Selling a house yes, buying no. You should be able to fire that agent and go on to the next the moment they are not working for you. You should be able to work with 12 agents simultaneously if you want.

I have a friend who is a buyers agent, she works her ass off and hustles for her clients. Her company does not have buyers contracts.

You end up at the mercy of a lazy agent if you sign a contract.

" You should be able to work with 12 agents simultaneously if you want."

There is a chance you could get twelve agents to agree to that in a very populated area. Twelve poor business persons with limited sense of responsibility. Legally or ethically. Then again, it would show a lack of ethics on the buyers side as well. Might be a match made in heaven.

While most people are honest, way too many will make an agent spend lots of hours working for them and then if not tied to a contract cut them out at the last minute to make a direct deal.

I have a friend who had that happen- over 40 hours invested in a couple looking for a vacation home, lots of driving for pictures they requested for weeks before they came to town and then several days straight of showings. Only to get a "your services are no longer needed" email and to find out the couple had gone and negotiated direct with one of the properties she had shown and used the 3% she would have earned as a bargaining chip.


Since then she won't do any work without a contract, just to protect her.

Great buyers agents have all the clients they can handle just off reputation, so they are not worried about losing ones who won't sign.

It protects both the agent (from buyers who will ditch them at the last second), and the buyer (to ensure the agent is actually representing them).

But I'd be sure that the agent I sign with has a good reputation and will be working hard for me.

We walked out and found someone who sold us a lovely place, Realtors need to get to know clients and mutual understanding has to be established. Pure greed if you ask me. And if they won't work with you, walk away.

There is nothing that says you can't contact the listing agent direct and make all the arrangements to see and buy properties yourself.

If you are willing to spend the extra time doing it and don't mind that the only agent in the picture is one whose responsibility is to the sellers then that avoids dealing with buyers agents.

Otherwise expecting an agent to take time to research properties, show them to you and represent your interests without any contract protection ensuring they will get compensated if their effort leads to a purchase is kind of a shitty way to treat someone trying to make a living.

You also have to be careful of who the buyer's agent is looking out for.

Technically, they represent you and ethically they should look out for your best interest.

However, the economics of the situation are not set up to ensure that. The buyer's agent has motivations to make sure that you buy something, make sure you pay top dollar for it and to make sure you close no matter what you find out at inspection.

Many/most will treat you well and look after your interests. It is simply worth remembering that you are the only one that can really judge what is best for you.

I think this was a huge problem in the housing bubble. The agents were doing well and it was in there interest to continue the game. I think there was a great deal of unrealistic trust placed on realtors and mortgage brokers that really helped fuel the run-up.

Just be wary of everyone's motive and take all advice accordingly.

Having said that, they provide a service and should get paid. A contract just assures they don't get screwed.

The best advice I ever got was to use a buyer agent who does ONLy buyers agent work, unless you have a good agent you have a personal connection with who does it.

The personal connection, deep enough that they won't screw you, is generally the best way to go. Like a trusted friend or family member.

Second to that is finding an agent that only does work as a buyers agent and who has a good reputation. Agents who specialize in buyers agent work make a living on their reputation for doing well for their buyers so they know that their long term success hinges on doing buyers right.

the entire fee.

Read it carefully. Many people like the single agent agreement. Without it there are many aspects where the agent will have limited fiduciary responsibilities with you.

Look at what it states. It's either outlining your relationship as single agent, transactional broker, or no-brokerage.

to make an offer. I made a fool out of myself I guess since I adamentaly pressed my daughter not to sign. The agent said things like, why should I waste my time when I could be home with family and my daughter was practically in tears.

I just kept saying Nope, we won't sign, grumped a lot and finally gave in since I became the ogre.

My poor daughter, but I just always thought one shouldn't sign, especially first thing before anything else.

That would clearly lend itself toward unethical practices. Seems some are more appreciative of the unfettered capitalism approach than I thought.

In that case you certainly don't have to enter a buyer's agreement. But if you're consulting with a professional realtor or realty service, then it seems unrealistic to expect them to offer their expertise out of the goodness of their hearts.

At the very least, they could offer a 24-hour buyer's agreement, which is what we signed the first time we visited with a realtor years ago. Ultimately she turned out to be terrible, and her branch of Prudential Reality was pretty crappy too, but the one thing she did right was explain our obligations and hers under the agreement.

When we bought our second home we paid cash, but we still entered a buyer's agreement because it was worth it to have someone contractually obligated to work on our behalf.


If you have the courage to go it alone, then I wish you the best of fortune.

signed a buyer's agreement.

Although, I would like to go out with her and see if she is any good first...at least once.

It can be a toss-up, really, whether there is value in it or not. I've sold and purchased a home with no agents involved at all. Everything went very smoothly, both times. A title company prepared all of the documents at a very affordable cost.

On the other hand, I have also purchased a home, using a buyer's agent. That also went smoothly, and saved me the trouble of bothering with dealing with paperwork. In Minnesota, an agent can legally be both a seller's and buyer's agent for the same property. That was the arrangement in my case. In fact, we met her at an open house for the home we ended up buying. I acted on my own behalf and on my wife's behalf in negotiating the deal. The agent is required, by law, to present my offers and requests as a potential buyer to the seller. That happened just fine. The deal was made, with all fees paid by the seller. The seller got a buyer who could pay for the home with a cashier's check. We closed in under 30 days.

Every home sale and purchase is unique. Each has unique characteristics. Do as you please, really. Personally, I prefer to do my own research on homes if I am the buyer, and then arrange a showing with whoever is the seller's agent. I don't care about much of the rest. I'm able to do my own home inspections, negotiate a deal, and do whatever other things are required. I don't need anyone to assist me with those things.

For others, they are well-served by buyer's agents, who will navigate the complexities of a home purchase. It's certainly easier for the buyer. It's an individual choice, really.

Move on to someone else.

You are asking someone to work on your behalf and represent you.


Would you work for someone without some legal protections? 'Cause I wouldn't.