• What neighborhoods do they specialize in?
• How many homes they’ve helped people buy in the last year?
• How many clients are they’re currently working with?

Meeting in person can help both sides determine compatibility and establish trust. To the agent, meeting them IRL is a sign you’re serious about buying.

“When I ask a question of a buyer, if I can’t see their face (then) I can’t see their reaction, and I have no idea if I’m really getting the emotions that are behind their answers,” says Jackie Leavenworth, an agent and real estate industry coach in Cleveland, Ohio.

3. Set Up Expectations for Communication

Tell your agent how you’d like to stay in touch during the buying process.  Do you do prefer texts? Facebook messenger? Or do you like old-fashioned phone calls (Telephone calls: Still a thing!)

Tell them how often you expect to hear from them, too. Daily? Weekly? And tell them the best times of day to reach you, too.

“My successful buyers ask what kind of communication they’ll have with me,” says Thai Hung Nguyen, an agent with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Premier in Washington, D.C. “My answer to them is always, ‘It’s totally up to you.’” 

4. Be Respectful

Be mindful of an agent’s time. Don’t flake on showings. Be prompt.

If you disagree with your agent, respectfully tell them why. 

Resist the urge to freak out if the agent doesn’t immediately respond to a text or phone call. “People hire me because I jump through hoops, but I also need buyers to know that I have a life, too,” says Leavenworth, the Cleveland agent.

5. Get Organized

We told you communicating your wants to your agent was key. Here’s a good way to do it: Write them down. Give a copy to the agent. He’ll be better able to find homes that match your criteria. 

You should also have your financial records in order. This means getting pre-approved for a loan. Pre-approval for a mortgage says you’re serious about buying a house and not just window shopping.

“Anything we do without a loan approval letter is pure speculation,” says Marki Lemons-Ryhal, an agent and social media strategist for real estate in Chicago. 

6. Admit What You Don’t Know

Real estate transactions are complicated. Don’t be embarrassed if you don’t know what all the terms mean, or what to expect from each step of the process.

If you don’t know what escrow means, ask. If you’re confused about the terms of an offer, say so. It’s totally normal to ask an agent for a little hand-holding — that’s what they’re there for. 

Part of knowing how to hire a real estate agent is finding one you trust enough to tell you things you don’t know.

7. Don’t Play The Field With Other Agents

If you’re working with an agent who is hustling for you, don’t dally around with another agent. In real estate, just as in romance, that’s cheating. It can backfire by damaging your relationship with your agent.

If your agent finds out you’ve got other agents showing you houses, he may prioritize other clients. So a big part of knowing how to pick a real estate agent is knowing that you need to stand by your agent once you hire him.

In fact, it’s in both your interest and the agent’s to sign a buyer’s broker agreement for a set period of time. The agreements spell out the rights and duties of both parties, including exclusivity.

Article written by: LEANNE POTTS

(Leanne Potts is an Atlanta-based journalist and serial home remodeler. She’s tackled five fixer-uppers and is working on a sixth. She’s written about everything from forest fires to dog-friendly decor and spent a decade leading the digital staff of HGTV.)

Five Things You Should Put In Storage While Selling Your Home

When your home Five Things is on the market but you are still living there, you can’t very well make it a model show home.  Still, there are a few things you should think about putting in storage while your home is for sale in order to make it as appealing as possible to buyers.  Here are the top five things you should consider putting out of sight.

Excess Family Photos

Buyers want to picture themselves in the house, and a slew of family photos hung all over the place can make that difficult.  If all they can see is you and your family, they won’t be able to easily envision their own family there.

Your Liquor Cabinet

A nice wine rack or a few bottles displayed near the wet bar are fine, but if you keep a lot of liquor in the house put it somewhere out of sight.  While it may seem illogical, buyers who share different lifestyle views might be put off by it.

Your Pet’s Toys

Chewed up tennis balls, smelly stuffed animals, and half-digested bones are part of life with a dog, but people coming to see your house will find it unattractive.  It will also tell them your pet has the run of the house, and they will wonder what damage might have been done.

Signs Of Repairs

Put away the plunger and similar items when you are selling.  It will prevent buyers from wondering if something is wrong with the plumbing, even if you only keep it around as a precaution.

Anything That Clutters A Room

So the extra bedroom is used as an office/exercise room/guest bedroom?  Versatility is great, but all that stuff in there will just look like there isn’t enough space in the house for everything you—or a buyer—needs.  Get rid of the exercise equipment and the desk, and leave the guest bed.  Extra bedrooms are more of a selling point than an office or exercise room.

It might be annoying to have to put some of your personal items away while you sell your home, but it can mean a faster sale and a larger profit.  Buyers need to see a home as a place where they can live, not the place where you live.

