keep the percentage of the home’s sale price that might otherwise be paid to the real estate agent (usually 6%).
Buyers looking to purchase a home sold by owner without an agent may believe they can save money on the home by not having an agent involved, and so they look solely at FSBO houses. They might expect money to be saved and make an offer accordingly. Unless the buyer and seller agree to split the savings, they can’t both save the commission — and that’s if the listing price was not already lowered by near the commission amount to make it more market-attractive. Here’s a short list of the advantages that using a real estate agent can bring to your buying experience:
• Education and experience • Neighborhood knowledge • Price guidance • Market conditions information • Negotiation skills and confidentiality • The ability to handle paperwork accurately • The ability to handle closing questions • Relationships for Future Business
It’s extremely important to know the “ins and outs” of real estate agents before you bring one along with you to help in your search for a home, just so that you might know what to expect, and what will be expected of you.
REAL ESTATE AGENT vs. REALTOR®
People tend to use these two terms interchangeably -- Real Estate Agent and REALTOR®. For some, saying realtor is an abbreviation for real estate agent. Simply put, a real estate agent is someone licensed to list and sell real estate, including homes, 7
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