Buying a Home

All our sales people are required to be honest and to treat people with respect. Once you sign an Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement, you are effectively saying that we are committing to be your best friend and that we have your back. Now we owe you complete loyalty as long as it is within the limits of the law. We are going to follow your instructions and recommend what’s best for you.

Yes, confidentiality is a very big thing to us. If you don’t sign an Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement and you tell an agent that you’d be willing to pay up to $200,000.00 on a home (but the seller is only asking $190,000), there is nothing to stop the agent from telling the seller or the selling agent that their asking price is too low and that people would really be willing to pay $200,000.00. On the flip side, if he or she isn’t representing the seller, and finds out that the seller would be willing to sell the property for $150,000.00, he has that loyalty and responsibility to tell you “Let’s offer $150,000.00 because they’ll take it.” If you sign an Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement, it’s similar to ‘doctor-­‐patient privilege’. You can confide in your agent about any aspect of the property or sales process and he or she would not and could not speak a word of that. It protects you throughout the process.

No. As the buyer, you do not pay for the services that you are getting from our company; the confidentiality, the honesty, the loyalty, etc. All of those services that your agent is going to provide for you is actually paid for by the listing broker by splitting his commission. Effectively, every one of our agents that is a member of the MLS (Multiple Listing Services) have agreed to split and share our commissions. Normally, this commission is somewhere between 5-­‐7%. Georgia law says that the listing agent (the person who has exclusive rights to sell on a property) is the person who will actually collects the commission, and in the case where there is another agent involved, the listing agent splits that commission with the other agent, so it costs you no more to have us represent you exclusively as a buyer. Since it’s a free service for you, why wouldn’t you step to the highest level of that service? Especially knowing that it doesn’t cost you anything out of pocket.

Experience: You’ll receive the full benefits of our 20 years of experience in vetting all of the peripheral professionals that you are going to need to complete the process. Not only will we hold your hand through the process, but we’ll share exclusive insight like:

• Which attorney you do/don’t want to use
• Which mortgage broker’s fees are too high
• Which mortgage company has the fastest processor
• Which mortgage companies consistently extend closings because they can’t get people qualified in time
• The best way to deal with underwriters
• Who has the cheapest closing costs
• Which contractors can complete punch list items on time
• Which home warranty programs are best

Knowledge: We’ll explain the entire process and handle your expectations from search to closing. We’ll cover the details of your HUD statement and what those exact costs are to you. We’ll go through your Truth in Lending statement with you when you talk with your mortgage broker.

Assistance: Effectively, anything that you aren’t able to do or that you don’t want to do, your agent would handle that for you under the Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement. Some examples include meeting with movers, home inspectors and contractors to ensure that your closing is completed on time.

One of the biggest myths of not signing an exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement is that it saves you money. Let’s consider a typical scenario. You’re out on a Saturday afternoon and you decide that you want to take a look at some homes. You pass by a house and believe you’ve found the house of your dreams, but you don’t have your agent with you, so you call the phone number on the listing agent’s real estate sign. You’ve just contacted the person who has the seller’s best interest in mind, not yours. It’s a common misunderstanding that if you don’t bring another agent in, then you can save money on the contract, but it doesn’t happen that way. The commission you pay will stay the same whether you have an agent representing you or not. The question is really whether all that commission will be paid to the listing agent or split with another agent (one who represents you and has your best interest at heart). You don’t pay more regardless, but not having clear and confidential representation could end up costing you a lot.

There are actually two types of Buyer’s Agency Agreement that you can sign, and they both are exclusive to Michael Carr & Associates, Inc.

One Property: The first one is specific to one property. With this option, you do the searches on your own and you’re effectively saying that you don’t want to be assigned to an agent. You simply want to look at one particular piece of property, and you sign an Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement specifically for that piece of property. If you end up buying that piece of property, then we would represent your best interest in dealing with that listing agent.

Specified Time Frame: The other option is to sign an Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement for a specific amount of time. This option is far more common, and six months is the average amount of time, but it could be shorter or longer depending upon your needs. In this particular case, it doesn’t matter which properties (or how many) you wish to view. There are no restrictions. We’re going to be your Exclusive Buyer’s Agent and represent you on any property you wish. From that moment on, it’s as simple as telling every agent you encounter that you are dealing with an agent from Michael Carr & Associates, Inc. You’ll be protected and guided through the process properly.