Signs You Have a Bad Real Estate Agent

When you are going through the process of searching for a new home or trying to buy one, it may be best to hire your own real estate agent for the process. Working with the one the seller chooses isn’t always ideal for you and you may not know how to if they are playing fair.

It doesn’t matter if you are looking to move somewhere in “The Big Easy” and searching New Orleans houses for sale or another area throughout the world. Hiring a real estate agent who is in your corner is always a good idea.

Let’s run through some of the signs of a bad real estate agent so you know when it’s time to bring your own in.

You Tour the House Solo

It doesn’t happen often, but more and more homes are secured with keyless entry. In these situations, a code is given to either unlock the door or retrieve the actual key. Sometimes in these scenarios, the real estate agent doesn’t feel the need to be present.

If this happens, you can’t ask questions or get nearly all of the details you need about the house. If the realtor doesn’t show up, they likely don’t care about you. That should tell you all you need to know.

They Can’t Answer Your Questions

 

Let’s go down the path that they do actually show up, but don’t come prepared. If you are asking questions that they can’t answer or they don’t know specific details about the home, it shouldn’t make you feel at all comfortable to buy from them.

This is where having your own real estate agent or representative can step in. They can contact the home seller and obtain all of the information that you are seeking. You’ll know when the roof was last replaced, when the heating/cooling unit was last serviced, and when the wiring was last checked/replaced.

All of this information is important because it can tell you how much you may need to invest and when.

They Go Dark

 

Let’s say that everything goes well in the showing, and you are super interested, but all of a sudden the agent goes dark. They aren’t getting back to you or returning your messages.

This could mean one of two things. They have other interested buyers coming in with a higher budget than you, or there is something personal influencing them.

If this is the case, they should still give you the ability to come in and compete with the other potential buyers. Hiring your own agent will allow you to either stay competitive or at the very least ensure you that this home is no longer in your budget rather than playing games.

They Value the Seller’s Interests Over Yours

This is probably the most common sign. The realtor that the seller hires will more times than not value their interests over yours. All in all, it is a business and they get paid based on how much they sell the home for. Nowadays selling your house is easy through online platform.

Hiring your own agent sort of acts like a mediator. They can work with the seller’s agent on a fair outcome for both parties. You’ll be able to tell right away from gut instinct if the realtor is siding with the seller based on your initial offer.