Hire A Buyers Agent if you Buy New Construction
Posted Feb 21, 2007 @ 7:06 am, Viewed by 3885 Visitors, Read 3986 Times.The popularity of new construction is undeniable. Many buyers simply prefer to buy a new home rather than to purchase an existing home that has been owned and lived in by other people. I guess it is similar to that new car smell that makes a new car irresistible to some. There is definitely something wonderful about buying a new home you can customize exactly to the style and amenities you prefer. If you are considering buying a new home, you will want to consider some of these suggestions before you walk in to that beautifully decorated model home. In the area where I specialize, Sandy Springs and Alpharetta, new construction is very prevalent so you may find these suggestions timely.
First and most importantly you will want a REALTOR to represent you and only you in the transaction. If you walk in to the new construction model home and sign in and register, you may not be able to come back later with your own representation because the builders agent will be what is called the procuring cause of the sale. What this means to you is that the builders REALTOR marketed the home and that is the reason you found them so you might be stuck using the builders agent to represent you in the transaction. In my opinion, it is even more important to have a REALTOR represent you separate from representing the seller when buying a new construction home than it is when you buy an existing home. These reasons are many, but, mainly it is because you need to make sure that someone representing your interests is there to recommend a home inspection, negotiate for builder incentives and repairs to code requirements and help you determine what a fair market value for the home is.
New constructed is untested. Meaning that compared with an existing home, you don't know the build quality and whether or not everything works the way it is supposed to work. With an existing home, proof that everything works correctly is a little more evident. I recently represented a buyer on new construction home and the builders agent assured my buyer that the builder was so good that there was no need for a home inspection. I will not go into details about how wrong that agent was, but, suffice it to say that the buyers were thanking me for recommending the inspection after it was completed.
The truth about new construction is that it can be a wonderful experience and the pride of owning a brand new home can be high. You simply need to have a REALTOR represent you and not the builder to ensure that quality and price come together to make your new home an exceptional value.
I am REALTOR® serving the North Atlanta Real Estate Market including Alpharetta, Buckhead, Chastain Park, Dunwoody, East Cobb, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Milton and John's Creek. I operate the Ryan Ward Group - a full team of exceptional real estate agents and office personal to serve all of our clients with the highest level of service. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call or email me and I will be happy to help.
Phone: (404) 630-3187
Atlanta Real Estate
ryan (@) ryanwardrealestate.com
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Social Bookmarking4 Responses to “Hire A Buyers Agent if you Buy New Construction”
In my experience, this is where I here the most horror stories about buyers not being represented properly. Dual agency is one thing, but, this is an issue with builders agents because the selling commission is usually higher than the listing side because the builders agent will get more listing side splits to make up for it. So the builders agents are more aggressive because the extra money paid to the buyers side - Just an opinion.
jessica
Not all builders give a higher rate to the agents that sit in their communites. I have been in new home sales my whole 10 years in real estate and I have never been paid a higher amount when there was not a agent. We push for the sale for several reasons one being we are sales people, two the builder/seller expect us to sell their homes, and the most important we get paid 100% commission that being said of course onsite agents push hard for the sales we want to get paid, bottom line. And don't get me started on how many agents send their buyers out to the communites with thier cards to have them register and or coat tail in on the sale saying they have brought them into the community! Inregards to the inspection everyhome needs one no matter new or used I will agree there with you.
If an agent sends a buyer out to a community and presents you with a business card then they are the procurring cause. There should be no issue there. As for agents parachuting in after the fact - well, that's a seperate issue. As a listing agent, you should know that it is in your best interest to market properties and get them sold for your client. While I understand the dissapointment that an onsite agent must have when they see another agent jump in and take some what they think should be some of "their" commission, I don't believe that it is in the best interest of any buyer to be represented buy the listing agent. As a listing agent, I see very few examples of when I think that it would be in the best interest of the seller to attempt to force procurring cause to go from a buyers agent to the listing agent. Buyers don't want that kind of hassle and they could well just decide to buy somewhere that will not cause them a headache. New construction or not, buyers should have their own representation. It's just that I see this happen much more frequently with new construction. Buyers don't understand that new homes are at least as likely to have problems as resale homes and they need to understand what the value of the new home really is based on a market analysis, not on what a listing agent thinks that it should be. That's my take on it anyway...
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Great advice - we need to keep pushing this idea.