It seems that we may be experiencing the ‘worst shortage of property on the market since the 1970s’ (RICS 2015). Buyers in a competitive market need to ensure that they have an advantage over others when it comes to getting early and dependable notice of the right property becoming available to buy.
Now more than ever, there is real value in engaging a credible buying agent who has the kind of insider knowledge even the most serious and local buyer can never hope to hold.
Just stop and consider this:
How many potential buyers does a regular estate agent have on their books? Tens? Hundreds? Thousands? How do these agents decide on which potential buyers to notify first when a property comes on the market?
Now, aside from what you would like to think, the reality is that agents will have lists. These lists will hopefully, but not certainly, profile buyers with property types and prices. If you are lucky enough to be the top of the list, you will probably receive the first phone call. If you do not take the call, the agent will call the person next on the list and you will already have lost any advantage you may have had; and if you are 49th on the list….
A property buying agent will actually badger selling agents daily to ensure that they are the ones to get the first telephone call about properties that match their clients’ requirements. Without fail, buying agents always answer the phone and are never off duty, ensuring that their client has an immediate advantage. On top of which, the buying agent acts as a filter, drilling down on detail with the selling agent to decide which properties are genuinely contenders and suitable for their clients. It’s a tricky business buying a house and involves much kissing of frogs; so in reality it makes good sense to pay an expert to save you precious time and hassle and to secure your most expensive asset and live happily ever after.