Whether you are buying or selling a home you may have the chance to hire a real estate agent that only sells real estate part time. So how does that potentially hurt you? Let's think about this for a minute. At work are you allowed to access your cell phone all the time?
* Can you make calls and return calls at any time?
* Can you stay on your cell phone for 15 or 20 minutes on a personal call?
* Can you tell your boss "Excuse me I have to take this real estate call"
* Can you leave a meeting to "take a call"
Real estate doesn't stop. It does not matter whether it is an Oakland County lake home for sale or a home in Texas. Real estate goes on between 9 and 5 too. Sure some people wait for return calls, but some do not. Today's buyer's and seller's want instant gratification and response. I recently went on a listing appointment. The seller told me I got the job because she called two other agents and they did not answer the phone. They took 2 hours to respond. It is the same way with buyers. I once was fired from a client that I had shown houses to for a month. They had called one morning and wanted to see a house in the morning. I already had other appointments so it was impossible to do that morning. Those clients went and saw the house with another agent. Many of todays buyers and sellers want answers, and call backs very quickly.
Think about this. What if a buyer called to see your house and the agent did not call them back for 8 hours? After all that could happen. Remember the agent may have many calls to make and only a short time during lunch or breaks to do it. Will that buyer that wanted to see your home, and may be the one to buy your home wait? You have to remember some homes sales are impulse buys. You have to get that buyer in the house. Sometimes after a buyer thinks about a certain house for a while they decide not to go see it. They looked at something that made them decide no. So instead of going into the house, they decided no not to go because they didn't get a call back soon enough. Or simply because the phone call was not answered. Do you want that to happen to you?
When there are problems a real estate agent has to be on top of it and react to it. I have had part time agents go AWOL for 2 or 3 days. Unable to get answers about a property, unable to schedule a closing, unable to tie up a home inspection. I have had my buyers get upset at the seller because they were not responding to the inspection issues. When it was the part time real estate agent not being responsive. They weren't in the game.
Remember their full time job is what their livelyhood depends on. Real estate is just extra money. So they can't mess up their REAL job. All of us know how busy life is. Add in social activities, kids, spouse and life gets crazy sometimes. So the question is where will you or your house be in the ladder of priorities. Would it be below sick kids, dead line with boss, or time with the spouse?
Here are a few stories I have with part time agents. Once I put in an offer on Friday, Sunday morning the agent told me they hadn't gotten a hold of the seller yet because they were busy. They had a recital with a grandchild on Saturday. Would you like to wait for 3 days to know you have an offer on your house? I have had buyers switch over to me because their agent (aunt) was an airline stewardess and only could show them homes when she was in town. I have had buyers switch over to me because their agent couldn't show them houses before 6, or on certain days of the week because it interfered with their job. Houses don't wait for the agent, they sell. I have had a few buyers tell me they lost houses because of their part time agent, they couldn't get out there fast enough.
In real estate time is of the essence. You need to take care of business as soon as possible. For more about local metro Detroit real estate and to search homes http://www.oaklandcountylakefronthomesmi.com/
