Buyers

What’s the use of a Buyers Agent????

Buyers Agent:  Do I need one?  With , and all the rumors swirling around about the lawsuit against the NAR (National Association of Realtors), I’m trying to keep on top of changes, new documents, and procedures.  I’ve been doing this for 23 years in the Coachella Valley, representing both buyers and sellers.  I pride myself on keeping on top of changes, understanding the consequences and performing to the highest level for my clients.  My thoughts are below.  If you are looking to buy or sell property in the Coachella Valley, give Kim Kelly a call at 760-285-3578.

Why would you use a Buyers Agent????

• I think the number 1 reason is to capitalize on their knowledge of the local market.  I’ve lived in the Coachella Valley for 40 years, and been in real estate here for 23 years.  I KNOW this valley.  I have represented buyers and sellers from the West side cities of Palm Springs and Cathedral City, central valley cites of Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, Palm Desert and La Quinta to the Eastern cities of Indio, Bermuda Dunes, Coachella and Thermal.  It is critical as a successful local agent to KNOW the inventory!  Golf course, non golf course homes, 55+ options, multi acre options, investment opportunities, land opportunities.  My experience is a HUGE reason my buyers turn to me for advice.
• The second reason is because a local agent with experience should be really good at negotiating.  If you give the sellers this, what do you as the buyer receive?  What is the most important thing you cannot live without in the property search?  What is the least important?  I save my buyers hours of computer work, and questions about locations, cities and communities, and that’s BEFORE we even write a contract!
• How much do I cost?  That’s negotiable.  It used to be negotiable when I met the sellers in a listing agreement.  The sellers are no longer able to offer buy side compensation.  But I don’t work for free, do you?  Remember that EVERYTHING is negotiable.  The price, how agents get paid, repairs, seller credits at close, furniture, I’ve even negotiated farm animals into deals!
• Can you skip the buyers agent and go directly to the seller?  Of course you can, as you’ve always been able to in the past. Remember:  The sellers agent works for the SELLER.  The buyers agent works for the BUYER.  Their allegiance is to you, the buyer.  The List price is a starting point.  It’s your agents job to negotiate and get you the best deal on the Sales price, close costs, commission, and repairs..everything you can think of is negotiable.  Think on that.  The tour below is of a 2 acre farm that I have in escrow.  My listing, but we did indeed negotiate the buyers commission in the final sales price..it was just ONE of our negotiable points to get it done!

Do you need an agent to help you?

Buyer representation or not?  This question is going to need to be answered by every real estate buyer who is looking to purchase a property from here on out.  We agents are now required to get our prospective buyers to sign a “Buyer’s Representation Agreement”, and we must list every address of every property that we tour with the prospective buyers.  As a long time agent, I work with both buyers and sellers, and feel pretty confident that I’ll be able to answer my clients’ questions!  Local resident and agent, Kim Kelly, is available to answer your questions!  760-285-3578.

Buyer’s Agent Agreement Defined

A buyer’s agent agreement is a contract between a home buyer and a real estate agent that defines how the two agree to work together. And that’s it! While an agent typically is the one who requests a buyer’s agent agreement, it’s meant to set expectations and protect both agent and buyer in case one party doesn’t hold up their end of the deal.

Think about it this way: If you were shopping at a store and a sales associate really took the time to help you find exactly what you were looking for, then they earned the commission for your sale. Well, let’s say after all the sales associate’s hard work, a different one swoops in right at the close, rings you up, and takes the first associate’s commission. Not okay, right? That’s the kind of funny business a buyer’s agent agreement protects a real estate agent from.

Likewise, if the sales associate you’re working with ends up doing an awful job, you’ll want to be able to find a better associate, maybe even a better store. Well, if the right conditions are outlined in a buyer’s agent agreement, that’s exactly what it empowers home buyers to do.

But before you sign anything, you need to make sure the right conditions are outlined—that’s the only way the buyer’s agent agreement will work for you. So how do you know good conditions versus bad ones?  The right conditions are:

1.  What does the buyers agent do for you..the buyer?  This is where we, the agent, need to explain our value.  Most buyers have no idea how much time and effort goes into narrowing the search to properties that fit their criteria.  I’ve got 23 years experience in our Coachella Valley.  I am very familiar with the various communities in our desert cities.  That’s worth alot!
2. How do I, as your agent, get paid?  The buyer agreement breaks this down.  The buyer pays my commission in the agreement.  Remember that commission is negotiable.  Even if you agree to pay this commission, it’s my job to negotiate with the seller to get you the best purchase price and terms.  Let me do my job!
3. Length of contract.  You can start with a shorter term to try out your agent, then give them a longer term if you are satisfied with them.

