Buyer representation is on the rise, according to the National Association of REALTORS®' semi-annual home buying and selling survey, but many customers still choose to work with more than one agent to find a home, and almost half go to the negotiating table without representation at all. In the real estate game of musical chairs, do you want to be the one left standing?

Buyer's agency. is one of the strongest trends to impact the real estate industry in this decade. By evolving from the admittedly poor representation modeled by the sub-agent, the buyer's agent is bringing a new professionalism and standard of ethics to the real estate practitioner. But the evidence is strong that there is still a lot of work to be done.

The NAR's study of homebuyers may provide some clues as to why so many buyers go unrepresented and why, and it could be as simple as whether agents ask them to sign.

How Buyers Contact Agents and Shop for Homes

According to the NAR, about 58% of homebuyers contacted only one agent before purchasing their homes, 22% contacted two, and twelve percent contacted three agents. Four percent contacted four and another four percent contacted five or more. Although most buyers selected the first agent they came in contact with, a large percentage did not.

First time Homebuyers - ignorant or calculating?

The NAR's study revealed that it was also more likely to be the first time homebuyer who works with more than one agent on the purchase of his/her home, although the repeat home buyer is almost as guilty.

Seventy percent of buyers used only one agent in their home search, but a full 19 percent admitted using two agents. Six percent used three or more, and five percent used four or more. Repeat buyers were more likely (61 percent) to contact only one agent than were first-time buyers (54 percent.) First time buyers were also more likely to contact four or more agents (9 percent) than repeat buyers (6 percent.)

Do first-time and repeat buyers work with more than one agent out of ignorance? Or are they afraid they will miss out on something if they commit to working with just one agent?

Some buyers believe they can save money if they find a home on their own. Others believe that agents have hidden agendas, and are pushing their own or their office's listings just a little too hard, or worse, that their agent may be incompetent. They suspect that they aren't seeing "everything" if they are tied to a buyer's contract. Still others suspect that by contacting a number of agents they will hit a kind of jackpot - that one agent will have information that the others don't and that they will then receive preferential treatment. The irony is - they won't - not without a buyer's agreement.

The Home Search

The fact that buyers use multiple means to shop for homes could be the next clue in why buyers go unrepresented. By spreading their efforts over a number of means to find a home, buyers may feel they have a better chance of finding the home they really want.

Buyers use multiple sources to shop for homes including agents (82%.) They also use the Internet (18%,) open houses (39%,) home magazines (34%,) newspapers (51%,) yard signs (38%,) and contacts (24%). Each of these methods offer ways in which the buyer can look at homes unaccompanied and unrepresented. Only 50% of buyers learned about the home they actually purchased from an agent.

The figures are more telling for buyers of new homes. New homes are about 20% of the overall home buying market. Because many builders choose not to list their homes in the MLS, it is difficult to say how many buyers choose to buy homes with representation. Of listed new homes, nine percent of buyers purchased directly from the builder, but the figure for unlisted new homes would have to be substantially higher.

The First-Up Myth

Some buyers think that by contacting a number of agents they will somehow gain an inside track to new listings. It's a strategy that can work, but it can also backfire.

"I service one of the "hottest markets" in the country where houses sell before they hit the market," says Nora Ling Lane with Henry S. Miller, Realtors. "What the consumer needs to know is that the agents network with one another and discuss houses before they are put 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," explains Lane. "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)."

Lane suggests, "If you have two buyers in the same price range and one has signed a buyer's rep agreement and the other did not, who do you think is going to get that first notification of a new listing?"

Part II, published tomorrow, will explore the agent's role in why buyers are reluctant to sign representation agreements.

Published: November 2, 1998

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Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. For more articles by Blanche, click here.