I found today an interested article that buyers and sellers should read. All 10 things are very interesting, but the one that stuck out the most was #7. Why? because today I ran across a very interesting review posted by a brokerage office.
If a buyer is interested in buying a home that buyer should be or should have a family member setup and make sure that someone is available for all inspections and the home buyer should get their own inspector and not use one that is recommended by any realtor and a realtor should not recommend any inspectors to use. Recommending any one would be a conflict of interest (COI). Sometimes you learn this thing the hard way, but by then it is too late you already purchased a box not a home.
7. "I won't let termites - or pesky inspectors - kill a deal."
If a broker is selling a house, you figure he knows the place pretty intimately - after all, he talks a good game about the new kitchen, the big closets, the heated garage. What you need to worry about, though, are the home's features that he keeps to himself. Steve Van Grack, chairman of the Maryland Real Estate Commission, says, "We have had cases where [brokers have] been deceptive about termites and flood damage."
If a broker is selling a house, you figure he knows the place pretty intimately - after all, he talks a good game about the new kitchen, the big closets, the heated garage. What you need to worry about, though, are the home's features that he keeps to himself. Steve Van Grack, chairman of the Maryland Real Estate Commission, says, "We have had cases where [brokers have] been deceptive about termites and flood damage."
You'd figure that the home inspector, who comes to check out the place before you close the sale, might notice those things. And he will - if he's not in cahoots with the broker. "Realtors give potential homebuyers lists of home inspectors," says S. Woody Dawson, a structural inspector in Connecticut Dawson
5 ways homebuyers are kept in the dark
Home inspections from agent-referred inspectors
Home inspectors typically get their work from real-estate agents, and homebuyers seldom consider the problems with using an inspector recommended by an agent. This relationship, however, is one of the darkest corners of the real-estate business.
Why you're in the dark
Some agents — by no means all — pressure home inspectors to turn in a "good" report, says Barry Stone, a home inspector in San Luis Obispo County, Calif. In his syndicated column, "The House Detective," he has called the agent-inspector relationship "a clear conflict of interest." Here's why: Real-estate agents don't get paid unless a home sale goes through. A pre-sale home inspection that uncovers problems can be the kiss of death to a sale. At the least, the sale is slowed down. "Realtors constantly make these hints. They'll say, 'It really matters to me to close this deal,' " Stone says. "They won't come right out and tell you that they don't want you to disclose everything, but they'll hint at it."
2. Dual agents
Most states allow a real-estate agency — sometimes even the agent herself — to represent both buyer and seller in the same transaction. This is known as dual agency.
Why you're in the dark
Many real-estate agents with great integrity insist they can give both sides their loyalty and confidentiality. Or, if a conflict arises, they’ll step aside and ask a colleague to assist you. But critics call it a conflict of interest. What happens when a buyer instructs the agent to get the lowest possible price and the seller of the house tells the same agent to get the highest possible price?
Also, confidentiality is at risk. That risk exists even if real-estate agents simply work in the same agency, says John Sullivan, a Realtor and president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents: "You're using common fax machines and office equipment. There are just too many instances where your information is subject to being disclosed."
Traditionally, real-estate agents worked only for sellers. Today, state laws, which vary widely, govern agent-client relationships. (Find your state's real-estate commission and read the laws and rules at the Association of Real Estate License Law Professionals.)
3. Agent incentives
With the flooded home market these days, some sellers are offering to give agents incentives — cash, cars, trips and other prizes. They figure that agents are more likely to show their property when there's something in it for them. Also, agents often can earn a bonus from their own agency for selling one of the agency's listings.
Why you're in the dark – This is a big one in South Georgia all you get is Guidance on what they want you to see. The trouble here is not bonuses, but the lack of disclosure. You deserve to know your agent's motives in selecting properties to show you and giving guidance on what to buy. “Manipulation at it best” 99% of all properties are sold by the same listing agent. and it is not because they have the best properties.