Bottom line:  I think a buyer DOES need an agent working on their behalf.  If I were buying in an area I did not know, I’d certainly hire one to help me.

Buyers need to understand the new Buyer Rep doc

Buying a desert home; 2024:  Rules will be changing for buyers and their agents probably in August of 2024.  The main one for buyers agents, is that we will have to have our clients sign Buyers Representation Agreements.  If you are looking to buy or sell in the Coachella Valley, contact Kim Kelly at 760-285-3578.

The Buyer Representation and Broker Compensation (BRBC) Agreement is a contractual document used in real estate transactions to establish a formal relationship between a buyer and a realtor or agent. The agreement outlines the terms and conditions for buying a desert home, under which the realtor will represent the buyer in the search for and purchase of a property. It also specifies the compensation the realtor will receive for their services.

I have had my license for 23 years, and have never used one of these agreements.  I always figured that if my buyers liked and trusted me to help them buy a desert home, they’d use me.  If they did not, they would choose a different realtor.  No longer.  Now, whenever I show a property to a prospective client, I have to list the property and they have to sign the Buyers agreement agreeing that I am working for them as their agent.  The other thing that is changing is how we, as agents, are paid.

My job is strictly commission.  Any expenses accrued by me as I work for my clients is on me.  That means hours of computer work, then hours spent previewing, taking my clients on tours and educating them about the desert, are all out of my pocket.  I love all that stuff!  I love working hard for my clients, and many times I have represented buyers that took several seasons to decide on a property.  The commission is always negotiable, but in the past, sellers have usually paid both their list agent’s commission and also the buyers agent’s commission, which has been shared in the MLS.  There will be no more MLS commission agreements made public.  Now, my buyers have to agree to possibly paying my commission, or contributing to it.  What happens next?  Stay tuned.. 2 acre property in the video offered at $1,245,000 

Flood Insurance in the Coachella Valley??

Flood Insurance in the Coachella Valley; should you get it??? Here’s the thing.  I’m a maintenance person.  I believe that if I do what I can BEFORE I need it, I will be in a better position WHEN I need it.  So, with all the changes happening so quickly in regards to our climate..literally, everywhere in the world, it seems a good idea to look into flood insurance.  Living in the Coachella Valley, which is a California desert, this might have seemed a moot point years ago…but now??  Probably a good idea.  If you are looking to buy or sell a Coachella Valley property, whether it’s residential, land, equestrian facility, or development opportunity, give me a call at 760-285-3578.

I chose to have flood insurance, and I live in La Quinta here in the Coachella Valley.  Got it just a couple years ago and so far, even after Hurricane Hilary, I haven’t had to use it.  BUT, as we all know about Insurance, when you need it, it’s a good thing to have.  Then there’s the fact that some insurance companies are no longer willing to write policies in disaster prone areas..this is the problem with Florida right now, and some of our fire prone areas here in the state.  I figure that if I get it now, have a history of it, and take good precautions myself on the property, odds are good I’ll have it there when I really need it.  Yearly estimates are based on the location, square footage of the house, garage spaces, single or two stories..lots of stuff.  Normal yearly fees for the Coachella Valley are approx. $400-$700 depending on how much insurance you want to carry and your deductible.  Not bad since water can do a job on ANYTHING!

Just something to think about if you are currently living here in the desert valley, or thinking of purchasing a home, horse property, or even vacant land.  I guess there really is something to be said for the expression “you can never be over insured!”  Take a tour of this 5 acre property in Sky Valley.  Offered at $1,199,000…

Local Agents know which developments have lakes, fairways, price/sf., builder..and on and on.

Why did the buyers use a Redfin Agent?  They wanted to see one of my listings.  The Agent called and made the appointment.  I got there early of course and staged the home to present it for my sellers at it’s BEST.  The Agent walks in, introduces me to her clients, says, “You can take it from here.”, and hands me her card..Oh no!  Why did they bring A Redfin Agent ? Red flags all over the place for me..please, buyers, use a local Agent...

Doesn’t this just FEEL good..inviting?

Feng Shui;  What IS it???  Basically, it’s that flow, that ease of motion that you feel the moment you enter a space.  I had a client that told me from the get go, that he wouldn’t waste my time looking at homes he didn’t like.  And he meant it!  He would let me open the front door, lean inside, and we would be “in”, or we would “Forget it Kim!”.  He was sensitive to Feng Shui, which literally means “wind” and “water” in Chinese-the basic elements of the Earth.