After you Complete Your Sale, Save Even More Money (Rebates) Using our Buyer Broker Services Anywhere in CT, MA, ME, NH, or VT
Copyright © 2014- 2023 AUTHOR: Paul R. Marino, REALTOR®, e-Pro®
- The two most important attributes your buyer broker should possess are integrity and transparency. Experience is a close third. By using me as your buyer broker, you're guaranteed to get all three. While anyone can make this statement, it's another thing to prove it. If you've already used our for sale by owner (FSBO) services to sell your home using our Flat Fee MLS system, you know exactly what I'm talking about. For those that haven't, we strongly encourage you to review our long list of testimonials, where you'll find detailed reviews you can personally verify. Pick any one of our testimonials at random. We will provide you with a name, cell phone number, and email address for any of them, so you can speak to them directly and ask them how their transaction was handled.
2) So let's fast forward for a moment. Let's assume we've already placed your home under agreement using our Flat Fee MLS Connecticut, Flat Fee MLS Maine, Flat Fee MLS Massachusetts, Flat Fee MLS New Hampshire, or Flat Fee MLS Vermont listing program. A sales contract that results in an actual closing is the end result for roughly 97% of all the home seller clients that list with us. When your plans include buying a follow on property, we're going to demonstrate why it makes sense to allow me to represent your interests as a buyer. Why? Two reasons. One - you're going to receive a four figure check at the closing table when you buy that new property, and two - you're going to benefit from more than three decades of experience.
3) So imagine you've recently retired, and we've placed your Sunderland, Vermont home under contract using our Flat Fee MLS Vermont program. Your retirement plans include the purchase of another home, this time in Essex, Connecticut, so you can be closer to your grandchildren. Want to know the truth? This isn't hypothetical. It's an actual transaction. I personally brokered this Vermont home sale, using our Flat Fee MLS Vermont program (NEREN MLS 4490026 / 86 Dunlap Farm Road, Sunderland, Vermont 05250.) We sold it for $265,000. By the way, I never saw the home, never set foot in the house, never met the owner (Mr. Donald Boucher), but did save him $7,950 in listing side real estate commissions. I only mention this to demonstrate this can be done remotely with no difficulty. Read his testimonial, describing both his sale experience using our Flat Fee MLS Vermont program, and his buy side experience in Connecticut. On the buy side, we acted as Mr. Boucher's buyer broker for the purchase in Essex, Connecticut (SMARTMLS #N10238500 / 4 Keyboard Lane, Essex, Connecticut 06442). Again, I never saw the house, never set foot on the property. I did however, perform exhaustive research, and attended to the most minute detail, from initial showing, on up through the closing.
4) So right about now you're asking: "How are you going to represent me as my buyer broker on the purchase of a Essex, Connecticut home when your company is based in Dover, New Hampshire?" Simple. It's called technology. There is virtually nothing I can not tell you about a property without leaving a computer screen. Need a look at the neighborhood? There are hundreds of mapping programs on the Internet, some so good you can literally walk the neighborhood. I can tell you what color the mailbox is. Want to investigate how much money the seller owes on their mortgage (which may be influencing their ask price?) No problem. I can tie into the Middlesex County, Connecticut Land Registry of Deeds database and pull this information up in seconds. How about investigating if that addition off the back of the house is legal, and followed all municipal protocols (i.e. pulling the requisite building and trade permits?) Done. Having worked in every sector in the residential real estate business for over three decades (broker, appraiser, house renovator, auction and estate buyer, and investor), I can perform this work fast...very fast. Could you do this yourself? Of course you could. But why would you when I can do it more efficiently, and put a buyer broker rebate check in your pocket on closing day?
5) I have a very different methodology (smarter and more efficient) when targeting houses for purchase than most brokers. First off, you should know that a very high percentage of a real estate brokers time is spent driving around on non-productive road trips that serve no real purpose. To be clear, I will not personally tour the properties you target for purchase, but this in no way places you at a disadvantage. Having me tour the properties you are interested in is entirely unnecessary (explained in the next paragraph), and, for that reason, I don't do it. It's also the reason why most buyer brokers can not afford to pay you a buyer broker rebate as generous as I do. In the transaction I just referenced above, Mr. Donald Boucher collected a cool $2,281 on the day he closed on his Essex, Connecticut home, all for doing nothing. This is on top of the $7,950 we saved him on the sale of his Sunderland, Vermont home using our Flat Fee MLS Vermont program. When targeting properties for purchase for my buyer clients, I perform a tremendous amount of front end research that will save you time, aggravation, and sanity. Does it really make sense to drive around touring 25 properties when 20 of them could have been eliminated with some front end due diligence? Does it really make sense to set up an appointment for that cute little Cape Cod in the photos that turns out to have a gas station across the street? Of course not. The very first thing I'm going to do to protect your interests is examine the neighborhood, because there is no more important consideration than location. My point is, if a buyer broker is doing their job, the number of homes you actually walk through can typically be narrowed down to a half dozen. I work smarter, not harder.
6) By using my buyer brokerage services in CT, MA, ME NH or VT, you will have a single point of contact throughout the entire process. You will benefit from the full array of buyer brokerage expertise (i.e. targeting properties that fit your requirements, setting and confirming all showing appointments, getting you inside all properties that are serious prospects, tactical negotiating advice, management of all contract, addendum, and related paperwork, handling all “back and forth” minutiae between the listing broker and buyer broker, assistance with financing requirements, evaluation and response to home inspection, investigation into zoning issues, review and evaluation of home appraisal, review of all Closing Disclosure (CD) documentation in advance of the closing, and essentially handling every aspect of your purchase to ensure a smooth closing, and a pleasant home buying experience.) Feel confident that with 30+ years in the business, the advice you receive will be exemplary.
7) "How will I get you inside those properties that you have a serious interest in?" Simple. I've been doing this a long time. The very first thing I'm going to do is get on the phone to the listing broker and present to them a case that is so compelling they will want to let you inside. How do I do this? By demonstrating that you're financially qualified, highly focused, and have done all the necessary research on any given home. In other words, I convince them that their listing is on your short list, and it is in their best interest to let you through. Most buyer brokers will simply call up a listing broker and say: "I'd like to get into 89 Elm Street on Saturday at 2:00...does that work?" Not the way we roll. I prove to the listing broker I have a qualified buyer. Does this initial pass at getting you inside always work? No. No problem...onto Plan B. I simply make it worth their while. In all the years I have been doing this, I have never had a listing broker refuse a tour to one of my buyer clients.
8) When you do find “the one”, I strongly recommend you secure a home inspection to evaluate all systems, components, and cosmetics of the home. This is not the job of any buyer broker, since you require a specific level of systems expertise, provided by an impartial 3rd party, whose sole function is to “tell it like it is”. If any items of concern are identified with the physical structure, you are further counseled to secure expert advise from a person in the specific construction trade relevant to the potential deficiency (licensed electrician, licensed plumbing/heating contractor, licensed structural engineer, etc.). No one is better at securing local level trade expertise than I am. By following this procedure, you will feel secure knowing you have done everything possible to make an informed buying decision. I take buyer brokerage services very seriously, never providing advice any different than I would follow myself if in the same situation.
