Is a buyers’ agent really worth it?

Not too long ago, I met up with a couple. They had sold their house and was ready to buy a new place. The conversation went somewhat like this:

Couple: We have been looking for a house for the past one year. We have been staying in our parents’ place since.

Me: Wah… so long… what happened?

Couple: You see, the agent who sold our house didn’t check whether we could get an HDB loan after selling our home. We thought we could buy the next house ourselves. After we placed the deposit, only then we found out that we are unable to get the loan. Some of the houses were either too expensive or required too much cash upfront.

Me: *sigh*

But wait, it is not entirely the agent’s fault.

Since the couple engaged him/her to sell their house, the agent’s main priority would be to sell the house.

However, I also felt that the agent should have probed further to understand his clients (the couple) better before even committing to help sell their house.

Many would think that the agent’s job is simply to look for the houses and negotiate prices just like how they do it in Carousell.

This is far from the truth.

While technology has helped people to understand real estate work better and streamline most of the paperwork, the work is not that straightforward.

While you can use YouTube to learn how to repair a car, many would still prefer sending their cars to their trusted workshop for repair.

CEA(Council of Estate Agencies) has published a statement stating:

“If you choose to handle your property transaction yourself (i.e. DIY, without engaging an agent), you should be familiar with the procedures and regulations involved and should not expect the other party’s agent to help you with the paperwork or render advice.”

Any mistake in the timeline – Option, Exercise, Submission – can cause the whole transaction to fail.

There have been buyers who lost vital documents such as the Option to Purchase (OTP).

There are sellers and buyers who decide not to sell/buy the house even after exercising just because of a wrong thing been said over Whatsapp.

These unforeseen circumstances lead to lots of frustration, money, and time lost.

Of course, there are legal ways to mitigate the issue. However, it is costly, time-consuming, and most likely, the legal verdict may not even be in your favour.

This is why many seller agents prefer to have their professional colleagues to assist in the buying.

A good agent offers more than just negotiating the price.

We provide various solutions such as:

• Financial
• Asset progression
• Market Analysis
• Investment
• Relocation
• House hunting
• Contingency
• Documentation
• Detailed Preparation Timeline

The highly-motivated ones will go a step further to check on the story behind the sale, assist in checking of possible loanshark attack, how the neighbours are like, etc. However, finding the right agent is really hard. You have to be sure that the agent is working for you and not the other way around. Find an agent that understands your goals and needs, and is able to help you plan safely.

Beware though, some unscrupulous agents will put up fake listings, to meet you and corner you to take up their services.

The right agent will be able to filter out the real listings that are on the market, saving you time and hassle. Thus, getting the right agent might cost you. But it will really help you to have a professional consultant by your side to help you mitigate all the risks involved, give you useful advice, and explain to you the procedure.

Peace of mind is priceless.

But first, you must find the RIGHT agent. 🙂