Buying Your First Home Step By Step - Step 2 Choosing A Real Estate Agent

How to Choose a First Time Buyers Agent.

In step 1 we talked about getting pre - qualified. The second step in buying your first home should be choosing a real estate agent. Many first time buyers elect not to use an agent. Unless the buyer is very experienced and or trained in the real estate market this is a big mistake in my opinion.

Why You Should Use An Agent In Buying Your Home

1. While all agents are NOT created equal and there are bad ones and good ones, It is a simple fact that an agent who is trained and licensed in the home selling and buying process can help you save a lot of money and make the process go much faster and smoother.

2. There are strict laws in real estate; both state and federal. Agents are trained to know these laws and can help you avoid getting into legal trouble or worse yet ripped off by shady lenders or sellers.

3. When an agent represents you as a buyer he or she does all the leg work / paper work, negotiating, etc. this leaves you the buyer with much more time to focus on other things such as choosing the right home and arranging for a move.

4. As a buyer, professional representation by an agent doesn't cost you a dime! The buyers agent gets payed by the sellers agent/broker who shares the commission.
These are just a few of the reasons that the first time or even experienced buyer should always seek the assistance of a real estate broker.

Choosing The Right Real Estate Agent

As I mentioned above, there are good agents and bad ones. And it can be difficult to distinguish the good from the bad. However, using the right selection process will assure that you get the best possible agent to represent you in buying your first home.

First of all, don't be lured in by advertising such as by NAR (National Association of Realtors). Don't get me wrong. NAR is a good organization; I myself am a member. I'm simply saying don't make this a criteria in choosing an agent. All that's required of an agent to be a member of NAR and use the Realtor title, is to pay the dues and go through a short ethics training course. And being a member of an organization doesn't make an agent good. I know a lot of great agents who are not "Realtors"

So how do you choose the right real estate agent? Find an agent who is very active in the area where you plan to buy, contact the agent and ask questions such as how many transactions they have handled in the particular market area, are they experienced in working with FHA buyers, etc. If the answers given by the agent are satisfactory then ask for references and check the references they give. Home buyers are normally more than happy to give an honest opinion of a real estate agent they have worked with.

Help Your Real Estate Agent Find The Right Home For You

Once you have chosen a good agent, you can help the agent find the perfect dream home for you by giving them all the information possible about the home you want to buy. Be clear on your criteria. Be sure the agent knows which criteria / home features are an absolute must and which ones are simply a desire that you may be willing to compromise on. This will help your agent find the right home for you much faster and save a lot of time and gas looking at homes that you're not interested in.

Follow this step and it will make your first time home buying experience much easier and help you get the right home.