If this May will find you looking for a home to call your own, you won’t be alone—it’s prime season for San Diego Harbor Island house-hunting. In case it’s been a while since your last go-round (or if this will be your first), it’s relevant to review some of the basics. That includes one of the most basic basics: if and/or when to enlist the services of one of San Diego Harbor Island’s buyer’s agents.
You might think that, with home prices having risen steadily for some time, prospective San Diego Harbor Island home buyers might prefer to go it alone as a cost-cutting maneuver. After all, the homes for sale are all right there online, aren’t they?
But that’s not the people’s choice. The latest (2018) statistics tell us that 87% of those who bought a home did so through a real estate agent or broker. The cost factor winds up tilting in the agent’s favor because, except in extremely rare cases, buyers do not pay a commission at all! It’s part of the Multiple Listing Service agreement that mandates fees and commissions be paid from the seller’s proceeds.
For what amounts to a free service, house-hunters who work with a buyer’s agent gain the professional insights of a licensed veteran in the San Diego Harbor Island market. Signing up with a buyer’s agent legally obligates the agent to work toward getting the client the best deal possible. When buyers go it alone, relying on the homeowner’s agent to handle the details, they are entrusting an agent who is obligated to work for the best interests of the other party—hardly an ideal situation.
Once you are represented by a buyer’s agent, you are immediately relieved of the tricky business of discussing financial matters with a seller or the seller’s agent. That’s not just the professional way to proceed—it’s also the likeliest path to getting the home you want on the terms you want.
Finding an experienced San Diego Harbor Island buyer’s agent–one you feel comfortable working with– is well worth the effort. But it doesn’t have to take much of that, either: just give me a call!
