Found the perfect home! Time to write an offer.

I walk you through the contracts section by section so you know exactly what you are offering and how that applies to you.  We need to tailor your offer to our knowledge of the seller's negotiating position. I will have a detailed conversation with the listing agent to review the seller's motivations for selling, request property disclosures and reports if available, and get a general sense of what we can include or remove from your offer to make it more appealing to the seller. We research liens against the property, how much the seller owes on their mortgage, whether the property is in foreclosure, time on market, and patterns in price reductions to determine their position. And of course, tailor everything to your needs. Do you want/need the seller to pay some of all of your closing costs? Would you like a seller paid home warranty? All of these works into the net amount that we present to the seller. 

Multiple offer situations are common these days. You do not necessarily have to be the highest offer to win in one of these competitive situations. (Read: Ways to Win in Multiple Offers)

Offer presentation has to be done properly. On my listings, I usually get horribly presented offers. A dot loop share with a prequalification letter from a random unknown lender is not a real offer. Presenting you in a personalized way and as the fully qualified buyer that will easily close on the home is key. That being said, you are financially prudent and won't overpay for an asset.

Schedule possession.

Signing, funding and recording, and then getting keys is the best part of the process. I love giving my clients a handshake or a high five at the exciting appointment where I give you keys to your new beautiful home! 

The process is full of possible problems that a good lender and a good Realtor should have seen and successfully solved many times before. We all love when things go smoothly!

Bottom line folks - most of the valuable work comes after your dream home goes under contract. The fact that a buyer agent/broker can show you any available home is awesome, but that is not the primary reason why you hire someone to help during this emotionally charged period of your life. 

The value of a buyer agent in the modern real estate landscape is absolute. If you are in the market to buy a home and you are only calling on yard signs and on Zillow listings you are doing it wrong. Most of those yard signs are under contract. Same goes for Zillow - many of the homes that you see there sold months ago. Many others will not show up there at all.

Buyer agency is free of charge to buyers. The seller pays the buyers agent commission. So you can hire a massively experienced Realtor who handles everything for you without paying a dime. So cool! 

As you interview agents and brokers make sure they have a process and can clearly articulate what they do to bring you value that goes beyond opening doors and writing a contract. Every transaction is unique but as I mentioned before, I use the same process every single time because it works.