What Makes You the Best Buyer’s Agent in Your City | FastExpert

Whether someone is buying a home for the first time or the tenth, they don’t usually have adequate knowledge of local markets and the homes available for sale. Hiring a licensed and experienced buyer’s agent is the there best bet of getting a good deal.

A buyer’s agent responsibility mainly focuses on protecting the buyer’s best interests. The reputation of a buyer’s agent establishes credibility and brings more buyers to the table.

As a buyer’s agent, you should strive to become the best one in your city. Following are some of the major criteria that you must meet:

1. Be Professional

Understand that you are hired for a specific task and you should perform it well. Even if you do build a personal relationship with the home buyer or seller, do not forget your responsibility. Make sure to do your work on time and to the best of your ability.

Try to update your skillset as things around you change. Be punctual in meetings and show professionalism in all aspects.

2. Knowledgeable

As a buyer’s agent, you must keep yourself up-to-date with about local real-estate markets. A good buyer’s agent possesses valuable market knowledge. You should have information about private sales and any property that is will be published. You should also have access to an extensive property database.

It’s because of expertise over such information, that a buyer hires an agent. It gives the buyers a chance to capture a hot piece of property. Usually, by the time a property like this is published for sale to the public, it has already been lost to someone in-the-know.

3. Experience

Buyer’s agents visit several homes every week, which means that they know the market trends better than most. They know what to look for when visiting properties and how to identify red flags.

When you’re an agent, buyers would ask you about your experience in the market. They’d look up things like:

Past records
Last year’s success ratio
The current number of buyers you are working with
The average number of homes that you’ve helped your clients buy

Answers to these questions help buyers gauge your expertise level. Buyers would want to visit only shortlisted homes that meet their criteria and demands. With your experience and expertise in the field, you can help them do that.

4. Honest and Frequent Communication

Buyers usually complain about a lack of communication from their agents. Although you might be working for their best interests, this communication gap will come off negatively. This is the reason why buyers do not prefer part-time agents as they are mostly unavailable.

It is advised to keep in touch with the buyer and update them about the houses that you are shortlisting for them and the overall situation. Make sure you ask the buyers about their preferred way of communication.

You might be sending and updating your buyer via emails, but what if they don’t check their emails. Some buyers may prefer emails; others might ask you for text messages. Provide buyers with the information of the shortlisted homes using their preferred communication method.

Send them some pictures and an overview of the home so that they have a fair idea before the visit. The idea is to bridge the communication gap. This will not only establish trust between you and the buyer but also strengthen your reputation in the market.

5. Systematic Approach

It’s your responsibility to show your buyers property that matches their needs and wants to their agents. As a buyer agent, you need to keep their needs and wants in mind, along with their budget considerations. Always document your visits and maintain a calendar so that you don’t miss an important one. You may use a system for this purpose.

6. Managing Multiple Tasks for the Buyer

To become the best buyer’s agent, you should master your multitasking and organization skills. You would be handling multiple clients/buyers with different preferences. For a single buyer, you would have to contact several property sellers or seller’s agents. Moreover, you would have to make arrangements for the visit. Another reason why buyers prefer buyer’s agent is it saves up their time, money and energy.

7. Quality Business Connections

Buying a home isn’t easy and various professionals are required in this process. Buyers share their responsibility of buying a new home with you, the agent.

As a buyer’s agent, you should have strong networks with other professionals as well. A satisfied buyer is more likely to ask the buyer’s agent to recommend a mortgage consultant, attorney lawyer, home inspector, and structural engineer.

8. Negotiator

A buyer’s agent bids on behalf of the buyer at an auction. The agent will also support the buyer during the negotiation process. Advocate for your buyer with your negotiations skills without being aggressive.

If you can check off all the boxes in terms of the qualities mentioned above, you are well on your way to become the best buyer’s agent in your city. The key is to never stop working and improving yourself.

Originally published at https://www.fastexpert.com on July 18, 2019.