Buying or selling a house isn’t an easy task. It requires a lot of time, effort, and knowledge of the given field. While you might think that you can handle it all by yourself, that’s not always the wisest decision. The one element that makes this process a whole lot easier is the involvement of a real estate agent.
As per the National Association of Realtors, only 7% of the buyers prefer to buy a home directly from the owner, thereby proving that real estate agents definitely help with the transition as well as the transaction between the buyer and the seller.
Reasons to Hire a Real Estate Agent
Perhaps you haven’t had a pleasant experience with a real estate agent in the past, or you believe that hiring one will be too expensive. Both of these situations entail that you haven’t yet met an efficient real estate agent who not only knows how to do their job but doesn’t overcharge for it either. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons as to why you should be hiring a real estate agent:
Reason #1: The Value of Experience
Before hunting for a house, every individual has certain pointers they’d prefer to be checked off the list. This could be related to the number of bedrooms, the presence of a pool, the locality, and so on. The thing is, the neighbourhood you are looking into could have several such properties with similar characteristics. If you attempt to see them all, it will just become tedious and immensely time-consuming.
A real estate agent knows exactly which property to show you and which one will suit your needs the best. Cherry-picking the best houses from the good ones is their job, thereby making the selection process much simpler for you.
Reason #2: Substantial Market Knowledge
Even if you attempt to look for houses yourself, you will never know enough stats and data about the real estate market as much as a real estate agent. There are numerous little factors that need to be taken into account, and a real estate agent worth his salt can provide you with this information. Some of these factors include how the unemployment rate and mortgage interest rates can influence the housing market, the condition of the house-by-house and street-by-street market, and also the minute details regarding the houses that are currently on sale.
Real estate agents can provide crucial data to you related to the houses you’re looking at so that proper comparisons can take place. Insider information such as which areas have the best educational institutions nearby, which localities have lucrative projects surrounding them, and the graph of the market value of a neighbourhood, are all questions that a real estate agent can answer.
Reason #3: Abundance of Professional Contacts
Anyone in the real estate business knows several people in their network, as a result of which hiring a real estate agent means being privy to their range of professional contacts. They know people working in the market, people looking to buy and sell, and also the good properties that will soon be on sale. Yet another advantage of this is that they can pass on their contacts to you. Getting a home, after all, is not the final process; you will also have to look for plumbers, electricians, landscapers, etc.
A real estate agent knows competent people who can take care of this all. Hence, you won’t have to run around looking for trustworthy contacts. They can help you get in touch with mortgage professionals, inspectors, and also real estate lawyers.
Reason #4: An Eye for Detail
Much like an editor being able to spot the grammatical errors in a given piece of work, a real estate agent has a keen eye for detail and can identify the potential problems in a property. Therefore, hiring a real estate agent can be beneficial for both buyers as well as sellers. As a buyer, you will already be investing a lot of money in a house, after which you would obviously not want to spend heaps of dollars in repairing it.
With a real estate agent, problems can be identified at an early stage before they turn into bigger issues. They can also point out foundational defects from the very first phase so that you don’t waste time on it at all. Issues related to the roofing, furnace, plumbing, or the presence of leaks and moulds can also be spotted by professional real estate agents so that you don’t have to suffer later on.
Reason #5: Pricing Guide and the Power of Negotiation
Homes have a lot of emotional value attached to them. As a result of this, several owners might place a much higher value on their property than is the current market standard. On the other hand, there could also be cases where the owners might undersell their property and suffer a loss.
In order to make sure that neither the buyers nor the sellers end up facing losses, real estate agents function as pricing guides. A real estate agent can walk into a property and immediately get an estimate of what its ideal price should be. They will initiate a comparative market analysis to evaluate every little data that affects the price of a house. Therefore, you will get access to realistic and accurate information that will not only help you know at what price you should be selling your house but also the price you should be paying while buying one.
Strong negotiation skills are a must in real estate agents. At times neither buyers nor sellers are willing to budge from their set prices, and that’s exactly where a real estate agent steps in. They negotiate with both parties accordingly so as to arrive at a conclusion that suits everyone involved. Since emotions can come into play and cloud the judgment of many during a house buying/house selling process, it’s imperative to have an unbiased voice who can negotiate on your behalf.
Conclusion
An extra pair of eyes is always helpful when buying a house. A real estate agent can provide you with useful advice and be an objective observer when it comes to making a decision. They also have access to off-market listings that match your requirements; hence, you can be privy to properties that aren’t even up on the market yet.
Lastly, real estate agents know all the marketing techniques in the book. Not only can they make a property look attractive to the buyers, but also convince a seller when it comes to potential candidates. Therefore, whether you’re buying or selling a house, hiring a real estate agent is always a good idea.
If you are looking for the best real estate agents with first-hand experience on Toronto condos for sale, Toronto Condo Team is your best bet. Contact us to find your dream home today!
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