Buyer's Agent - Orange County Homes and Real Estate
What is a home buyer's agent and why use one?
A buyer's agent is a licensed professional realtor who works on behalf of a home buyer. A buyer's agent will help you locate homes for sale, negotiate the purchase price and guide you through the escrow process. There are numerous articles on the web explaining why it's a smart idea to use a buyer's agent to assist you in finding your next home. Here are a few of the reasons.
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I will help you search for the right home by taking down all of your requirements. With these, I will search for any existing homes for sale, plus I'll set up MLS searches that will alert you when new homes meeting your criteria come on the market.
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Once we have found a few homes, I will arrange home showings for you so that we can walk through the homes and see if they are a good fit.
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I will research historical price data for homes you are interested in, thereby helping you decide on what price to offer. Comparables (or "comps") are an important tool to help you make the right decision.
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I will work exclusively on your behalf to negotiate the best purchase price possible.
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I will also help you through all of the twists and turns of escrow, including home inspection, negotiating repair credits, reviewing disclosures, working with your lender, meeting time tables, protecting your deposit, etc.
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Finally, there is no cost to you!. The commission is paid by the home seller.
Where do we begin?
Contact me at 949-290-3263 and lets get started! I'll start by asking you a lot of questions about the home you'd like to purchase. Are you looking for a single family home or a condo? How many bedrooms? minimum square feet? What cities or areas are you interested in? Finally, what other features are important or "must haves", like upgrades, a pool, 3 car garage, good school district, etc. If you are an investor, are you looking for a multi-unit property? A short sale or fixer? Or are you looking for a buildable lot? Once I have all of your requirements, I'll search for properties for sale, plus set up on-going searches through the MLS.
Next, what is your budget and have you been pre-approved? I have an excellent team that includes several great lenders. It's important to know your true "purchasing power" so getting pre-approved is an essential first step. Following that, I will make appointments so that we can view some of the properties that you are interested in. If a home looks like a winner, I will draft the paperwork for you so that we can submit an offer. More on the entire offer process here .
Last, I will work with you through the entire escrow process, including home inspection , appraisal, going through seller disclosures, title report, HOA documents, request for repairs, final walk through, etc. More on the escrow process here . When all of that is completed, I will hand you the keys to your new home!
After I provide you with my requirements, will I then receive listings from the MLS?
Yes, I will set up custom MLS searches for you. You will be e-mailed with current available listings, plus all new listings that come on the market. You will then be able to view the matching listings via the MLS portal (see photo below). From the summary view, you will be able to select any of the homes to proceed to the detail view. Here you will be able to view all of the photos, plus review all of the features of the home. The listings you receive will be updated whenever a new home comes on the market, or if there is a status change with any of the properties, so you can expect to receive e-mails on a regular basis. You may also indicate your favorites on the summary page so that you will be reminded of which homes you prefer red.
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What types of properties can you help me with?
Any type of residential or commercial real estate .I work with many first time home buyers. Also, move-up buyers and buyers seeking a condo, luxury home, horse property, senior community, vintage home, ocean view house, or any other specialty home. I'm happy to assist investors or buyers looking for raw land, income properties (duplexes, triplexes, etc), rental homes, short sales, or bank owned homes (see links below). I can help you anywhere in Orange County, as well as outlaying areas like the Inland Empire, plus Los Angeles and San Diego Counties .
What if I need to sell a property before I buy?
Not a problem! My team will be happy to assist you with selling your property or buying a new property with a contingency . We will evaluate your property by providing you with a CMA (Comparative Market Analysis), which will let you know your home's current market value. Then we will list your home for sale (more on that here ). If you prefer to lock down a particular home, we can always write an offer that is contingent upon selling your home or property. Many sellers will accept a contingent offer and we have the expertise to ensure that you won't wind up homeless during the transaction.
Won't I get a better deal by going directly to the listing agent?
This is a question that comes up a lot in forums and on the Internet, so I'll address it here. The listing agent was initially hired by the seller with the objective of selling the home for the highest price possible . How then can you (the buyer) also be assured of getting the lowest price possible through the same agent? Aside from purchase price, there are many other facets of buying a home where you really want someone working exclusively on your behalf. These would include home inspection and negotiating repair credits, reviewing disclosures, asking for additional time in escrow, etc . There is an inherent conflict of interest when a single agent must satisfy both parties who have differing objectives . As the adage goes, if you were being sued, would you hire the lawyer who was suing you, to also defend you? You will always be far better off working with someone who is representing your best interests, exclusively!
Resources
I will be happy to assist you in finding your new home or property in Orange County, CA! Whether you are looking for your first home, condo, horse property, vintage dream home, or an investment property, I will be happy to help .
