My husband & I are looking to rent a house and are thinking about going to a realtor to aid in our search. What are the pros and cons.
Some Realtors specialize in this. Most do not think there is enough money involved to do this. But their pay comes from the landlord- you would not be paying.
I am looking for tips on what questions I should ask a realtor when I am looking for a home. I am also looking for tips on what questions I should ask when looking to get a home loan. I am a first time buyer. So any helpful tips will be appreciated.
First of all, find out WHO she is representing. Is she working for you, the seller or neither?? Don’t give away much info if she says "the seller" since it is her duty to let the seller know everything she knows about you (like if she knows you’ll pay more or if you have bad credit) Ask her to represent you…most will be happy to at no fee to you but you have to ask. She can also point you in the right direction for a loan. Make sure you get a Realtor who has experience and a good reputation. Ask bank tellers and lawyer’s office help or the store clerk. There are a lot of good loans out there for first time home buyers. Your Realtor can arrange things for you.
How can I buy a condo from someone without a realtor?
I am thinking to buy a condo from my friend’s classmate’s girlfriend. She owns the condo. Can we handle the whole purchase process all by ourselves without a realtor? How can we do that? What should we do ? what’s the procedure ? Or we have to find a realtor ?
Thanks a lot! Praying for Haiti!
No, you don’t have to have a realtor to make this transaction happen. You can have an attorney assist you with the property purchase. Be sure to hire an attorney that has extensive experience with property transfers, as this area of law can be rather complex, and you want to be sure that everything goes smoothly.
Whats required to become a realtor in the state of NC. Are there any classes I have to take?
Rose, I don’t understand what you just wrote.
Here is everything you need to answer the question:
http://www.ncrec.state.nc.us/
You have to take classes and state exam to become licensed.
Check out the website for all pertinent information.
Good luck!
The complex has a sign that says no soliciting… but someone said that just meant people going door to door selling stuff. This was just a flyer for another realtor promoting themselves, wouldnt an apartment complex get ticked off at this?
No it is not illegal for anyone to leave a flyer for their services, Now if they were to knock on your door and want to try to sell you something and your neighborhood or apt complex has a no solicitation sign,then that is another matter. You really couldn’t do much but complain to the apt complex and let them notify whoever it was who left the flyer.
How can I buy a condo from someone without a realtor?
I am thinking to buy a condo from my friend’s classmate’s girlfriend. She owns the condo. Can we handle the whole purchase process all by ourselves without a realtor? How can we do that? What should we do ? what’s the procedure ? Or we have to find a realtor ?
Thanks a lot! Praying for Haiti!
Two things:
1) Why would you not want to use a realtor? There’s no charge to you, the buyer. All costs are paid by the seller. You will need a real estate attorney otherwise, if doing a transaction by owner. The seller should definitely pay those costs, because they will be far less than real estate commission if using a realtor.
2) More importantly, why in the world would you want a condo? Do you have any idea what you’re buying (or not buying) when you buy a condo? In a nutshell, you’re just buying air. You don’t own one wall or any part of your unit of the building. You only own the space inside the unit. Yet you will still be liable for property taxes. That’s right, you’re paying property taxes when you don’t own any real property or anything tangible. In addition, you’re paying a monthly association fee that can be as much as $200 a month, something you wouldn’t have if you bought a house. That $200 a month is much more than it would cost you to hire lawn/snow maintenance for your house. I would advise you to reconsider any condo purchase, and seriously look into buying a house. There are plenty of good deals on houses out there in this market.
I’m a realtor, and I sold a house to a client a few weeks ago. It will close in another 2 weeks from now. Suppose I die between now and scheduled closing. Would the sale fall through, or would my employing broker be re-assigned as the buyer’s agent?
The sale is really with the broker, you are jusst an agent of his.
He would have to finish the transaction himself, he can not legally delay it because of this.
There is no re-assign here, it was always the brokers deal.
Case in point: my fiance and I are preapproved for a mortgage of "X-amount". I’m pretty savvy when it comes to finances, but I’m having a hard time finding homes which are suitable for our needs. Should I bite the bullet and pay a realtor to help me find our dream home? Or just keep searching on my own and save the realtor fees?
Case in point: my fiance and I are preapproved for a mortgage of "X-amount". I’m pretty savvy when it comes to finances, but I’m having a hard time finding homes which are suitable for our needs. Should I bite the bullet and pay a realtor to help me find our dream home? Or just keep searching on my own and save the realtor fees?
As for the cost of inspection, I’m not sure if the seller pays for it or not. I know that the third party fees include: appraisal, title, inspection, recording fees, taxes, and I think surveys too. I’m not 100% sure who pays for all of these, I’m just going to assume the buyer does so that I’m not guessing my cost too low.
Unless you plan to build, I’d use a Realtor. Fees can always be negotiated, and a good realtor can take care of negotiating away some of the detail fees you mention above.
You need to interview realtors to find out if they WANT the job – many will simply go through the motions. Since I’m not in the biz, and don’t know where you live, let me put an ethical, hardworking realtor’s email below – he’ll take the time to answer your concerns, and if you like, he can refer you to someone in your area – for you to audit. Always stay in control, and NEVER sign agreements with realtors – you can always find another one, and eventually, you’ll find a good one that won’t push you for contracts.
If you want to build, skip the realtor and get a lawyer instead.
I am looking to buy a home (my first). My sister just said something about "signing a contract with the realtor" however the realtor I’ve been in communication with hasn’t brought that up. Does one always sign a contract with a realtor? What does it cover? For whose benefit is this, mine or the realtor’s? Is this common practice?
I’d like to get some background information on it before discussing it with my realtor, if I can ascertain that this is a valid, common practice,
Why would he not have mentioned this contract to me before?
It is more and more common, but not at all typical for a buyer’s agent to have a buyer sign a "Buyer’s Broker Agreement". The contract basically says that if you buy real estate in the next "X" months you agree to do it through thte agent so they can make a commission. Since you are committing to them then they will commit to you and spend hours and hours running around and showing you all kinds of property.
I have been working with buyers for over 10 years and have never asked someone to sign one. I think that it suits me better to develop a relationship with my clients. I have not had a problem with clients leaving me – but that may be an issue for other agents. Some agents use these agreements only for those clients they "get a feeling about" in order to avoid getting taken advantage of.
What would be considered a reasonable time for a realtor to respond to your questions on a house and to set up a time to go look at them?
Glenn… You obviously didn’t read the question or the answers. I had asked if my realtor was taking to long and now I want to know what I should expect from a realtor. Why bother answering if you don’t have anything constructive to add.
It really depends on who is listing the home and if they are answering the phone. If your real estate agent calls the listing agent with questions and to get a lock box code, and the listing agent does not respond, they won’t have any info for you. Out of courtesy, they should call you to let you know what’s going on within the hour if there is a contact issue.