sortaclarksville
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Attend open houses in the area and just talk to as many as you can. You'll come across one that you "click" with, and that's a much better way of finding an agent than a cold call to the office or walking in and getting whoever meets you at the door first.
As to relying on national companies....don't go on that alone. They have good agents who work full-time and really put an effort into it, and they have part-time agents who piddle with it as a hobby and really don't care if they sell something or not. Plus, they have a high turnover rate (all agencies do).
A real estate agent's job isn't to sell you a house. A house will sell itself. Their job is to help you find a home. So, you need someone who is familiar with the area and more interested in you than just selling you the first thing you can afford that is currently on the market. The perfect house for you may not even be on the market right now, and a good agent will help you be patient and not push off something else on you so they can just close a sale and move onto the next person. Honestly, I've been happier with the smaller, local companies than the big national companies. |
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heavymetalrick
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As a former Realtor and Broker of 10+years, let me say that with todays vast online resources available to buyers and sellers, a reasonably intelligent person can navigate the entire buying/selling process without shelling out exorbitant fees! It's work, but balance that against the cost of say $12,000.00 for selling a $200,000.00 home, and you'll agree with me that it may be worth the effort! |
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bpl
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I prefer to use different agents for different things. I generally like to get to know them before I do business with them. That way, I know whether or not I feel comfortable with them or not. I like the agent to represent my company and what my interests are. I feel that certain qualities are important to the customer.
I would interview them about themselves and their business. There are certain qualities that you want and you should be able to find those in the agent. |
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Mario G
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The best way to find a GOOD agent is to check with people you trust that have bought a house recently...say with in the past 2-5 yrs.
Trust the people you think would have a good sense of how their agent was and use that one.
Word of mouth is always the best way to find someone good |
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StAn
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word-of-mouth. and if you live in san diego county, never go with rae parkhurst! |
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rxing
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Open houses, they are the best way to see them in action. |
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Mildred S
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I'm not sure that you can ever hire anyone to do a job and be a hunderd percent sure. The best thing that I have found is to take out a 3 THREE Month contract with them and have an option to terminate them for ANY reason if you think they are not doing their job. In general I do think that larger agencies spend more money to advertise. Open houses are helpful
I think it is more incentive to get them to do their job. Keep in mind , that they are not miracle workers , they can't always control the market conditions, the condition of the house , etc. You also have an obligation to the realtor to do your part to help make a sale. Listen to them for hints about how to improve the curb appeal / inside of house. The staging of the house is very important. Remove extra furniture from room, get pod storage for clutter, empty closets 1/2 way so they look better and keep the place spotless. they will give you lists of stuff to get done before it is even listed. It's no fun selling a house / but the closings can be worthwhile. Hopefully, this is your payday !
I would interview them / I think all you can really judge in meeting someone 15 minutes is if you like them appearance/personality and think they can sell. The only thing you can do beyond that is make sure the contract is in your favor (listing expires in 3 months not 6 and you have a right to terminate for any cause) and that you do your part in getting house ready and keeping it perfect for showings/open houses.
Good luck! |
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JPR D
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Hello,
what kind of house are you trying to buy?
if it is a condo and a new development, one can bypass the Realtor all together and go to the sales office pocketing the commission.
If you are planning to buy in one given area, I would go look a few houses that I like and pick up a few cards. It will facilitate your shopping experience. Then when you call you simply say that you want to check the house, and they will always ask if you have an agent. Tell them that you are looking for one and not yet decided.
The one that impresses you the most during the visits, can become your agent. Realtors are about selling or buying but bottom line making money. At an open house, they are not natural. You want to catch them off-guard and see how much they are willing to do for you.
Some Realtors are all about themselves and closing a deal. Once the deal is closed, you never hear from them. You need not only a Realtor who is nice, knowledgeable but has a good understanding of the community and the schools. The APY scores don't mean anything. You want to go meet the principals. You want to see the schools and see where they are located.
Finally, it is not about how much you buy but for how much you get it financed. Your finance person is equally important. Try to get someone who is separate from your Realtor. You don't want one person doing it all!
Good luck!
