Should I make offers through a realtor?

[Elizabeth Einecke]

Hello All! I am going to begin making offers on properties tomorrow(GULP!) and I have a question. Should I make offers through a realtor that represents me OR should I send my offers myself through the individual listing agents? Any advice on this would be appreciated!

[Richard F.]

loki005-
Actually, I am a licensed Broker...but no offense taken. My focus is PM, and I'm happy to make one or two sales a year!

The truth is, real estate sales agents are a dime a dozen, and depending on your market, probably only 15% are actually making a decent living at it. Most of the rest are moonlighters and part timers that lack the experience, which is the ONLY thing that really separates the good from the bad. The cream of the crop have great support staff, but you won't usually get much in the way of personal service. The inexperienced don't know the fine points, or how to deal with anything out of the ordinary, and often don't have relationships with related professionals. Many of these are so hungry for a sale they constantly over-promise and under deliver. Rarely do they understand investment property.

On the flip side, thanks to all the tv shows and hype, everybody and their dog thinks they can be a Real Estate Investor. They get all amped up and want to do a deal, but when it comes down to it they can't close the deal for all kinds of reasons, most related to just not understanding what is really involved. Unless you personally know an agent, a lot of talk only gets you so far with no real commitment.

Your best bet is to sit down and have a little heart to heart with a prospective agent, and if you feel comfortable, and if their agency offers it, sign a realistic buyer's agency agreement with them. YOU need to be responsive and available too! Have your financing and cash solidly in place. Spell out exactly what you are looking for (hint: everyone is looking for a good deal. You need to identify area, type, square footage, price range, etc. etc. "good deals" are rarely advertised as such. You have to ask and negotiate to get to the "good" part!) Be ready to act when opportunity does knock, then, ACT! In the meantime, spend some "off" hours with your new "partner". Don't take up prime time just kicking tires, find out when he can spend normally "dead" time to drive neighborhoods and scope out some properties until you are ready to zero in on a deal.

If your market has real estate companies that focus on investment properties ( they may only advertise as Property Managers) this is where you want to find an agent. Investing is completely different from typical residential sales, and agents with this focus are more likely to have the specialized knowledge you need.