Buyer Representation and "Buyer Agents"

In this blog I get the opportunity to talk about something I'm a bit partial to. I myself only work with buyers and go by the title of "Exclusive Buyer Agent", although agents of this type also go by "Buyer Specialist" or simply "Buyer Agent". I think this an important topic in real estate that isn't talked about very frequently. In fact, the idea of an agent that only represents buyers was never a popular one in real estate history and only recently has become more popular, especially in cities where agents are numerous. The traditional real estate ideology is that if you as an agent are selected to help someone sell their home, you will also help and represent them buying a home. Thus, an agents sellers become the buyers by default, and will also hopefully list their house with them someday.

This theory has a few small "gaps", the largest being first-time home buyers. First-time home buyers not only have no house to list and sell, but are also without a doubt more work for less money. As an agent you are dealing with clients that are doing something completely new, will be greatly influential on their future lives, and is almost certainly the largest financial transaction they will make for a long time. Purchasers in this situation will have a plethora of questions and high limitations financially. Another loose bolt in the traditional ideology of real estate is dual agency. Dual agency is the situation that results when both the buyer and seller of the same transaction are represented by the same agent. In short, if an agent will be helping you find a new home, and they have listings similar to what you may be looking for, there is a chance of dual agency. Although in theory a single realtor can represent both parties equally and fairly, I do not believe there is any way they can represent both clients fully and work in their absolute best interest.

The above mentioned "gaps" in the traditional system are good reasons why buyer agents are growing in popularity, but it certainly isn't the entirety of their benefits. Since buyer agents do not (generally) have any listings, you never have to worry about dual agency. Buyer agents spend all of their time working for buyers, so they have learned how to serve them more efficiently and effectively. These agents also typically know the inventory very well, and may be able to give more specific advice on "bang for your buck". This can be attributed to the frequency of showings. When a traditional agent has 5 homes listed and is helping 2 buyers actively with their extra time, a buyer agent may be working with 4-6 active buyers, and could easily be seeing 3x as many homes in person.

So there is an overview of why one can consider using a buyer agent when purchasing a home. It isn't by any means necessary, but can without a doubt be a better experience, especially if your listing agent is successful but busy maintaining their listings. You don't want to be the subject of how a realtor spends their spare time. Since buyer agents do not typically list homes, they rarely do business without a partner agent who lists homes. Buyer agents such as myself are often incorporated into teams or partnerships to make their services most effective. I have been serving buyers exclusively since the day I started real estate and have very much enjoyed it. Being a recent first-time home buyer myself, it is easy to relate to my clients. Thanks for reading this blog and keep an eye out for our next one soon! Get a hold of The Steve Bock Team with any questions and we'll be happy to answer them.

Nate Bock, Exclusive Buyer Agent