JP |
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witch2order
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Look in the papers |
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Fairy
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There will be hundreds of best ways to find a real estate agent but you probably will find difficult for best real estate agent. |
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Steven C
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I was referred to an agent by a very good friend. This agent was very familiar with the area I wanted to move to. She was also in good standing with the agency she worked from. She has sold six houses to just my family. You have to be really careful when you are a first time buyer. Go with a reputable company and be sure that they have been selling real estate for a number of years and that they have no negatives marks against them. |
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Joshua C
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there r ads in the paper for some. |
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karan151086
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if you have any shop at yours nearest then visit there & see newspapers because in newspaper given information is right and you contact with right person and first collect the information about the agent. |
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jimmybond
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u have more answers than u can chew. |
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Tom
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Ask your freinds. jeeeezzzzz |
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Dan W
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Pick up one of those free real estate guides in the rack at the entryway of the local grocery store, go through it and see which realtor in your area seems to have the most listings. (Just an off-the-cuff idea.) |
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Sweetpea
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I recommend you interview your agents. Have a list of questions such as how much experience they have. To be honest with you, your biggest asset will be your mortgage lender in regards to your first home. Shopping a loan can and will save you thousands. You will also want a very good home inspector. If the agent brings forth listing that are more than you are wanting to spend you need to rethink that person.
Sometimes the big guys may not do you the most justice. Don't overlook the small independents. A person who has a lot of listings is more a sellers agent than a buyers agent. |
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cprucka
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Get ahold of the BBB, they can put you on to NOT to do business with. You are right! Buying the right house is very important. Ask about insurances, don't buy into condo's. They tell you they have insurance on the outside of your home, but don't forget to ask how much the deductable is. I learned that the expensive way. They hire the cheapest help for lawns, snow removals, and painting, ( if you can get them to do it ) My deductable for the outside, what they are suppose to be taking care of is $9000.00. I just sunk $2.400 in my fireplace alone. That's when I found out the deductable. My whole outside can't amount up to that!
Shop around and make sure you read the fine print when you get a loan. Everyone is out for that all mighty dollar. Find out if the hose has been termite inspected, if the furance and furnace ducts have been cleaned and working properly, and find out about property taxes! Some states are different than others. Get on the net and surf the sites that show you the taxes in the state you are looking in. There are alot of hidden costs they don't tell you about, unless you ask, and get everything in writing. Good luck! |
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jorod03
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Go with the first answer from sortaclarksville. His answer is just like in Real Estate the first offer could end up being the best offer. What are you looking for in a home? How about the school system? How about the neighborhood? Answer all those questions yourself then find someone knowledgeable with your area of interest. The majority of established agencies do do 80 percent of their business in the neighborhood they are located in. They know there home towns. There are many laws to protect you. An agent is not like a car salesman. They could loose their license. They can be sued. They can't tell you what has not been revealed by the home owner. If they are aware of a potential problem they have a duty to reveal it. |
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QuiteNewHere
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The most common way to find a good realtor is word of mouth. When people are happy with the service of a particular person, they gush about him or her, and how well they were treated etc etc.
Each country/city/ state or province will also have certain licensure requirements so these regulatory bodies or real estate associations are great to seek out names as well. You want to hire the ones who are licensed, have no pending litigations against them and are generally have fulfilled the current requirements of the industry and its standards. |
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livewire
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Being a real estate agent myself I admit that there are a lot of crooks in this business. There are also a lot of honest hard working agents out there and based on my past experience the best agent is not always the most experienced. The newer agents may work a lot harder for you. This said I think the best thing to do is to check out the neighborhoods that you like and get familiar with the area first then narrow down your search to a few "favorite areas". Go to as many open houses as you can and get familiar with the areas that you like and meet some agents. You may find one that you like. Ask for their references and make a few calls to see how their past clients liked them.Last but not least do not sign a buyers agreement with them. Some agents ask for that and that puts you in a trap if you don't like them. Also beware of the trick where they show you 6 ugly houses and by the time you see one nice house you will want to go for it!! |
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chek me out baby ........
