Seller Agent, Buyer Agent & Buyer Customer Roles
Looking for a new home is such an exciting time! There are so many websites full of HGTV worthy homes. Going to open houses is certainly fun. In all that excitement, most buyers don’t understand the different types of agency a Realtor can fill. Most important, most buyers don’t understand how important it is to have a Realtor working for them.
Buying a home is usually the largest financial transaction you’ll have in your life. You’re spending hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars of your hard earned and precious money. There are times in life when the smartest course of action is to hire a professional to work for you. Buying a home or property is absolutely one of them.
Real estate agents will be representing a client in one of three ways:
Seller Agent, Buyer Customer or Buyer Agent.
When you first start working with an agent, they should discuss with you how agency roles work.
Seller Agent: This is the easiest type of agency to understand. A seller of a property hires a real estate agent to sell their home. This is the person who is representing the seller. This person is the Listing Agent.
Buyer Customer: When you’re browsing houses on websites and fill out a form to “Contact Agent”, most of the time you are NOT getting in touch with the Listing Agent but another agent who is paying to advertise on that site. In New York, any time you go out with an agent to view a property, that agent is working for the seller of any property they show you. It doesn’t matter if you met them through a referral, at an open house, from calling an online number or they called you when you filled out that form. That’s how seller agency works. You, at this point, are a customer, not a client. An important part of seller’s agent job is to get the highest and best price for their client, not to get a lower price or better deal for you, the customer. If you continue to be shown properties with the same agent, even if they aren’t their brokerage’s listings, the agent is still working on the seller’s behalf. They’re working WITH you but FOR the seller.
Buyer Agent: So, do you want an agent working for you or against you? To have your best interests protected and advocated for, you need to sign a contract with a Realtor that states that they work for you and you are their client. That is the Buyer/ Broker Agreement. Once you have signed this, you now have a professional working FOR you and not against you. You now have a professional who’ll work tirelessly on your behalf to find you the perfect home for the lowest and best price.
Questions or ready to get started? Contact me today to get started.