 

Examining A Home Objectively: What Matters And What Doesn’t

Everyone heads out to look at potential homes with a list of the things they want in a house, and a list of the things they definitely do not want.  In addition to that wish list, there are also some other things you will notice about the homes you visit that may strike you as potential problems.

When looking at homes, it is important to know what things are deal breakers and what things are minor issues that you can deal with easily.  Turning down a dream home because of something that is an easy fix seems like a silly thing to do, but it happens surprisingly frequently.

Cosmetic Issues

You walk into a home and it has terrible wallpaper or paint colors you wouldn’t dream of using, and it turns you off immediately.  While the gut reaction is normal, it is important to step back from that instinct and think about it objectively.  Painting is not particularly difficult or expensive, so try to imagine how the home would look with a different color palette, one that is more your style.

The ability to recognize which issues are merely cosmetic and can be easily fixed is an important key to finding a house you will love.  Be prepared to visualize the home as you could make it with a few cosmetic changes.  It will open you up to the possibilities and might allow you to consider homes that aren’t perfect the way they stand now, but could be just right with a little elbow grease and paint.

Major Repairs

In some cases the major repairs that a house needs might be obvious.  In other cases they might only be unearthed during a home inspection.  Either way, you will need to give serious consideration to whether or not you are willing to deal with the problem.

If the home needs expensive repairs, you can either try to get the seller to do the repairs or accept that you will need to do them yourself.  In most cases, the seller will probably not be willing to take on major repair work, but might reduce the price accordingly.  Still, this might be a deal breaker if you are seeking a turnkey home.

Knowing The Difference

A home inspection is the best way to uncover all of the issues, both minor and major, that a house might have.  When you review the inspection, look for things that can be easily fixed as well as those that can’t.  The amount of work you want to do on your home will determine what problems you can personally live with.

 

Show Me the Money: How Much Cash You’ll Need to Bring to the Closing Table.

Let’s start low and then build up. First of all, if you qualify for a VA loan, they allow a zero down payment. If you’re a veteran or an active duty service member, you need to know that. Also, if you’re buying a home in a rural area, ask your REALTOR about the Department of Agriculture program. Yep, the USDA has a zero down home loan program for people buying out in the country.

Now if neither of those programs work for you then you’ll have to come up with some cash when you buy a house. But, you do not need a 20% down payment. If you’re a qualified buyer you can find a good safe mortgage which requires as little as 3% down. And again, this is not some sub-prime back alley mortgage, this is a high quality home loan. So that’s a good starting point.

Now, how do you get the money? Well course people who sell one house and buy another, they just take the profit from the first place and buy the second one. But if you’re a first time home buyer you don’t have that ability. So for you there are basically four ways to get your down payment ready to go.

First, save it. Just sock away all the money you can and try to temporarily stop spending on things you don’t really need. Plenty of people have given up vacations or expensive dinners in order to conserve their down payment money. You can too. It helps by the way to have your money put in your savings account automatically – direct deposit. You never see it so you won’t be apt to dip into it.

Second, plenty of first time home buyers get the down payment from their parents. But it has to be a gift, not a loan. Lenders won’t allow you to barrow the down payment. Your parents will have to give you the money. It happens all the time all across America.

Third, if you have an IRA or a 401K you might be able to withdraw money for a down payment. Talk to your accountant about this one. You need try at least to avoid penalties for early withdraw. So talk to a financial pro about whether that’s a smart move for you or not.

The forth way to come up with a down payment, your city or state might have a program that provides down payment assistance. Again, talk to your REALTOR about what programs are in your area. You might qualify, you might not. Many people are surprised that they can be making a pretty good amount of money and still get down payment assistance.

On last thought. I talked a lot about how to get into a house with a low down payment. But if you can, you should know, it’s almost always better to put down more. Put down as much as you can. Your monthly payments will be less, you’ll walk into the place with more equity. And if prices were to drop, you’ll have more protection against going under water. So more is better. And if you just don’t have more, that’s okay. Remember, you do not need 20%. If all you have is 3%, 3.5%, or 5%, don’t give up. Because the home you want could be within your reach.

 

Things You Need When Applying For A Home Loan

Congratulations!  Now that you have found the perfect home, all that’s left is getting the perfect mortgage.  In order to do that, you will have to know what your lender needs from you in order to get your loan application approved.

Property Description

When applying for a home loan, you will need to provide the lender with detailed information regarding the property that you intend to purchase, including a physical address, what type of loan you are requesting and how you obtained the funds to be used as a down payment.

Borrower & Co-Borrower Information

All persons named on a home loan must be able to provide their name, date of birth, current address, former address (if within the last two years), marital status, current and former employment information, telephone number and social security number.

Most lenders require tax returns for the two years preceding the loan application, along with current paystubs or, if self-employed, a year-to-date profit/loss statement.

