+1 on the buyer's agent advice. They rock. Robert Munn wrote: > Cute house! I love those Victorians. > > As the husband of a realtor, my totally non-professional opinion is to forget > about the listing agent and find an agent to work with you as a buyer's > agent. That means they represent you, not the seller. Realtors fees come out > of the sale of the home- the seller's pocket, not yours. If you have your own > agent, the listing agent and your agent split the commission on the home > sale. If you don't have your own agent, the listing agent gets the whole > commission, and really never represents your best interests the same way a > buyer's agent can. > > Finding an agent can be hit or miss. Passing the licensing exam usually isn't > difficult, so you get a lot of not so professional folks who try it out > before they figure out that it's actually a pretty tough way to make a good > living. If you know people who own homes in the local market, ask them what > they thought of their agents. Find someone who does it full time as a career > and has experience representing buyers. > > As far as what to offer, that's something to go over with your agent. They > know the market and will be in a position to help you understand what offers > will be taken seriously and what will not. > > > > >>We were planning on moving in the summer (after my son is out of school) but >>my wife has found her "perfect house". Now we're not sure how to proceed. >> >>The house is a gorgeous old Victorian. Quite a notch larger than we really >>need, but with plenty of room for family. It had a new roof in 90 and a new >>furnace in 97. From the (few and small) pictures it looks to have been very >>well maintained and kept up. It's only 11 miles from my new office and is a >>50'x165' lot (so it's got to have a sizable yard). >> >>Here's the listing: http://www.scrantonpamls.com/scr/maildoc/CAAa003v0.html >> >>It's at the upper zone of our "comfort" limit (where the monthly costs of >>the house won't be much more than the monthly costs we have with rent right >>now). I would have like something lower (much lower actually) but we can >>definitely afford it without worry and my wife is in complete LOVE with it. >> >>When we called real estate agents on the listing they treated us as if this >>were a suggestion - something to inform looks at other houses. That would >>be fine but they didn't seem to take our interest in THIS house very >>seriously. >> >>(One woman sent us this listing as well: >>http://www.scrantonpamls.com/scr/maildoc/a006_w.html which makes me think >>she wasn't taking us seriously... these two places just aren't in the same >>class.) >> >>So any ideas on how to proceed. I don't want to lose the place just because >>the agents aren't paying us enough attention. I'm tempted to make a bid >>outright (preferably, of course, pending inspection and a visit or two) just >>to make sure that we get a chance to on it if there are other bidders. At >>the same time I'd love to push the sale off for another four months... >> >>Anyway... what do you think a decent opening offer is? I've never done this >>before - I don't want to be insulting but at the same time I don't want to >>spend more than I need to. >> >>Since the house is listed at $175,000 I'd be thinking anyplace from 150 to >>160 as an opening bid. What do you think? >> >>Also how long does the process usually take (in our case the longer the >>better) and how much should we expect to pay out in closing costs? >> >>Thanks in advance - and wish us luck! >> >>Jim Davis > > >
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