Here’s a script I just banged out for this two-minute video on TikTok.
@real_estate_rocqy A buyer’s agent is not essential when bidding on a listed property. #buyersagent #homebuying #realestate #denverrealtor
Do you need a buyer’s agent to purchase a property listed on Zillow, realtor.com, or the local Multiple Listing Service?
No you do not, and that will be increasingly clear as some significant changes take effect in the real estate industry.
You may have heard about the lawsuit against NAR, the National Association of Realtors. It’s a little complicated, but the main change is this:
Listing agents won’t have to specify compensation paid to buyer-side agents. They still can, but they won’t have to.
Suppose you see a home you like. You can call a buyer’s agent. It will be up to him or her to negotiate his compensation – if any – paid by the listing agent.
Here’s an alternative. You can approach the listing agent directly. Tell them you have no buyer’s agent.
The listing agent can act in one of two ways. Either as a transaction broker, with equal allegiance to both parties – if they’re both agreeable to that.
Or the listing agent can act with zero fiduciary duties to you the buyer. You’ll be treated as what we call a customer.
Here’s a current listing of mine. A beautifully renovated 3BR condo in the Bowling Green Community in east Denver.
If you’d like to see it, you can give a call. As a real estate broker, I’m very easy to find. If we can operate without paying compensation to a buyer side agent, we’ll both save some money.
Or call your friendly neighborhood buyer’s agent, and you can act with full fiduciary representation – at a somewhat higher price.
You need not hesitate to act without a buyer’s agent, in any transaction – if you feel confident in managing your own real estate affairs.