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its vry simple dear u can find them in daily news paper or in the yellowpages or any yearly book wich provied all information & address .........hope fully my words will help u to find them ..... |
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sophieb
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I'm not sure what you mean by "decent one" since all realtors, real estate agents all well educated in their fields, have clean records and all are approved by the state, and that includes the brokers they work for. Yes, you can go to realtor.com and find one in the area where you want to buy a home. Agents usually have an area where they choose to work (like for instance beach front properties, properties over $1 million, some are just buyers agents, some are sellers agents, some like to sell homes in the country, etc. and by looking at the websites of those in the area you want to buy you will know their expertise. Give them a call and see which one you feel comfortable talking with, or ask the broker to refer you to someone.
I had a good laugh at reading all the responses. The questioner asked aboiut a "real estate AGENT" not about Realtors, yet many realtors responded trying to twist the questioner's arma and everyone elses' arms to buy from them or give them a commission just so they could do nothing and yet transfer the prospective client to another agency the individual doesn't know. The competition sure was keen from the responders one trying to say they were better than the other or selling (against the Yahoo Q&A community rules).
Most people suggested a specific broker's office to deal with yet several years ago many, yes many, agencies were purchased by the same company...Yes, you read that right, although they have different names for their agencies most of them are run by the SAME main company, it's just that each office is run by a broker who runs it a tad different than the other one like different advertising, different area, etc.
Yes referrals are good (referral from your family). No, agents for the most part are not paid, they are on commission, and the commission is part of the amount they collect from the seller in the closing costs, HOWEVER a lot of those closing costs go to pay advertising fees, fees for the post and sign and installers, long distance phone calls, etc. etc. that YOU requested be done.
The reason everyone needs an agent (rather than selling or buying a house on their own) is because the agents do all the legwork for you. And the reason you need an attorney as well is to prevent you from getting screwed by the buyer or seller (and not by the agent).
Someone was correct when they said you need to get your own loan first (get one for 30 years) and THEN go see an agent. Not too many agents are doing home showings anymore since there is a security risk. So what you do is call an agent and tell them what you are looking for and have them come to you with their laptop. The reason you meet "outside" of the office is that competitor agents steal clients right from under your nose, and so do brokers. So if you find an agent you like then be ready to hire them to work for you and on a confidential basis. That way they will give you all the time you need, they will bring to you every possible match, and will show you the home or homes, etc., they will give you a printout of the taxes, schools, and anything else you ask for. |
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Diane G
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Ask friends who have used realtors in the past. You can also contact your local Chamber of Commerce. Good luck. |
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Hello
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You could try going on your own. With internet, books...etc now days it is easier to get information that were once hard to get. Most likely you'll be willing to wait longer than some agent who is looking for quick deal.
I think it might require some time, but if you go without agent you can still get good offer minus the commissions. |
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Herman S
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Best way to find a realtor is to look under a rock. If you find something that looks and smells disgusting you have found a real estate agent!!! |
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igotdvs2
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Look for Timothy Henson on the Web. He's an expert. |
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mrscmmckim
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Go with a larger, well established company and check them on the bbb.com site.
Make sure you find an agent who has been around awhile.
Ask them how long they have been an agent and how long in the area.
I am in real estate school right now so I am certain these are great suggestions. |
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shermynewstart
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You don't NEED a realtor! Save yourselves some money. Find a house you want (you can look at lots of them on-line) & then find a mortgage broker. Why give a realtor some of your money? You don't go through a travel agent anymore, do you? |
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TheDude
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You may want to work with a few and see which one makes you most comfortable. Since most agents can see all of the same homes available in a given area via an MLS system, the big difference from one agent to another will be experience, drive, personality, and overall knowledge of the market. Don't waste your time or the agents time. Make sure you have a nice down payment, and get a mortgage pre-qualification so you know exactly what you can afford to look at. Realtor.com is a good place to start. You can also walk into a couple of neighborhood offices and start the process that way. An office where everyone is sitting around is not the right choice. A busy office is always good. They will generate more leads and more contacts, and probably have more listings. |
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Kyle K
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goto open houses and ask the realtors that u see |
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