A property that sat on a double lot was put on the market. The neighbor bought it to carve off a bit of the second lot to expand his own yard. The neighbor/new owner then put the home back on the market, and it sold. Months later, through a property tax notification, it came out that in preparing new deeds for the properties, the expanded yard area was correctly titled in the name of the neighbor; however, the house had been transferred to the new home buyer. The new homeowner now owned both houses, and the original neighbor owned his expanded driveway and yard. Fortunately, they were good neighbors and settled the matter with a few signatures. A real estate agent regularly deals with these contracts, conditions, and unexpected situations and communicates closely with the attorney about how to use the contract to protect you.
YOU WON'T NECESSARIL N'T NECESSARILY SAVE MONEY
The point of not using a real estate agent is to save money, right? Otherwise, why would someone turn down professional assistance in finding a home? It's unlikely that both the buyer and the seller will reap the benefits of not paying real estate agent commissions. It works like this: an owner selling on his own (FSBO) will price the house based on the sale prices of other comparable properties in the area. Many of these properties will be sold with the help of an agent; therefore, the seller profits in getting to keep the sale price at the level of homes that are sold with the 6% commission included. 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, therefore they look solely at FSBO houses. They might expect money to be saved and make an offer accordingly. But unless the buyer and seller agree to split the saved commission, the buyer may pay more than necessary. Here is a short list of the advantages that using a real estate agent can bring to your buying experience:
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