"I'm not a set of keys"

One of our fantastic agents forwarded this blog entry over to me today. She and I had a discussion yesterday about how some folks call us on listings and want us to show them the property, but do not want to meet with us or give us any information about themselves. It's not that we want their life story, we're simply trying to determine if meeting them is a good use of our time. Often the question we get is "well isn't it in the best interest of your seller to show me the house?" and the true answer is "no, not necessarily."

You see, if the caller isn't qualified to buy the house, it's a waste of everybody's time. It also allows a "stranger" access to a house...they can see what's in there, who's in there, etc. What if that caller really just wants to scope out the TV or appliances? Is THAT in the best interest of our seller? No.

Anyway, here's the blog entry, courtesy of Lori Liveston from Waltham, MA:

I'm a buyer's agent not a set of keys, and yup, there's a difference.

Let me start off by saying, I'm not a high pressure sales person. It is not my intention to talk you in to purchasing a home you don't want so I can pick up my check. It IS my intention to make sure that we don't waste each other's time.

Requesting a meeting prior to showing you properties isn't just because "I'm a people person."

This meeting is to explain the home buying process to you: Even if you have done your homework (and it's great if you have!), there is information that comes with my experience and you might just find it valuable. This meeting is also to do what we call a "need assessment": This is where we talk about your needs and wants in a home, your timeline for purchasing, your price range and anything else that's important to you in the purchase of your new home. This meeting is to go over important disclosures that I am legally obligated to provide you with: At this meeting I will present you with the Agency Disclosure that I am obligated by law to provide you with. This is a two page document (In Texas it is one page) that explains the different types of agency that can be provided to individuals in a real estate transaction. I will also present you with a disclosure that explains the home inspection process (which can be daunting, particularly for first time home buyers) and the different types of inspections offered.

While the internet is an invaluable tool in finding the homes you want to see, I can help!

As a local real estate professional, I have probably been inside some of these houses already. Which means, that I can tell you why there are no pictures of the third bedroom (because it's an 8x8 cell with no light and a pet stained carpet that you are only going to be able to use for storage). Because I understand the type of financing you will be using, I know this foreclosure property isn't worth looking at (because it will never qualify for FHA financing.... and since we sat down together to go over your financing needs, I already know you are going FHA).

Presenting you with a buyer agency agreement doesn't mean that I want to trap you into working with me and then stop working hard to keep you as a client.

The buyer agency form is a commitment from BOTH OF US. It commits me to represent you and find you a property, and it commits you to not use another agent in purchasing a property. We can make this commitment for as long or short a period of time as you like. Does it help me out to know that you are serious about purchasing a home and that my time isn't wasted? Sure. Exclusive agreements have been used by on the seller's side for a long time, because we recognize that in order to sell a house in the quickest amount of time and with the best terms possible, that requires a commitment from both the seller and their agent. The same principals apply to the buying side of the transaction.

Bottom line, I don't want to work with you if you don't want to work with me.

Let's face it, you are going to be spending your free time with me looking at homes, that's a pretty big deal and I don't want to be a part of it if I am not going to improve that process for you.