Question about Real Estate Agents role.

[Nicole Velasco]

Hello everyone! 

I'm new to real estate investing and am seeking some guidance as to the roles and responsibilities of real estate agents. My boyfriend and I are in the process of researching different locations within NH to invest. We are currently working with an agent in NH and have provided him with the following criteria to determine what cities/towns would be the best to invest. (Prior to finding out about BiggerPockets)

1. Increase in population

2. Workable R.V. ratio

3. Affordable <500k

4. Higher density of renters vs owner occupied.

5. Historical pricing, net positive appreciation. (Location based appreciation insight)

6. Affordable cost of construction

by sending our agent this criteria, we are wondering if this is information that an agent could/should provide, or is this something we would exclusively need to research ourselves? We want to ensure we are not asking too much of our agent and that we understand the role an agent plays during the investment property search.

Thank you ahead of time for any feedback you're willing to share!

Regards,

Nicole

[Nicole Heasley Beitenman]

I've never heard of a real estate agent helping someone find a location to invest because agents tend to be tied to a particular region. Using Ohio as an example, I wouldn't expect an agent in Cleveland to know anything about the market in Cincinnati. And (s)he probably isn't going to tell me to invest in Cincinnati because then you're going to need an agent in Cincinnati, not an agent in Cleveland. 

Now, once you decide on a city, you can ask said agent these types of questions about specific neighborhoods. 

I rely on my agent to confirm or deny my own findings as you still have to do your own due diligence. Does that make sense?