Getting a real estate agent

The next question I probably get asked the most, and this is mostly from real estate investors and people in the comment section of our YouTube Channel, is: Should you get a real estate agent or not? This is a tough one for me to answer because I am a real estate agent. Therefore my answer is going to be skewed slightly towards the yes, use a real estate agent. Although I’m going to do my best to be as unbiased as possible and give my honest take on whether or not it’s worth it.

Here’s how this works with pretty much any home that’s listed… The seller is obligated to pay a 5% Commission. And the way it’s split is 2 1/2% of that goes towards the listing agent representing the seller. The other half of that goes towards the selling agent, representing the buyer. That 5% commission is generally paid whether or not you use your own real estate agent. So from that perspective, you may as well use a real estate agent because the seller is paying 5% regardless.

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Commission Percentage

In these situations, you really only have two options. One is to use the listing agent to represent you and hope that they knock down some of their commission and pass the savings on to you. And the second is to use your own real estate agent because the seller is just going to be paying 5%.

Anyway, I would say from my own personal experience that 90% of the buyers out there would be better off using their own real estate agent to represent them exclusively in the deal. It’s better than either not use a real estate agent, or relying on the listing agent to cut back some of that commission. Therefore, if you’re brand new to real estate and you’re buying your first property, there are so many intricacies to navigate. And I really recommend having someone who’s experienced helping you navigate that as best as possible.

And I say all of that as someone who’s been doing this full time for 10 years. It really took me about three years of doing this full time for me to really feel comfortable with the home buying process and really understand what I was doing; that’s three years of doing that full time.

“A good agent can save you money and make you money”

So just imagine it’s a buyer doing this with no experience for the first time ever. It’s extremely daunting. But here’s my honest reality of the entire situation. Good real estate agents can pay for themselves when it comes to getting the lowest price possible on the property. And a bad real estate agent can easily cost the buyer money in terms of not getting the best deal. So I absolutely recommend, to 90% of the people out there, to get a real estate agent that exclusively represents you in the deal.

Choose Wisely

The thing is that you really have to choose that person wisely. Use someone who has a good track record of success. Use someone who has plenty of experience and a good reputation in the business. So don’t go and use a friend just because they have their real estate license. As a result, Aunt Sally could end up costing you tens of thousands of dollars.