I strongly disagree with several points made in this article! I think it does the consumer a major disservice to even hint at the possibility of not signing a buyers representation agreement. I service one of the "hottest markets" in the country where houses sell before they hit the market. A buyer would be laughed out of the community if they called every listing agent to be "first up" on every new listing. What the consumer needs to know is that the agents network with one another and discuss houses before they are on the market. If you're a good agent, most of the other agents in your area will contact you about new listings they are getting. What agents can't stand more than anything, are buyers that have 10 different agents working with them. The word gets around very quickly and that particular buyer becomes a "joke" among the Realtors. They might get calls from a few agents, but no reputable agent will take them seriously unless they have a commitment from them (buyers representation). Secondly, if you have two buyers in the same price range and one has signed a buyers rep agreement and the other did not, who do you think is going to get that first notification of a new listing???? The loyal customer will generally have the agent " killing themselves" for them and WILL find that perfect house, even in a hot market because their agent has dedicated themselves to go above and beyond the call of duty. But we certainly won't kill ourselves for the buyer that is calling every agent in town!........BAD ADVICE to call every top broker in the area!!!

Another main reason to have a buyers rep agreement is so the consumer can have total representation! In Texas, if a buyer does not sign an agreement, the agent has a fiduciary responsibility to the seller and can't legally represent the buyer. Therefore, buyer beware!!

I read Real Times faithfully and love being up to date on real estate news, but this article was way off base! It offended me and was an insult to consumers!!!

Sincerely,
Nora Ling Lane
www.noralane.com

Excellent article. I totally agree. As an exclusive buyer's broker for the past ten years, there have been several instances when the buyer was better served to call several listing agents direct - and, especially in a hot market. Each buyer's needs are different. We in the industry just need to do a better job of identifying those needs and determining whether or not our services meet the need. Thanks for addressing a much needed topic.

Hazel Edwards
Buyer's Realty
2301 Ohio Drive, Suite 135
Plano, Texas 75093

The article on when not to use a buyer's agent was interesting as it relates to a "hot market" but the authors forgot to tell consumers about the countless buyer agents who find UNLISTED properties to choose from when the market is so hot. For example, the Boston marketplace has been "hot" for at least 4 years now and no buyer's agent worth his/her salt could rely on the inventory to find homes for homebuyers. One great agent I know even shares his "leftovers" with other buyer agents in the marketplace AFTER his clients have been successful in choosing from the pool of unlisted properties he finds for them. Novel, isn't it? The real estate marketplace will undoubtedly benefit from all kinds of such creative thinking on the part of practitioners who find the courage to break out of the "traditionalist" mode!

Pat Rioux pat@housebuyer.com 1-888-215-3115
Information Manager, HouseBuyer.com, Inc.
Writer for BuyMyself, International Real Estate Digest www.ired.com
www.HouseBuyer.com

Dear Willing to be Dual Agents:

Your article is totally misleading and I question anyone's ethics who acts as a dual agent. The fact that agents keep listings in house as long as possible (especially in a hot market) in the hopes that a dual agency can be accomplished is unconscionable. That tactic is wholly in the seller's and agents' favor--not in the buyer's. Of course you have to disclose, but does the unsophisticated buyer really know what it all means, or are you taking advantage of their ignorance in relying on you to steer them through?

An appraiser and a broker.

Dear Judi and Elaine-
As an Exclusive Buyer's Agent from a "hot market" of 3-4 years, on Cape Cod in Massachusetts, I found your article interesting, but not necessarily good advise for buyers in my particular market. I know that Roy Flanders, an Exclusive Buyer's Agent from Nantucket and a hotter market than mine, would also concur with my comments and analysis. If a high-end buyer in my market were to take your advise and "go it alone", placing their name in with several top agents in the five largest listing offices, they probably would not achieve their goal of buying a special waterfront/water view property. If the top agents in my Town have a customer who is not loyal (ie. one who puts their name in with several Realtors and offices), they do not place that person on the "front burner". Instead, that buyer who "plays the field" becomes a second-tier customer who gets called after the loyal, first-tier buyers get their first showing and opportunity to buy. Also, the top agents are spending most of their time on getting new listings and servicing the listing inventory that they already have, giving less priority to buyers/customers, as a practical matter. Therefore, a good buyer's agent is paramount to getting a special property, in my market. How can that be, you ask? Well, currently, for example, I have an "inventory" of 12 waterfront properties that are not "officially" on the market, but who's owners I have contacted regarding a specific buyer and their specific interest in purchasing the property. Often the seller will allow a showing to a specific buyer, with the understanding that I will keep the knowledge of the potential availability "quiet", because they do not want their property in the MLS and shown to everyone. They also like the fact that my commission typically is a set fee in the range of two to three and a half per cent of the asking price, not in the range of a 5-10% listing fee. Due to the relatively small, geographical size of my market, I am also able to hear about prospective listings (through the local "grape-vine") before they are listed, therefore I typically get my buyer/clients a first look at them. I send mailings to specific neighborhoods where I know my buyer client would like to purchase, and follow-up with phone calls. Also, I keep an inventory of For Sale by Owner properties (although high-end sellers do not generally go the FSBO route), which the local listing offices avoid like the plague, so I broaden the scope of the search for my Clients a bit more than the local "top producer"/listing agents. Since my office's focus is ONLY on buyers and potential inventory, INFORMATION and KNOWLEDGE are "the Keys to the Kingdom", in my opinion, not waiting for one of five "top producers" to get a listing! By that time, my office's first-tier CLIENTS have probably already bought it!

I know markets vary greatly around the Country and in my own State, however, I don't think that buyers should ever not use a good exclusive buyer's agent. Especially in a Hot Market and especially as their price range goes up!

Best Wishes.
Steve Perry
The Buyer Brokerage of Osterville
Exclusive Buyer Agents for the quaint, seaside villages of Cape Cod
874 Main Street Osterville, MA 02655
508-420-1804 Fax: 508-420-4450
e-mail to: steve@osterville.com
www.osterville.com

Judi and Elaine,
Thank you for posting an article about truly one of the most divisive issues in real estate today. I am a Realtor that only represents buyers (Exclusive Buyers Agent). I practice in Lawrence Kansas, pop. 90,000 + or -. My market is definitely a hot market, case in fact a couple years ago Lawrence was rated by (whoever rates these things) as the 6th hottest market in the nation.

The reason I point this out is--I believe that the consumer is always best served by an agent representing only one consumer at a time. While I completely agree with your premise that if a consumer spread their name around to several or many agents. This method may provide the opportunity to gain access to a particular home that they may or may not have had access to with only a single agent representing them exclusively.

However we are still in the me and only me generation. It's for that reason due to the many opportunities for all kinds of maladies that all to often arise out of such arrangements (dual agency) I still believe the consumer is best served when purchasing a home to work with only the agent that's representing their interests.

Thank you again for your very insightful article.

J.R. Demby=REALTOR TO THE STARS (Buyers)
JR DEMBY The Buyers Choice
785-838-3100 or 1-800-585-3580
Member NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF EXCLUSIVE BUYER AGENTS