This week I want to look at the other side of the real estate coin: buying homes. Anyone else have a realtor.com addiction? No? Just me? I adore looking at homes for sale, and occasionally, Ryan and I will even visit an open house just for fun. No, we're not looking to move. My goodness, we just settled in here! But I will say that looking just for fun is what led to move last year! I had a friend in Marion who showed me some houses just for the pure delight of it, and that led Ryan and me to pursue looking in earnest!
Looking for homes can be fun. But buying a home is kind of like adding a whole separate job to your life. It's intense, it's a huge decision, and today my best friend Lynnette lets us walk a mile in her help-people-buy-a-home shoes!
Lynnette has been working in real estate for four years. She and her husband recently relocated about halfway across the country, so she's starting over in a new spot! Lynnette got into real estate because both she and her husband have a huge passion for helping people through financial challenges. In most families, a home is their biggest financial asset, so Lynnette wants to help them make good decisions for their family about what house to buy, how much to spend, and even the right time to buy! She also appreciates the flexibility in schedule of the career. It suits their family lifestyle the best!
She may be starting over in her location, but the love of the job is deep in her heart, and here is what Lynnette says about helping people purchase homes!
(This is Lynnette!)
1. Real estate agents do what they do for the love of their clients.
Sure there are some fun parts to the job, and of course some frustrating parts, too. But Lynnette said her biggest reward is the moment she hands buyers the keys to their new home. The good and the bad of the job takes a back seat to that moment. And trust her: there is a lot of work that happens before that big day.
No two days are alike for a real estate agent. That makes the job both fun and challenging! But what a blessing it is for agents like Lynnette to help people with one of their biggest financial decisions while simultaneously helping them find home!
2. Real estate agents work entirely on commission.
Lynnette says they don't get a salary of any kind or receive any kind of pay from a brokerage firm unless they sell property. And did you know the average time to sell a home is 3-6 months? (Ryan and I are clearly not your average home sellers. It's a wonder any agent would work with us at all!) During those months of waiting, agents are spending money on gas, advertising, professional associations, MLS listing fees, and more, but they don't receive a paycheck until the transaction closes.
So if you're purchasing a home, and you're staring at the dollar figure that spells out your agent's commission, it may look huge, but remember that amount gets split with the brokerage firm and represents roughly six months of work on your agent's part!
3. Get pre-approved for a loan and don't be afraid to ask your agent for suggestions on professionals to help you through the process!
When Lynnette works with buyers, she encourages them to speak to a lender and get pre-approved for a loan amount. That step is necessary because it tells her realistically the price range her clients can afford. I mean, we all love the huge, pretty homes, but we can't all afford the huge, pretty price tags that accompany them, and it's only fair to everyone to be shopping in the right price range.
Lynnette says as an agent, she has cultivated relationships with several lenders to make sure she can make good recommendations to her clients. She also works with inspectors, insurance agents, settlement agents, and many other professionals to help clients through the buying and selling process.
(Side note from me! When Ryan and I bought this home, our agent recommended a lender that was local and amazing to work with. It was a blessing to sit in her office and have her walk us through every step! We had never heard of her before, but our agent said she was super, and boy was she ever right!)
4. Do some research, if you can!
I believe this is code for "it's okay to have a realtor.com addiction." It's so helpful if you can do some research online prior to your first trip to see properties in person. Of course your agent is happy to select some properties for you to see, but it's so helpful if you can give insight into the kind of house you'd like the square footage you need, the number of bedrooms you must have, the location you'd like, and more.
If you're local and can do so, you might even drive by some of those properties you think you like to see if you like the area. If you can't, don't be afraid to rely on your agent to help you with some of those decisions!
(Another side note from me: Long before I married Ryan, when I planned to move to Fort Wayne, I worked with an agent as I searched for a home. I knew nothing about Fort Wayne and had no idea where I might want to live in that big old city. It was so helpful to me that the agent was willing to give me some insights about neighborhoods! I was single and nervous about living alone in a city where I knew only my co-workers. She was so helpful in sharing with me information about places that were completely foreign to me.)
5. Don't go it alone!
Lynnette suggests that you consider hiring a buyer's agent. She only works with buyers when she can represent them as their official agent. That allows her to negotiate on their behalf, advise them through the process, and make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible!
***
Ryan and I certainly appreciate the fine folks of real estate! We had an agent who fought for us like crazy when we sold Ryan's Greentown house about three years ago. We had some unbelievable obstacles in selling that home, and our agent saw things she'd never seen in her (rather lengthy) career. She stayed right with us, though, fighting hard, going to bat for us, and making sure we made it to the finish line, even though that race took 141 days from offer to closing!
We had two stellar agents who worked with us to sell our Marion home. We appreciated all the time, money, showings, and open houses both of them put into their respective time with us! We also appreciated the final selling agent for us also serving as our agent when we bought our current Shafferland residence. She made the whole thing FUN!
Thanks, Lynnette (and Lesley from last week) for letting us walk a mile in your shoes and showing us what it's like to work in this fun, unpredictable, important field that helps people find home!
To see the rest of the Walk A Mile in My Shoes Posts - look here!
1 comment:
I totally check zillow all the time and ove open houses! They renovate a lot of the old brownstone apartments here and it's amazing to check them out!
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