ᐅ What is a real estate agent (Realtor)

 

¿What is a real estate agent?

A real estate agent is a real estate consultant who belongs to the National Association of Realtors. This is a professional association with more than 997,000 members in the United States and more than 30,000 in South Florida. These members are specialists in the sale and purchase of residential and commercial real estate, as well as property management, appraisers and other experts who are also members of the National Association of Realtors.

¿Why should you hire a real estate agent when buying or selling a home?

The advice and support of the real estate agent, especially when it comes to clients who are not familiar with the market and the legal, financial and tax implications, are decisive so that the transaction to be carried out becomes a successful experience, from its start to completion.

This statement is based on the fact that the experienced, efficient and responsible real estate agent has a series of knowledge, contacts and resources that allow, on the one hand, to guide the client, satisfy their questions, clarify their possible doubts, clear up fears. , warn you of possible risks; and, on the other hand, show you more properties than the client, who, even knowing the market, could see at his own risk and expense.

If it is about the sale of a property, the real estate agent can show his property to many more buyers than you and therefore is more likely to sell faster and at a higher price; In these cases, the real estate agent replaces the owner of the property for sale in the task of capturing and displaying the property, which implies highlighting the convenience of acquiring this asset, as well as preventing, in many cases, the security risk.

Regardless of the operation in question, whether it is buying and / or selling, there is a safety factor that is significantly covered by the agent. In the cases of buying a real estate, the real estate agent knows how to determine if showing his property to someone is safe and worthwhile, according to the predetermined variables that induce the search for real estate; if it is a sale, it reduces the risk to the seller of potential unknown buyers.

Before deciding on a real estate agent, it is a good idea to verify their credentials, experience and knowledge of the market, as well as the reputation of the company they represent. be cautious in choosing your potential real estate agent and make him your agent, your advisor, the person you can trust because of his professional performance; Otherwise, it will have as many agents as doubts and dissatisfactions it may have, which will inevitably obstruct a process that, if well oriented, should be a serious and rewarding process.

In this vein, it should be emphasized that the real estate agent selection process is based mainly on trust, service, knowledge, experience, responsibility and the team of experts that the agent can offer, not on the exclusivity of the properties. Let us remember that in the United States of North America in terms of properties, the real estate industry is standardized and that is why properties are found in a list called MLS, which forms a network, where all licensed real estate agents find properties, so there are no secrets involved in displaying a property.

The way real estate transactions are carried out in the US may differ from how they are carried out in your country. Each state in the United States has its own set of rules regarding the purchase of real estate, including the type of sales contract that is used, the method of closing the sale, and even the obligations and titles of the individuals involved.

Some important real estate practices in the US should be highlighted:

In the United States, property listing information is shared between agents through multiple listing services, and consumers can access the same information through real estate sites, such as Zillow. In many other parts of the world, the real estate industry is fragmented, and buyers have to go from agent to agent to find a property.

In some countries, it is normal to pay fees to agents who search for properties on the client side and show them to the client. In the United States, the sales commission is paid by the seller, so the buyer does not have to pay anything for the agent to work on their behalf.

By law, real estate agents must have licenses to operate in the United States. Laws vary from state to state regarding the training required, the modalities of the examinations, and the requirements for continuing education after licensure. The licensing system was designed to ensure that real estate agents are trained to guide consumers through the maze of finding, evaluating and financing real estate. Many other countries, such as Costa Rica, Mexico, El Salvador, and Belize do not require real estate agents to be licensed.

Foreign buyers will also want to consider issues such as exchange rates, international bank transfers, banking systems, multinational tax and accounting issues, and import / export restrictions on foreign exchange and household items.

¿How is the process for a bank loan for home?

Each state determines its own educational and experience requirements in advance of taking the state exam and certifying new consultants, as well as required courses for license renewal. The main objective of the license is to ensure that real estate consultants are trained and have sufficient credentials to successfully represent their clients during the purchase or sale of real estate.

In the United States, after passing the state exam, any real estate consultant must “hang up” their license with a “broker” and work under their supervision to be able to serve clients and close buying and selling operations. Failure to do so can lead to serious consequences, including the loss of the newly obtained license.

The broker, in addition to having several years of experience as a real estate consultant, had to accredit additional courses at the undergraduate level and not have negative disciplinary action in his record to acquire the right to take the state exam. The broker assignment is reserved only for those who meet all the requirements and pass this exam, having to constantly renew their license.

Working with a real estate consultant in the United States offers great advantages, which are mentioned below:

· Access to the advisor's “Network”: A good real estate advisor has forged, over the years, a circle of service providers that will be of great help before, during and after the purchase. Therefore, consider your advisor not only as the person who will help you buy or sell your home, but also as a facilitator of related and related services to your property. For example, lenders or "loan officers", lawyers, accountants, appraisers, home inspectors, termite specialists, multipurpose or "handyman" for minor repairs on the property, gardeners, electricians and plumbers are some of the providers that should be in the "Network" of your real estate advisor.

· Receive 100% of the properties for sale in the area of ​​interest, price range and desired characteristics: Most markets in the United States have one or more Local Associations of Real Estate Consultants. Its members have access to the Multiple Listing System or MLS (for its acronym in English) where all the properties for sale in the region are located. When a real estate consultant is working with a buyer, he not only shows him the listings that his office has but also sends his client 100% of the properties for sale in the market. Access to information, along with other factors, has made the North American market increasingly efficient and dynamic, benefiting all parties involved. In Mexico and other countries in the area, considerable efforts have been made to replicate this system. However, the culture of offering a limited number of listings means that buyers do not have the same degree of loyalty and are forced to search in several places.

· Custom Page: The MLS system allows the real estate consultant in the United States to send their clients their own "custom page". This means that the advisor has a very large number of filters that allows him to send properties with very precise characteristics, such as price range, single-story houses, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, first-floor bedroom, area specific to the city, house with pool or community pool, year of construction, lot size, minimum of square feet of construction, view of the sea, lake or golf course, maximum monthly administration expense, among others, managing to be very specific and making it easier to find the property that the client really wants to buy.

Receive the properties immediately when they go on the market, not a few days later: By receiving the information directly from their advisor, the client immediately receives the new properties that are coming on the market that will allow them to take action faster than the buyers they receive. their portal listings and that they don't have a real estate consultant yet. In a market as dynamic as most urban areas in the United States, this advantage can mean the difference between receiving the keys to your new property or continuing to search for the right opportunity to buy. The pages that show properties on the Internet are not updated with the same frequency and therefore it is common for them to show for sale properties that are already in the purchase process in “Contingent” or “Pending” status. This is very frustrating for buyers as they think they have found a good opportunity only to find out later that the property is no longer for sale. Such portals also take longer to submit property listings.

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