Tuesday, May 15, 2018

WHY CHOOSE A LOCAL AGENT?

If you’ve read much real estate advice, you’ve heard: “Choose a local agent.” Why? Aren’t all agents pretty much the same? Can’t we all do the same job?

Yes, we can all do the same job, but we don’t all have the same knowledge, and our knowledge is part of our service to you.

If you’re selling a home in Brantford, your agent will help you determine the proper asking price for your home. If that agent is only looking at Multiple Listing Service photos and descriptions, he or she can’t be sure of how those homes really compare to yours. A local agent will have viewed many of them in person and will know things about the quality and condition that photos don’t reveal.

If you’re buying a home in Brantford, a local agent will know if a house is priced right for the neighborhood – or if it’s way off in one direction or the other. The local agent will be familiar with things like the school district boundary lines, the cost and availability of local services, and the distance to a bus route.

Your local agent will also be able to direct you to other local people you may need, like a handyman, a plumber, or someone to conduct an estate sale.

If you’re buying or selling a home within a Homeowner’s Association, your local agent will probably be familiar with the association fees and bylaws. This could be important if the Association is about to implement a new fee or has authority to approve or disapprove of a buyer.

Additionally, a local agent may have advance knowledge of a future development that will help or harm the value of homes in the neighborhood.

You may want to direct commission dollars toward a good friend or relative in a city 100 miles away, but it isn’t a good idea. They’ll no doubt do their best for you, but they still won’t have the knowledge you need – and finding the answers for you will cut severely into their time, and thus their profits. You’ll be more of a burden than a benefit.

A better solution, if a friend or relative sells real estate in some other community, is to ask him or her to find a good agent who knows your community, then refer you to them. He or she will get a share of the proceeds without having to take hours away from the clients she serves in her own community – and you’ll get good, local service.

All real estate is local, even within a community. What is reasonable in one community or neighborhood could be completely unreasonable in another. So choose an agent who regularly serves the community where you plan to buy or sell.

Here in Brantford and Brant County, we are that local agent, so get in touch when you need assistance. We’ll be happy to help you.

Posted at 07:52 PM