In today’s active seller’s market with multiple offers, as a homebuyer, you need to make sure you’ve found an agent who’s truly committed to helping you find your next home at favorable terms. You deserve an agent who listens, understands, and develops a plan of action personalized to you. And further, is committed to following through on their promises.
Southern California has become a seller’s market because there is currently low supply and high demand. With mortgage rates remaining at historic lows, it’s actually more affordable to purchase a home today than it was last year, even though home prices are continuing to rise. This is causing a record number of buyers to enter the market, and as these homebuyers compete for limited inventory, bidding wars are becoming common in today’s market. So how do you stay competitive in today’s market and ensure you find the best home on the best terms? By demanding that your agent work as hard as possible to help secure your dream home – it’s that simple.
At First Team, we have a Buyer Satisfaction Agreement that ensures our clients receive the best possible service by laying out our unique and special value propositions. Essentially, it’s a list of promises we make to ensure no stone is left unturned in the hunt for your dream home. Here’s what our Buyer Satisfaction Agreement covers so you know exactly what to demand of your next real estate agent to ensure they’re committed to your success.
1. Contact agents that work in your desired neighborhoods to inquire about any new listings that might have come up. Setting up alerts for new properties is passive. Contacting other agents to find upcoming opportunities is the active approach we like to take.
2. Canvas selected neighborhoods by phone or mail to find a homeowner that may consider selling. Most house hunters have a clear idea of where they want to live next, so focusing geographically on your desired neighborhoods is our priority.
3. Research properties that have been on the market in the past and never sold, and reach out to those owners. It’s possible that a homeowner tried to sell in the past but was unsuccessful because they didn’t find the right buyer, or the right price. If they’re ready now, it could be your lucky day!
4. Search for possible foreclosures in the neighborhoods you like. In some cases, it may be appropriate to submit an unsolicited offer to the homeowner of a property if you really like it from a drive-by.
5. Send an “I have a buyer” letter to homeowners in the neighborhoods you want to live in. These letters can be the push that some homeowners need to finally make the decision to sell that they’ve been considering. Knowing that their home is in demand is reassuring, and helps them finally embrace the next phase of their life.
6. Proactively look for inventory before it appears in the MLS or Zillow. By the time a home shows up on Zillow many of our best buyers have already seen it!
7. Contact listing agents whose listings are currently in escrow that fit your needs and check the sales status. It’s not uncommon for pending real estate deals to fall out of escrow. If the buyers get cold feet or financing falls through, you want to be ready with your own backup offer in place so that you can be next in line to secure your dream house.
8. Look for available off-market listings from our 38 local Southern California offices, that you won’t find on Zillow or any other real estate website, as they are exclusive to our company. With over 2,000 agents, our Preferred Access Buyer clients have the first look at a larger selection of off-market properties to see. Our agents also share pocket listing, prospective sellers, and more through our internal network to help match up buyers and sellers in our markets.
We have the privilege of being the #1 largest independent brokerage in Southern California1 because more home buyers and sellers trust us than any other broker. Our collaborative approach to serving our clients allows us to match buyers and sellers, close transactions quicker and easier, and uncover tons of opportunities other agents would miss.
These demands of your real estate agent are all geared toward assessing their preparedness. If you would like a FREE subscription to your neighborhood’s home trend values to help you prepare as well, email us at clientservices@firstteam.com and we will get you set up.
[1] Top broker report published in January 2019 based on data available from 7/1/2001-12/31/2019, all CRMLS, all brokers.↩
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