Current Mortgage Expenses

An important part of every home loan is affordability, which is why your lender will need to know how much of your income is available to pay for a new home.  If you have a current mortgage, be ready to provide a detailed list of expenses that you pay each month in relation to the property.  This includes a mortgage payment, real estate taxes, mortgage insurance, homeowner’s association dues, utilities, etc.  If you plan to sell the home, let your lender know so that they will understand you are simply replacing one debt with another.

Yes Or No

Almost every loan application asks both the borrower and co-borrower (if applicable) to answer a few simple yes and no questions on the application.  Questions pertaining to outstanding judgments, bankruptcy filings, foreclosures, lawsuits, alimony, child support and citizenship status are standard and should be expected when applying for a home loan.

Statement Of Assets & Liabilities

When applying for a home loan, both the borrower and co-borrower will be required to disclose all of their current assets and liabilities.  An asset is property, either real or personal, that is owned and is of value.  A liability, on the other hand, is a financial obligation for which one is liable.

A loan application will request information relating to assets and their current market value, including automobiles, real estate, stocks, bonds, life insurance (cash value), business net worth, personal property, etc.  If any amount of money is owed on these properties, the lender will request information relating to the unpaid balance in order to determine the actual equity that the borrower has in any given property.

 

Is An Income Property Right For You?

The appeal of income properties and the potential for what may seem like easy money and early retirement have likely crossed the mind of anyone who has heard of this business venture.  There is a lot more to consider before entering the income property game, however, than simply purchasing a property and watching the dollars roll in.  Here are a few things to consider before launching into your new career.

Can You Recognize An Income Property When You See It?

There are a lot of features that make a good income property.  Whether you are considering flipping it for a profit or renting it out to potential tenants, knowing what to look for is more than half the job.  Can you realistically estimate what the cost of renovations to the property will be?  Do you know what the value of the home will be after the renovations, based on its size, location, etc.?  Do you know what the market rent would be for the property?  If you can’t answer any of these questions you either have a lot of work to do, or you may want to reconsider.

Not Scared Off?

So you think you can reasonably identify an income property and are still interested in making your first purchase.  Here are a few tips for making that a success!

Know Your Intent—Whether it’s flipping or renting the property, you should have a clear picture before you make the purchase.  Have an estimate of what the renovations will cost as well as the profit margin of the investment, both in the short and long term.

Consider Splitting The Costs—Many people who enter the income property market reduce the risk by having partners.  Whether it’s a friend, relative, or business partner, this may be the right decision to minimize your risk in your first venture.

Make It Your Business—Whether you plan on doing this as an additional source of income or you are going into it full time, realizing that this is now a business will prevent you from losing a fortune.  You will spend a lot of time getting to know both the real estate and the home renovation industries, and the more you know, the more successful you will be.

Deciding to get into the income property business can be a time consuming, but ultimately very rewarding, venture.  Like any business, the effort you put in and the knowledge you have will determine the success you achieve.

 

Creating Curb Appeal

If you’re selling your home, there are a number of things you can do to improve your property’s potential value and appeal.  Creating curb appeal is one of the most effective and easy ways to accomplish this and to increase the interest of potential buyers in your home.  Here are some simple and inexpensive ways you can increase your home’s curb appeal.

Use Color Effectively

Color can be a power tool in attracting people to your home.  If the exterior of your home could use a fresh coat of paint or a new door, this is a great opportunity to add some points of interest to your property.  Always remember, however, more is less—choose colors that are similar to other homes in the area.  You can infuse more vibrant and interesting colors through accent features and flowers or plants.

Create An Inviting Entrance

Making the entrance to your home attractive and inviting will give potential buyers an instant sense of welcome the moment they walk through the door.  Make the door the focal point of the exterior of your home, and think about elements such as lighting and color to make it as attractive as possible.  Also think about details such as including a nice welcome mat on your front step, some flowers in attractive pots or urns flanking the entrance, and even consider adding a chair with a small table if you have a larger porch area.

Landscaping is A Must!

Is A Must!Making your lawn and yard attractive, free of clutter and debris, and nicely landscaped can really make all the difference in adding curb appeal.  First remove all weeds, fix any areas on your lawn that need repair, and mow it carefully.  If you have any unsightly items or clutter in the yard, remove it and replace it with well-placed flowers and plants.  If you have a large front yard with no trees, consider planting one or two to add interest and value to the property.

These are just a few of the many ways in which, with a little effort and a small amount of money, you can increase interest in your home.

 

Avoid The Most Common Mistakes When Selling Your Home

Here are the most common mistakes people make when selling their property.

Home Is Priced Too High

This will certainly turn buyers off, and you may have to make several contingencies or offer incentives in order to get buyers even interested in making an offer. While you may feel your home is special, asking more than the fair market value will usually get you nowhere.