The NAR ethics code requires agents to put clients' needs ahead of their own. But agents aren't required to disclose bonuses and incentives until the last minute, on your HUD-1 statement. Noncash prizes and trips need not be disclosed. DUAL AGENTS CAN NOT NEGOTIATE “They Are Useless” When using the same listing agent as your buyer’s agent, even if they are from the same office. They are just expensive paper pushers.
How to turn on the lights:
Demand disclosure. Ask your agent to agree to tell you if a property has incentives or bonuses attached.
Craft an agreement that benefits you. Write a clause into your agent agreement that any bonuses or incentives attached to a property you buy go directly to you.
Read More @
http://realestate.msn.com/5-ways-homebuyers-are-kept-in-the-dark
5 ways homebuyers are kept in the dark
Home inspections from agent-referred inspectors
Home inspectors typically get their work from real-estate agents, and homebuyers seldom consider the problems with using an inspector recommended by an agent. This relationship, however, is one of the darkest corners of the real-estate business.
Why you're in the dark
Some agents — by no means all — pressure home inspectors to turn in a "good" report, says Barry Stone, a home inspector in San Luis Obispo County, Calif. In his syndicated column, "The House Detective," he has called the agent-inspector relationship "a clear conflict of interest." Here's why: Real-estate agents don't get paid unless a home sale goes through. A pre-sale home inspection that uncovers problems can be the kiss of death to a sale. At the least, the sale is slowed down. "Realtors constantly make these hints. They'll say, 'It really matters to me to close this deal,' " Stone says. "They won't come right out and tell you that they don't want you to disclose everything, but they'll hint at it."
2. Dual agents
Most states allow a real-estate agency — sometimes even the agent herself — to represent both buyer and seller in the same transaction. This is known as dual agency.
Why you're in the dark
Many real-estate agents with great integrity insist they can give both sides their loyalty and confidentiality. Or, if a conflict arises, they’ll step aside and ask a colleague to assist you. But critics call it a conflict of interest. What happens when a buyer instructs the agent to get the lowest possible price and the seller of the house tells the same agent to get the highest possible price?
Also, confidentiality is at risk. That risk exists even if real-estate agents simply work in the same agency, says John Sullivan, a Realtor and president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents: "You're using common fax machines and office equipment. There are just too many instances where your information is subject to being disclosed."
Traditionally, real-estate agents worked only for sellers. Today, state laws, which vary widely, govern agent-client relationships. (Find your state's real-estate commission and read the laws and rules at the Association of Real Estate License Law Professionals.)
3. Agent incentives
With the flooded home market these days, some sellers are offering to give agents incentives — cash, cars, trips and other prizes. They figure that agents are more likely to show their property when there's something in it for them. Also, agents often can earn a bonus from their own agency for selling one of the agency's listings.
Why you're in the dark – This is a big one in South Georgia all you get is Guidance on what they want you to see. The trouble here is not bonuses, but the lack of disclosure. You deserve to know your agent's motives in selecting properties to show you and giving guidance on what to buy. “Manipulation at it best” 99% of all properties are sold by the same listing agent. and it is not because they have the best properties.
The NAR ethics code requires agents to put clients' needs ahead of their own. But agents aren't required to disclose bonuses and incentives until the last minute, on your HUD-1 statement. Noncash prizes and trips need not be disclosed. DUAL AGENTS CAN NOT NEGOTIATE “They Are Useless” When using the same listing agent as your buyer’s agent, even if they are from the same office. They are just expensive paper pushers.
How to turn on the lights:
Demand disclosure. Ask your agent to agree to tell you if a property has incentives or bonuses attached.
Craft an agreement that benefits you. Write a clause into your agent agreement that any bonuses or incentives attached to a property you buy go directly to you.
Read More @
http://realestate.msn.com/5-ways-homebuyers-are-kept-in-the-dark
