What does a real estate agent do for buyers? If you’re in the camp that you think a real estate agent shows you houses and not much more – I am here to debunk that urban legend. Now, I can’t speak for all agents in every state, but Team Be New Orleans does oh so much more.
Contract Writing and Negotiations
Do you know how to write a Louisiana purchase agreement? I have seen attorneys in this state represent themselves and butcher a contract. Many C students pass law school. What you need is an A+ real estate agent.
Not only do you have to write this legally binding contract – but you need to negotiate all the terms. From closing dates to what items are being left, closing costs to financing terms, buying a home in Louisiana should require professional guidance to protect you.
The next step would be the seller’s counteroffer if they didn’t like your original offer. Writing a counteroffer is a skill as you are only changing the terms from the original contract. When you’re on your 4th counteroffer, have you remembered every little detail that needs to be changed?
Inspections and Inspection Negotiations
As your real estate agent, we know lots of home inspectors. Even better, we know which ones aren’t worth throwing any money at. It’s pretty easy to get your home inspector license. You want to use an agent that knows the good from the bad. We have seen way too many people buy a house without an agent, not get inspections done, and then find out a ton of problems exist after the sale closes.
After inspections are finished, you may have to renegotiate your sales contract. Do you need repairs? They needed to be worded a certain way to ensure you’re getting everything you need. (And this is when you need to hire a great agent because I’ve seen many lazy and poorly written repair requests). If you’re going to ask for money in place of repairs, where is it going? Price reduction, closing costs, or somewhere else? There are many ways to navigate these issues. Doing this on your own is not a great idea.
The in-between
During the inspection period is when you have to do your due diligence. How much is insurance, were the proper permits pulled for the renovation, and are there hidden things you need to know? Your highly meticulous real estate agent will start checking into what they can and remind you repeatedly to get your insurance quotes ahead of time!
Appraisals
Want to know what happens if the house you’re buying doesn’t appraise? The seller doesn’t have to come down on the price, which can get to be a tricky situation. I cannot stress the importance of an amazing agent to guide you past this hurdle.
Re-Inspections
If the seller is making repairs for you, you definitely need a re-inspection then! Your agent will get that scheduled and confirm these items were corrected and in the way you requested. Because if you get out there and they aren’t done, you will need another re-inspection. Who is paying for all this? Your real estate agent will help you figure all of this out.
All the extras
Do you need a survey, did you remember to get the utilities turned on, what happens next – the list of questions is never-ending. If you have an outstanding agent, they will be answering all these questions even before you ask. But, at a bare minimum, they will have answers.
Having an awesome real estate agent helps keep the headaches to a minimum. Every single deal is different ad things constantly change – so you can’t bank on your BFF who bought last year or your mom who bought 45 years ago to be prepared to help you through all this. Just hire someone who does this for a living!
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