On Jan 29, 12:02*pm, "Mac" wrote:
"Una" wrote in ....
Mac wrote:
Our buying agent was paid by the seller. *We were assured that she
represented our best interests by law.

Sorry, no. *"Your" agent was the showing agent, legally working for
the seller, and splitting the commission with the listing agent. *A
buyer's agent is someone who contracts with the buyer, usually for
a flat fee (not a commission), to represent the buyer and only the
buyer. *Unfortunately, many people who go around calling themselves
a buyer's agent are nothing of the kind: *they are agents who are
not good enough at selling to have any listings of their own. *They
survive by trying to be the first to show buyers a house, and then
they demand half of the commission if "their" buyer ends up buying
the house. *Consequently, these agents are keen to show you lots of
houses, which impresses some buyers tremendously.

I spent a day with one of these agents, driving around to look at
houses I had researched, I had found driving directions to, etc.;
all this guy did was use his magic dongle to unlock the lock boxes
on the doors of unoccupied houses. *I'd given him a list in advance
but he didn't bother to arrange for us to see any of the occupied
houses. *I guess he figured a drive by would pass as first showing.
After that experience, I dealt only with the listing agent of each
house I looked at.

Una

Oh my gosh, we were warned NEVER to deal with the listing agent. *Again,
live and learn. *Next time, I'm doing my own inspection (along with the
required hired inspector), hiring a buyer's agent, and passing up any house
that won't let me get up on the roof (or at least a ladder), empty the
closets, and maybe camp-out in front for a day or two. *Oh yeah, and I'll
pass on the third bedroom to get a my fireplace back.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


The problem is not as much as who you deal with as it is in knowing
who it is you are dealing with. I don't look to a real estate agent
for advice on how to fix foundation problems, how to get a loan, or
much of anything else, except maybe providing me with some comparable
sales data and serving as an intermediary. It's a lot easier to tell
a real estate agent that you think the kitchen sucks and the bathrooms
need to be remodeled and thats why your offer is what it is. They can
then take that to the seller and perhaps help explain that it isn't
unreasonable, that other similar houses do have better kitchens, etc.

I'd prefer to deal with only the listing agent. Why? Because they
have a 6% commission coming. With no other broker involved, if I make
a low offer, as part of the final negotiation, it's not unusual for
the listing agent to be willing to cut their commission to make the
deal happen. They can get 4 or 5% and still be better off than if
they had to hand 3% to another broker. Or they can get 3% and be no
worse off. What would they rather do? Kick in $5K in commission
cut that doesn't really cost them anything and have the deal done, or
work 6 more months trying to sell it, perhaps without success?

If you get a buyer's agent, they are typically going to be paid out of
that 6%, getting 3% They do have a fiduciary responsibility to
represent your interests. But, does that mean that you should tell
them the highest you will pay for a house they've found? I think
not. Unless you pay them by the hour, which I've never seen, they
still have an incentive to get the deal done and over with, don't they?