Homeowners: How did you choose a Realtor
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Homeowners: How did you choose a Realtor
I'm new to the process of buying a house, I have a pre-approval from a decent lender, I figure the next step is to start talking with realtors.
WTF?
I have people coming to me telling me to use their brother-in-law or their daughter or whatever, but how the hell do you tell if these people are any good? Seems like half the bay area is related to a realtor, surely with that many realtors there must be some that suck beyond belief, and I have no idea how to avoid them.
I'm interested in what the experiences were from others as to how you + your realtor hooked up. Also, if the experience was good or bad. If you ever ditched a realtor, why?
WTF?
I have people coming to me telling me to use their brother-in-law or their daughter or whatever, but how the hell do you tell if these people are any good? Seems like half the bay area is related to a realtor, surely with that many realtors there must be some that suck beyond belief, and I have no idea how to avoid them.
I'm interested in what the experiences were from others as to how you + your realtor hooked up. Also, if the experience was good or bad. If you ever ditched a realtor, why?
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every realtor that i've ever dealt with has been a pain in the ***. as far as i can tell, they are a (barely) necassary evil. i'd suggest finding one who doesn't get on your nerves, and who you don't want to punch everytime you see them. basically, they're there to unlock doors, and fill out paperwork. i pretty much had to find my place on my own, the realtor just let me in to look at it.
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I've been using the same realtor for my past and current purchases of my home. I'm on my third home now.
We've known her for more than 10 years already and we're very happy with her services.
Go with references (who've used the realtor's services) and also specialize in the geographic area you are interested in.
We've known her for more than 10 years already and we're very happy with her services.
Go with references (who've used the realtor's services) and also specialize in the geographic area you are interested in.
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Try and look for one that has been recommended by someone else. It is basically up to you. See how you like them and how they deal with you and then decide if you want to stay with them. My mom is a realtor for Coldwell Banker. They are a good office to check in to. What area are you looking at?
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Originally posted by SuzWRX
What area are you looking at?
What area are you looking at?
I think the ideal place for me would be Dublin, but that is $$$ and looking at the MLS listings over the last couple months, there's not a ton of turnover there, not like Fremont, which is one of my last choices of cities (2nd to last, behind Hayward)
You don't have to get a realtor but they do cut out a lot of the work. We sold our home privately to a private party and both of us saved a lot of money because of it. Not a realtor in sight. But once the house was listed they pursued us like pack animals stalking a kill. I've never gotten so many damn phone messages!
Sorry Matt, i haven't had the chance to get my license yet 
But I will sometime, I'm thinking this summer. Either way, Yes I have some family in the business, and some family friends. But if all you really need is advice on a home, I can come with you. If you need someone to open the door with that key and handle all the paperwork etc, you'll definitly want a realtor. I'll ask my uncle and see if he works out in dublin, and if so, i'll give you his information, and you can choose to meet him or not.
-Gagan
But I will sometime, I'm thinking this summer. Either way, Yes I have some family in the business, and some family friends. But if all you really need is advice on a home, I can come with you. If you need someone to open the door with that key and handle all the paperwork etc, you'll definitly want a realtor. I'll ask my uncle and see if he works out in dublin, and if so, i'll give you his information, and you can choose to meet him or not.
-Gagan
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Originally posted by joltdudeuc
Sorry Matt, i haven't had the chance to get my license yet
But I will sometime, I'm thinking this summer. Either way, Yes I have some family in the business, and some family friends. But if all you really need is advice on a home, I can come with you. If you need someone to open the door with that key and handle all the paperwork etc, you'll definitly want a realtor. I'll ask my uncle and see if he works out in dublin, and if so, i'll give you his information, and you can choose to meet him or not.
-Gagan
Sorry Matt, i haven't had the chance to get my license yet
But I will sometime, I'm thinking this summer. Either way, Yes I have some family in the business, and some family friends. But if all you really need is advice on a home, I can come with you. If you need someone to open the door with that key and handle all the paperwork etc, you'll definitly want a realtor. I'll ask my uncle and see if he works out in dublin, and if so, i'll give you his information, and you can choose to meet him or not.
-Gagan
Anyway, it may be a good idea to go with a family friend because you might get better treatment and what not. If you've been pre-qualifed by a lender then that means you have a set price maximum meaning if the letter says, "john doe has been formally pre-approved for a purchase price of $200,000"... then that's your limit. Anything over that and you'll need to get approved once again. so the realtor is going to be a middleman in the process. they'll offer homes from a listing...
You'll need to use a private broker/lender service as you will get the a better rate. Don't deal with Ditech etc because they claim a 4.750% ARM rate but they charge you about 3 points+ for it. If you'd like you can call my office and i can direct you to a sales broker. If you do that then it'll most likely be someone in my family
. it's kinda like a family business.PM me if you want to do that.
eric
I have bought and sold 3 houses on the peninsula. My take is that Realators are the same as Car salesmen. If you don't know as much as they do, they are going to take advantage. I would also play as many of them as you can stand. The last comment I have is about experience. Stay away from the glut of newbies out there. A realator who does the most volume in the area that you are after is going to know the houses more than someone who has simply lived there for a time. Also you can haggle on the commision if they arent looking at only a few listings to get their money from.
Good luck and think long term.
Good luck and think long term.