Most real estate agents believe and will tell you, "you need their services to buy or sell a home." Is their advice fact or fiction? We will help you be the judge.

This simple questionaire is designed to help you determine if you require the services of a real estate professional to help you buy or sell a home.

·         20 Questions to Help You Determine if You Need the Services of A Real Estate Professional To Help You Locate and Purchase Your Next Home

·         25 Questions to Help You Determine if You Need the Services of A Real Estate Professional To Help You Sell Your Home

Ok, here you are visiting our real estate website. You are a potential homebuyer, home seller, or mortgage borrower and you are using the Internet to learn more about real estate and to understand your real estate options. My guess is that you also use the Internet to learn information about other topics of interest. If you are like most Internet users you are the following:

1.      A "do it yourselfer" and/or 

2.      You want to be informed before you make a major decision, and

3.      You want a "good" deal, and

4.      You want to control the timeline and process. 

I am right or wrong? If I am right then you are at the right place. Our goal is to provide you with information and tools so you can make a "confident" real estate decision. We would also like to help you by providing you access to your area's "best", no pressure, Internet savvy, real estate professionals who are willing to work with you according to your timelines and preferences.

You have found this page, and you ask yourself, "what is a real estate web site going to say to me about real estate agents?" "Do I really need the services of a real estate professional?" you ask. You quickly answer: "This is a real estate web site, of course they are going to recommend that I work with a real estate agent."  

Surprisingly, the answer to "Do I need the services of a real estate professional?" is not always yes. We will help you identify some circumstances where you may not require the services of a real estate professional. We will not "tell" you if you need the services of a real estate professional. We will simply present information and facts and you can be the judge of whether you require the services of a real estate professional.  

If you decide you want to use the services of one of our real estate professionals, Leah Brisdon & Associates can help you. Leah Brisdon specializes in matching home sellers and homebuyers.

Do I Need the Services of a Real Estate Professional?
Buying and selling a home is the largest financial transaction most people make during their life. Answering the following questions will help you judge if you need the services of a real estate professional. 

Do I Need A Real Estate Professional to Help Me Buy a Home?
If you are considering buying a home answer the following 20 questions. Your answers to these questions will help you determine if you require the services of a real estate professionally to help you locate and purchase your next home. 

1. Do you have the time, energy and contacts to do the home search, price negotiations, home inspection, mortgage financing, contract preparation, and contract review yourself?
    
2. If you do it yourself, do you think the results would be as good or better than if you use a "competent" real estate professional to assist you with your home purchase?
    
3. Can your personal time be spent better doing other activates, rather than searching for homes for sale that match your search criteria?
    
4. Are you comfortable dealing with contracts and legal issues?
    
5. Do you have "free" access to legal real estate advice and real estate contracts?
    
6. Do you have the ability to quickly locate all the homes for sale in your desired area that match your search criteria?
    
7. Can you objectively determine the true "fair market value" of the home?
    
8. Can you support your offer price with facts of home sales in the neighborhood? 
    
9. Do you have proven negotiating skills to help you negotiate your best price and terms?
    
10. Can you objectively make a buying decision without having an emotional attachment to the home?
     
11. Do you know what appliances, fixtures, window treatments etc. should be included in the purchase price of a home?
     
12. Do you know what to look for when viewing a home? Do you know the tell tale signs a home may have a problem?
     
13. Do you know how to review the owner’s title to find out about easements, encroachments, title defects, ownership, liens, rights of access etc?
     
14. Do you have access and time to gather information about local schools, zoning, utilities, and land use plans for your selected area?
     
15. Do you know if any future highway development, landfill, commercial development is planned for the area?
     
16. Do you know a reputable and competent home inspector?
     
17. Do you know what you can request a seller to fix, what a seller is required to fix, and what a seller does not have to fix.
    
18. Do you know how to handle the situation if you have a home to sell before you can close on your next home?
     
19. Do you have any formal training or business background in real estate or real estate law?
     
20. Do you know how much of a mortgage you can afford and which mortgage program is best for you?

Add the number of "yes" answers. If you answered "yes" to:

• 20 questions - Give us a call we need your help.
• 18 to 19 questions - If you do not use the services of a real estate professional to help you locate and purchase a home, be sure you have a contingency plan and help for the questions you answered no.
• 15 to 17 questions - You should use a real estate professional to help you locate and purchase your next home.
• Under 15 - No question, use the services of a real estate professional to help you locate and purchase a home.

Question: Is there downside of using a real estate professional to help you locate and purchase your next home? There is no financial downside. A buyer's real estate agent's commission is paid by splitting the seller's real estate agent's commission, which was negotiated with the seller at the time the home was listed for sale. If there is no buyer's agent to pay a real estate commission, then the seller's real estate agent usually keeps the entire real estate commission. Without a buyer's real estate agent the best you can expect is the selling real estate agent represents neither party, but most likely they represent only the seller. A real estate professional in most cases is also in a better position to negotiate a lower sales price than a homebuyer, because they have access to "current" comparative home sales information.

Fact: When using a real estate professional to assist a home buyer locate and purchase a home, the average search time is 8 weeks and they view 10 homes. For homebuyers not using a real estate professional the average search time is 14 weeks and they view 18 homes.

