Home buyers in 2021 have access to all sorts of technology that make finding the perfect home easier. Online listings offer tons of pictures. Online maps can give buyers a good idea of what to expect in neighborhood amenities. Even tax information is available online.
Does this mean that home buyers no longer need real estate agents? Absolutely not. Agents and the brokers who employ them still offer valuable services buyers find indispensable.
As a Salt Lake City real estate brokerage, CityHome Collective values its relationships with clients. They work extremely hard to ensure each and every client gets the best deal, whether selling or buying. They say there are five specific reasons you still need a real estate agent even in the internet era.
1. Pictures Don’t Tell the Whole Story
First and foremost, pictures are the strength of online home shopping. Yet they do not tell the whole story. In fact, most real estate pictures are not taken by professional photographers. They don’t show homes the same way your eyes will see them. You still need an agent so that you can physically visit the homes that interests you. Relying too heavily on website pictures is a mistake.
2. Agents Know the Market
As helpful as online tools are, they aren’t human beings. The advantage of working with a real estate agent is the fact that they know the market. And for the record, real estate agents are not the same thing as real estate brokers.
A broker is an individual licensed by the state to operate a real estate brokerage. A broker may or may not be an agent as well. Real estate agents work under licensed brokers. Both agents and brokers know the market inside and out.
3. Agents Know the Temperature
We often talk about the real estate market as being hot or cold. Likewise, we draw distinctions between buyer’s and seller’s markets. These are all things real estate agents are intimately familiar with. Agents know the temperature of the market at any given time. As a buyer, you benefit from the sound advice your agent provides based on current market conditions.
4. Agents Know How to Prepare Offers
When it comes time to make an offer on the home of your dreams, there is paperwork involved. Moreover, there are legal ramifications. One of the primary benefits of using a real estate agent is that they know how to prepare offers that are both legally compliant and likely to get a good response.
Agents are intimately familiar with contingencies. They know what to do when an offer is met with a counteroffer from the seller. They know how to negotiate offers with other real estate agents. If for no other reason, this is motivation to use a real estate agent.
5. Agents Have Advanced Access
Finally, you may have experienced the letdown of finding a house online only to discover it already has a pending offer. That’s because online listings are not always up to date. Your agent has an advantage in that they have access to listings in advance of them going online.
In a hot market like Salt Lake City, that advanced access often means a home is sold before it starts showing up on real estate websites. You need that kind of access in a highly competitive market where homes sell in days.
Digital real estate tools are helpful. They may even be fun to use. But they are no substitute for an experienced real estate agent. If you are buying a home, use an agent.
Looking for trustworthy real estate agents in Chandler, AZ? Our list of top-rated Chandler real estate agents is a great place to start your search.
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