Home Is In Bad Condition

While your home in its current condition may work for you and your family, if there are obvious repairs that need to be made, or it is terribly outdated, fixing these problems will not only make it easier to market your home, but will also increase its value.  In most cases this increase will be considerably greater than the money you put into making the changes.

Home Is Being Marketed Incorrectly

When selling your home, there are no guarantees that the ultimate buyer will simply walk through the front door.  In many cases you may have to bring your home to the buyer.  Effective marketing will help ensure that your property receives maximum exposure to attract a ready, willing, and able buyer in the shortest period of time.

By adhering to the advice in these simple tips, you can avoid the biggest mistakes homeowners make when selling their homes, and the process will be smoother and more profitable in the long run.

 

Home Buying Negotiating Tips

When it comes to buying a home, the ability and willingness to negotiate is a must for both the buyer and seller.  In general, sellers ask for more than they are actually willing to accept and buyers offer less than they are willing to pay.  The trick is to find the perfect balance so that you, as a buyer, feel good about the purchase price without leaving the seller feeling insulted.

Know Your Market

Real estate is a business that either favors the buyer or seller, hence the terms buyer’s market and seller’s market.  When negotiating a purchase price, it’s important to know which of the two you are in.  As the buyer, you will have the best chance at a successful negotiation if you research the price of other comparable homes in the area before making an offer.

Make It Personal

When you make an offer, the seller will see nothing more than a piece of paper with some numbers on it that represent the price you are willing to pay.  If you really want the seller to take your offer to heart, let them know why you want to buy the home.  You can do this by preparing a handwritten letter expressing your interest and the reasons you fell in love with their house.  If you have a family, tell them about everyone who will be living in the home.  Let them get to know you and allow them to picture the happiness that you can bring to their house.  Believe it or not, some sellers actually look at the process like finding a good home for a lost puppy.  They want quality people to buy their home, so do your best to show them that you are sincere.

Nobody Likes Rejection

Not every offer is accepted, so don’t be disheartened if your first offer isn’t a winner.  In some cases, the seller will make a counteroffer for your consideration.  Have you ever heard the old saying, “never take the first offer?”  The same is true in real estate, and almost every seller knows it.  Your first offer is likely to be less than you are actually willing to pay, which leaves you some bargaining room.

Why Your Offer May Not Be Accepted

There are a number of reasons why a seller may choose to reject an offer, including a feeling that the offer was just too low, the house is newly listed on the market or another offer may be higher than the one you created.  In some cases, sellers may also reject an offer that includes owner financing or other requests that are impossible to meet.  One example may be an offer that requires the house be available within a certain amount of time.  Most contracts require that the seller move out within 30 days, but anything less would require negotiation.

Read The Fine Print

Before you sign anything relating to a real estate transaction, make sure that you read over every detail of the agreement.  If you have any questions, ask your REALTOR®.  After all, real estate is their business and they are there to help you through every step.

 

A Nice Home Or A Nice Neighborhood: Which Matters More?

When you start shopping for a home, you probably have a very specific image of what you would like that home to look like.  You probably also see the perfect neighborhood surrounding that perfect home.  Every buyer sets out with an image of the house they want to own, but in reality compromises are often necessary in order to stay within your budget.

Compromising On The House

There may be certain things that are non-negotiable when it comes to your new home, such as the number of bedrooms or a two-car garage.  But as you take a look at the homes that are within your budget, you may discover that it is not likely you will get everything on your wish list.  But the great thing about owning a home is that you have the power to remodel it at any time.  Once you are in your new home, you can renovate or even add on if necessary to create the home you really want.  And if you have managed to stay below your budget, you will even have the extra money each month to make some of those changes.

Compromising On The Neighborhood

So you’ve found the house of your dreams, but the neighborhood isn’t precisely what you were hoping for.  Too much traffic, some houses that are becoming run down, or many other issues can mar the area your house is in.  In most cases, you will have to accept that you cannot change the neighborhood, and this means that you have to decide if the problems are things you can live with or not.

In some cases, buying in a run-down neighborhood can be a strategic move.  If many people are buying up the houses and improving them, then your home might one day be worth a lot more.  However, you must realize that this is a risk and it might not work out that way.

Another thing to bear in mind is that if you choose to buy the nicest house in the neighborhood, you may have trouble selling it down the line.  If other houses in the area are available for less, why would anyone buy your expensive house to get into the area?

So Which Matters More?

In the long run, when it comes down to choosing between the right house and the right neighborhood, you should choose the right neighborhood.  While you can change your house for the better, you can’t count on your neighborhood changing; in fact, it might get worse.  So choose the best neighborhood you can afford even if the house there isn’t perfect.