Real Estate Confessions: What Your Real Estate Agent Wishes You Knew

Real Estate Confessions: What Your Real Estate Agent Wishes You Knew Real estate agents spend a lot of time educating their clients about contracts, market conditions, pricing, inspections, financing, negotiations, and closing. But there are also plenty of things agents think every day that don't always make it into the official buyer or seller presentation. So, on a recent episode of Talk Real Estate Roundtable, Boston Connect Real Estate Broker/Owner Sharon McNamara and Director of Operations Melissa Wallace decided to say some of them out loud. Welcome to Real Estate Confessions: Things Agents Wish Buyers and Sellers Knew. And while the conversation was fun and lighthearted, there was an important message behind it: a successful real estate transaction isn't only about contracts and numbers. Communication, expectations, preparation, courtesy, and understanding what is happening behind the scenes can make the entire experience better for everyone involved. Confession #1: Your Showing Time Really Does Matter To a buyer, scheduling a showing may seem simple. You find a house online, tell your agent you'd like to see it, and a little while later you receive a confirmation. Behind that confirmation, however, several schedules may have needed to align. The buyer has a schedule. The buyer's agent has a schedule. The seller has a schedule. There may be children, pets, work-from-home arrangements, daycare, other appointments, and additional showings immediately before or after yours. The seller may have cleaned the house, packed up the kids, loaded the dog into the car, and rearranged their entire afternoon so you can walk through their home. That's why arriving significantly early, arriving late without communicating, or staying well beyond your scheduled appointment can create problems for everyone else. If you're running late, tell your agent. As Melissa and Sharon discussed, things happen. The problem isn't necessarily being a few minutes late the problem is not communicating when multiple appointments may be scheduled back-to-back. And if you're early? Take a few minutes to explore the neighborhood instead of parking directly in front of the house and waiting for the seller to leave. Drive around. Look at the surrounding homes. See where the nearest stores are. Get a feel for the street. Those extra few minutes can actually help you evaluate something you can't change after closing: the location. Confession #2: A Showing Is Not a Home Inspection Your first showing has an important purpose: Could you see yourself living here? It's your opportunity to understand the floor plan, room sizes, condition, location, yard, overall feel of the property, and whether the house deserves further consideration. It isn't the time to conduct your own two-hour home inspection. You don't need to flush every toilet, test every faucet, open personal drawers, move belongings, or investigate every inch of the seller's home. And yes, this apparently needs to be said: please don't sit on the seller's bed or let the kids jump on it. As Sharon and Melissa joked during the episode, a showing is not a home inspection. Buyers should certainly look carefully at a property, but there is a difference between evaluating whether you're interested in a home and inspecting its systems and components. If you're interested enough to move forward, that's when your agent can help you determine the appropriate next steps. Confession #3: Open Houses Aren't Private Showings An open house is exactly what the name suggests: open. There may be several groups of buyers walking through at once. Someone may be waiting to get into the room you're standing in. Parking may be limited. The agent hosting the open house may be greeting new visitors, answering questions, monitoring the property, and keeping track of who is coming and going. That doesn't mean you should rush. Take the time you reasonably need to see the property. But recognize that an open house is differen