Fact: 49% of all homebuyers start looking for a home before they put their home on the market. 

Fact: 87% of all homes are sold by a real estate professional

Fact: 25% of all for sale by owner homes are not sold or removed from the market.

Fact: 13% of all homes are sold by owner

Fact: Even when a mortgage company says a buyer is approved it does not guarantee that the mortgage company will fund the buyer's mortgage for the purchase of your home  

Fact: Real estate professionals have errors and errors of omission insurance.

The best way to start looking for a new home to buy, if you have another home to sell, is to put your current home on the market first and then start to look. As the seller you control the time period of when the closing of your home will take place. By selling your home first (with a contingency that both closings take place on the same day), you have more purchasing power. You can let the seller of your new home that your home is sold. This is a very good negotiating tool, as the seller of your new home becomes aware that they will not have an extended waiting period for you to sell your current home. If the seller has a choice (given the same offer) between you (who has a home to sell) and someone else, who does not, they will most likely pick the buyer who does not have a home or has one, and is sold.

Do you know that the difference between the best real estate professionals and an average real estate agent can often mean thousands of dollars to you as a homebuyer? Why use the services of an average real estate agent when you can work with one of our area's best real estate professionals. Let us show you how we can make that happen.

Do I Need A Real Estate Professional to Help Me Sell My Home?
If you are considering selling your home answer the following 25 questions. Your answers to these questions will help you determine if you require the services of a real estate professional to help you prepare and sell your home.

1. Do you have the time, energy and contacts to handle all the aspects of selling your home?
    
2. If you do it yourself, do you think the results would be as good or better than if you use a " competent" real estate professional to assist you with your home purchase?
    
3. Can your personal time be spent better doing other activates, rather than marketing and showing your home?
    
4. Are you comfortable dealing with contracts and legal issues?
    
5. Do you have "free" access to legal real estate advice and real estate contracts?
    
6. Question: Do you have access to the "true" price your neighboring homes sold for excluding, buyer closing costs, mortgage discount points, buyer incentives etc.
    
7. Do you know how to price your home?
    
8. Do you know how to stage your home?
    
9. Are you available on short notice to show your home?
    
10. Do you have the ability to pre-qualify a buyer before showing your home?
     
11. Are you comfortable showing strangers through your home? Are they a security risk?
     
12. Do you have the time, budget, resources and expertise to market your home for sale?
     
13. Do you know how to effectively market and advertise your home?
     
14. Do you know what must be disclosed to a homebuyer and what does not need to be disclosed?
     
15. Do you know what constitutes a legally binding real estate contract?
     
16. Do you know how to handle a purchase offer?
     
17. Do you know how to handle a request for closing costs or mortgage discount points?
     
18. Do you know how to handle the situation if a buyer has a home to sell before they can close on your home?
     
19. Do you know what appliances and fixtures are included in the sale of real estate?
     
20. Question: Do you know how to handle a buyer's appraisal that is below your asking price?
     
21. Do you know how to ensure only a reputable competent home inspector inspects your home?
     
22.  Do you know how to handle repair and home inspection requests and repairs?
     
23. Do you know what you are or are not required to repair or replace?
     
24. Do you know how to follow up on the buyer's financing to ensure that they will be approved?
     
25. Are you aware of the legal and financial liability that can come with selling a home if you make a mistake?
     

Add the number of "yes" answers. If you answered "yes" to:

• 25 questions - Give us a call we need your help.
• 23 to 24 questions - If you do not use the services of a real estate professional to help sell your home, be sure you have a contingency plan and help for the questions you answered no.
• 21 to 22 questions - You should use a real estate professional to help you sell your home.
• Under 21 - No question, use the services of a real estate professional to help you sell your home.

Fact: The number one reason someone sells their home on their own is to save on real estate commissions. 

Fact: Most people who shop for homes for sale by owner are doing so to get a bargain price and buy the home below "fair market value."

Fact: If your home is not priced below market value, most for sale by owner buyers will not buy your home.

Fact: The number one reason For Sale By Owner sellers do not sell their home is because it was not priced right, below "fair market value."

Fact: 62% of all homes for sale by owner end up being listed and sold with a real estate professional.

Fact: 87% of all homes are sold by a real estate professional

Fact: 13% of all homes are sold by owner

Fact: 25% of all for sale by owner homes are not sold or removed from the market.

Question: If your goal is to sell your home yourself to save real estate commissions and the buyers goal by buying a home that is for sale by owner is to get the home below "fair market value", who will win? The objectives of each party are diametrically opposed to each other. If you concede was it worth all the work and risk to save little or no money? If you do not concede will your home sell to a buyer looking to purchase a home for sale by owner?

Fact: The best opportunity to get top dollar for your home is to expose it to as many ready and willing homebuyers as possible.

Fact:  82% of real estate sales are a result of a real estate professional's contacts through previous clients, referrals, friends, family, and personal contacts?

Fact: Real estate professionals have errors and errors of omission insurance to help cover the liability that can accompany buying or selling a home. Do you?

Fact: Even when a mortgage company says a buyer is approved it does not guarantee that the mortgage company will fund the buyer's mortgage for the purchase of your home.