Top 10 Things that any buyer should know before going out to buy a home in today's market. These principles are equally valid for first time home buyers as they are for the second, third and fourth homes you may be considering. Tim Thornton is one of Austin's Top Buyer's Agents and an Expert Listing Realtor in Austin, Texas. In 2009, Tim was among the top 1% of Realtors with Zip Realty nationally--the 5th largest brokerage by revenue in the United States. For more information about Mr. Thornton, you can find his profile at Austin Real Estate Secrets blog, or the ZipRealty.com web site.
So, the only thing that is in question here is whether or not you are going to have an experienced Realtor (R) represent you in the transaction, or you are going to take your chances on your own. If I were coming to you in your business and thought I could learn as much about your business by reading stuff on the internet, you would probably consider me to be silly. A good Realtor who closes 25+ transactions a year typically has more market knowledge that one can pick up by reading online.
ZipRealtyAustin 5 months ago
@jvolstad ; Good question. You can research the answer with the Texas Real Estate Commission, or you can believe what I tell you. The seller contracts with the Listing Brokerage to pay for both the Listing Agents fees, and the Buyer's Agent's fees. This is contractually decided before you ever see the listing. The listing brokerage is going to be paid the full amount of the fee, whether you are represented by a buyer's agent or not.
ZipRealtyAustin 5 months ago
Almost every "Buyer" agent says the same thing. My services are free to you. So where does the seller come up with the money to pay for the buyer agent? Ah ha.
jvolstad 5 months ago