Realty basics?

To some, this may seem like a basic topic but it has come up quite a bit lately so I thought I'd address it... what the heck do Realtors do?

I had a client who said to me one time that they were annoyed that another Realtor (she went with me after she was so displeased with this other Realtor's performance) not only wanted my client to do most of her own searching online but also told her that if she didn't choose the particular house she was showing her, she'd regret it.

In general, Realtors are conduits to the closing. We are expected to be Jacks of all Trades but Masters of None. What this means is that we know enough about a bunch of subjects to direct our clients toward the experts. We're almost like consultants.

Why not go direcly to the source, you say? What are the chances you, as a buyer, know an expert negotiation specialist, a certified inspector, a real estate attorney, a radon mitigation specialist, an electrician, a plumber, an environmental hazard expert, a mortgage broker, a certified appraiser, an insurance salesman, a professional suveyor, etc etc... ALL? You get my point.

So let's pretend you know all these people. Unless you invest in homes for a living, the chances of you needing these people on a regular basis is slim. A Realtor, on the other hand, does this for a living. It is our job to know all these people and to know enough about the subject matter to direct you to the experts who do know.

A Realtor is supposed to do anything you want them to that's legal. If you want to ask the seller to stand on thier head and spit nickels, however unreasonable, your Realtor should be there to ask. They may advise you against it and try to talk you out of it but legally they should do it.

As an aside, why do Realtors get paid the way they do? Frankly, this is SUCH a litigious business, we need to be paid by comission. In light of all the craziness on Wall Street lately with AIG and Barney Frank, I wish more professions earned thier livings by comission. If we were paid by salary, we'd probably have an even lazier reputation than we already have.