Whether you’re a buyer or a seller, it can be beneficial to have a real estate agent working on your behalf. While many individuals and homeowners prefer to operate independently, having someone who understands the market and how to achieve your goals can be the distinctive difference between success and failure.

Before we explain the advantages of hiring a professional, let’s look at some of the ways they will work on your behalf.

How Does a Real Estate Agent Work for You?

Why hire a real estate agent in the first place if you don’t know how they’re going to help you? Here are how realtors can aid you in your search for a new house or selling it for great value:

• Understand what you would like to achieve and the financial side behind your processes (Example: do you have a limit on a budget, or do you need to sell a property for a specific amount of money?)
• Help you understand the current housing market, trends, and help you achieve your dream, be it selling your home or buying one. They’ll also provide you with current information on the market and how it can help your goals.
• Provide you with the tools to find or sell your property, such as the MLS® property database system. They can even offer you great insights into a property based on your qualifications and preferred choices (financial, living space, area of choice, lifestyle needs and so forth).
• Help create and adopt a sound negotiating strategy based on your needs, knowledge, and their experience of the current market.
• Recommend other professionals within the industry that can help you in the long-term. The likes of certified home inspectors, condo document reviewers, lawyers, insurance agents, home movers, or proven renovators can be hired through the realtor.
• Provide information on any development plans in the neighbourhood, any past permits taken out for the property and analysis of any factor that impacts the property.
• Help you with the final phases of the deal, ensuring you get the best result possible. They can assist with the many forms used in a transaction.

Now that you understand how a real estate agent can help you let’s look at how they’ll maximize your success!

Three Reasons To Hire A Realtor

Maximize Your Goals Within the Current Climate

Due to the real estate market’s ever-changing aspect, it can be confusing to know what you can achieve.

If you’re looking for a new property (be it your first home, second or an investment), you might be limited in terms of properties or not.

For example, it could be a buyer’s market, giving you control over most of your search and choices. On the other hand, if it’s a seller’s market, you might be fighting a battle against others to buy a house, condo or apartment. You might have to pay more than expected in the latter case, while in the former, you could potentially save money.

If you’re selling the property, you want a seller’s market, so you can make as much money on your property as possible – depending, of course, on the quality, style and outlay of it.

You’ll be able to gain a deeper understanding of the market’s trends and timing by having a professional on your side guiding you through it.

The Attention to Detail

You might feel out of your element when it comes to reviewing, understanding and acting on the multiple documents involved in any deal.

Did you know that you should hire a professional to review years of minute meetings, plans, and costs to know if the building is in good condition when purchasing a condo? Did you know the process of when and how a lawyer gets involved in the process?

There are also purchase agreements, fees, lawyer and mortgage deals and processes, not to mention federal, state, and local document requirements.

These little things make the biggest impact on any deal, and if you don’t know what to do, you should have an experienced agent supporting you through it.

They can help you picture the long-term plan of the household. Agents can provide researched and current data regarding a neighborhood’s demographics, development projects, crime rates, schools, and other important socio and financial factors. This can aid your decision-making process.

It can make your life easier while ensuring that you get the most out of any purchase or sale.

The Power of Superior Negotiating Skills

Perhaps the defining trait of any top-notch realtor – the ability to negotiate on your behalf so you can achieve the dream result that you always wanted.

Remember that it’s the agent’s fiduciary responsibility and duty of care to get you the best possible price for any home, be it if you’re selling or purchasing it. So they’re going to maximize their talents to ensure that they work on your behalf.

The best thing is that they know what works and what doesn’t in terms of tactics. They’ll understand the current market climate and use it to your advantage. On the plus side, they’re also unemotionally involved in the dealings, so it will not cloud their judgement when suggesting tactics or making decisions.

For example, if you’ve found a condo and it’s a buyer’s market, they might encourage you to offer less so that you get a better deal. You might save thousands of dollars on a new property thanks to these tried-and-true techniques.

If you’re selling a home, the agent might offer you insight into how to market it properly, highlighting particular key points, so you make a profit. You might have certain bargaining chips that you never knew you possessed.

The Bottom Line

Whether it’s an Oakville realtor or your local agent, hiring a real estate professional can make all the difference. Getting help isn’t a sign of weakness, but a smart, logical idea, as you’re surrounding yourself with a smart person (or people) that know the market and the moves you need to make to achieve your goals. When the moment calls for it, hire a realtor today.