A true pearl - Dawna made the selling of our home and buying of our "new" home a truly painless and easy experience. She was involved in everything from help in preparing our home to sell to finding and negotiating the purchase of our new home. Even more amazing, as this is really my first experience in these types of transactions, she was able to keep my nerves at a low rumble.
She is a true expert in managing expectations of both sellers and buyers. I know this because we were involved in a sell and buy simultaneously.
She always seemed to have the right words to manage ruffled feathers between buyers and sellers on both ends of our transactions.
I don't believe anyone could, or would be willing, to take on all of the nitty-gritty aspects of the process, frequently leaving us to simply nod our heads yes or no as all of the myriad decisions were made.
I won't say the entire process was easy, but I will say I've never worked with a realtor who took more responsibility or worked harder to help us achieve our goals than Dawna did.
Would I use her again? You bet! Would I recommend her to a friend? In a heartbeat.
- Call Your Own Agent, Only- It’s very exciting to find the perfect property online or driving by! Unfortunately, some buyers contact the seller’s agent for viewing a property, thinking that it will save time or hassle for their own agent. This can create confusion for the seller’s agent, about who is representing the buyer. If you are committed to an agent, let them do the communicating on your behalf, from the first contact for viewing.
- Be Discreet- Today, most properties have some form of electronic monitoring on the property. This can be doorbell cameras, baby monitors, and more. The seller and their agent are not required to advise that there are monitoring devices in the property. What you say and do may be watched, without your knowledge. Best to be pleasantly neutral and discuss details in private with your agent, away from the property.
- Limit the Love- With respect to strategy; if you gush about the property in front of other parties or write a letter to the seller about how much you love the property, you have shared too much. Further awkwardness is created if you proceed to escrow and discover undesirable info about the property, and make requests of the seller. The seller will recall the initial enthusiasm, and understandably, experience resentment.
- Value Your Agent’s Time- If you have your down payment funds available and are prequalified with a lender, you are ready to purchase. If these are not available, but you still want to search for property, your agent deserves to know that you are not ready to write an offer. Most agents’ compensation is only at the successful closing of a transaction, therefore, until closing, they are working for free. Ready to commit to an agent? Consider signing a Buyer-Broker representation contract to show you are ready. If you have a property tour set up by your agent, and you need to make schedule changes, let your agent know ASAP. Setting up a tour (and making changes to it) can take a significant amount of time, calls, and coordination with multiple parties.
- Be Safe- Some buyers are comfortable going on properties unaccompanied by their agent. Unless you have explicit authorization to go on the property parcel, you will be trespassing and should expect unpleasant surprises. These can include aggressive dogs, unmarked hazards, or confrontations with unfriendly residents. However, this can also reflect poorly on your agent, who may not know about your actions, but could be blamed for them by the other agent and/or seller.