What is Buyer Agency?

by David Campbell

Welcome to another addition of The Difference with David video series. So what is a Buyer’s Agent anyway? A Buyer’s Agent helps a buyer through the home buying and closing process exclusively. They have no allegiance to the seller. This is the best thing to have in place if you are buying. You don’t want to be working with the seller’s agent or working with a dual agent because neither of these would be representing your best interest.

A Buyer’s Agent will meet with you initially to go over things you should know before you even start looking. You should be given a copy of the real estate contract along with an overview of it so you know the basics of what to expect. You should be given all the disclosures to review. The Residential Property Disclosure, Agency Disclosure are just two you should be given and become familiar with. I always tell people, the first time you see these documents should not be when you are writing an offer! You want them well ahead of time so you can read through at your leisure and have time to ask questions. If your agent wants to skip this step and just start showing you houses this could be a red flag. You want someone that’s willing to spend the time with you to get you up to speed.

Of course, your Buyer’s Agent is the one that is going to be showing you homes. They should be attentive and quick to set up showings for you. If it takes them a day to respond to your requests that might be too late in a hot market. They should have a good understanding of construction and how a home goes together as well as the mechanical systems and how they function. I’ve done a lot of home projects myself and attended over 1000 home inspections. I have a pretty good sense of what to look for and I point out the good AND the bad to my buyers. If a home has significant problems it is better to just go to the next one rather than getting tangled up in a contract and trying to work through unrealistic repair requests. Your Buyer’s Agent is also the one who will be doing the negotiations for you on the initial offer of the home and the repair requests. They should have the experience and skill to be a strong advocate for you.

Lastly, your agent will help coordinate closing and should attend the closing with you. Your agent is your partner through all this so choose wisely!