Buyers agent for Freddie Mac REO?

[David Chan]

I was wondering if i need a buyers agent to represent me in buying a freddie mac reo. This will be my first time investing so i was not sure if i needed the a buyer's to agent to rep me or not. What exactly will a buyer's agent do to for me?

[Don Hines]

Unless you have an agent lined up that you like/trust, I would contact the listing agent. They cannot represent both you and the bank. But, they will have a buddy; probably in the same office. Remember, the bank will pay all of the realtor's fees on your pruchase. An agent will not cost you anything.
I have an agent that sends me deals and is a rehabber too. I try to use him on all of my purchases.
Don

[J Scott]

Agreed with Don that you want an agent to represent you in this transaction. The agent will do several things for you:

- help you negotiate
- help you understand the basic purchase contract
- help you understand the addendum you will need to sign if you get the property under contract (this is a big one)
- help you with any due diligence questions
- help you with an closing questions

REOs are different than most purchases so make sure you find an agent who is familiar with purchasing these types of properties.

[Andy J.]

Use the listing agent if at all possible. It will be good to establish a relationship especially if they list a lot of REO's. This is your 'in' to getting first crack at good deals before the rest of the world sees them. If you do what you say you're going to do and follow through with offers then a good buyer's agent is going to help you find more deals.

[Kristian Peter]

Freddie Mac lists all of their properties with real estate brokers, and requires the properties to be on the market for at least 72 hours prior to any offers being presented. FM is about to roll out an initiative similar to Fannie Mae, where all properties need to be listed for at least 15 days before any investor offers can be presented, in an attempt to get more owner occupants into homes.

You must have a real estate agent represent you on the purchase, even if it is the Listing Agent, and Freddie Mac does allow the Listing Agent to represent the buyer (dual-agency). If the Listing Agent is working with Freddie Mac, then they will be a great source of additional REO listings, because Freddie and Fannie are basically the only entities releasing any volume of REO inventory at the moment (although that may change soon), and there may be additional opportunities to purchase properties from the same Listing Agent in the future.