Why to Work With a Realtor when Buying Real Estate in Park City

Protect Yourself and Work With Your Own Buyer's Agent! 

A brief explanation of why you work with a buyer's agent when buying real estate in Park City: When you call the number on the listing sign in front of the house, you call the real estate agent representing the Seller. Their job is to sell their client's houses for the highest price possible. Therefore, when buying a house, it is in your best interest to find a local Park City Realtor who will represent you and your interests exclusively.

Misconception 1: A buyer's agent costs me money. 

Reality:  Buyer representation is already agreed on by the selling brokerage. The Seller agrees with the listing brokerage to pay a total commission. When the Seller's agent enters the property in the MLS, the Seller has already agreed to cooperate with any Realtor working with a buyer. The buyer's agent brokerage is paid a portion of the total commission agreed on between the Seller and the Seller's Realtor/brokerage.  

A strong buyer's agent can negotiate better terms to save you money. They will also be able to reduce other risks by linking you with the right professionals to hire. For example, a Park City REALTOR®, such as myself, will have connections to the top inspectors, builders, remodel contractors, and designers to help save you time and money.

Misconception 2:  I will save money if I do the legwork myself.

Reality: If you were to call each Seller's agent for them to show you the home, you would have to work around their timeline. A buyer's agent can coordinate multiple showings in a shorter period on your timeline. You will also not save any money using this method because the total commission has already been agreed to be paid to the Seller's brokerage by the Seller. At closing, the commissions go from broker to broker, and then the agents get paid their commission. 

You don't gain anything from setting up your showings. So what does the Seller's agent gain? The double commission while upholding their fiduciary responsibility to the Seller and providing you without any representation. 

I work with some very high-end clients, and they don't pay me to open a door and write up an offer 15% above the list price. Instead, they choose to work with me because I help buyers find the right location, views, and floorplan in the shortest amount of time, which could allow them additional years of living life on vacation and enjoying quality time with their families. 

I don't have one style of negation because every situation is different. The clients I work with typically run powerful companies that hire people daily. They know how to negotiate large transactions, so I often ask the buyer how they would prefer me to negotiate throughout the buying process. For example, they may want me to get to the bottom line quickly, or buyers may prefer we take time and grind our way to the best deal possible. 

Sellers hire me because I don't price their homes under or at market value to get them sold quickly. Instead, I price homes at true market value, which takes a little extra time and puts more money in their pockets. In addition, I use technology no one else in our market uses to push listings to potential buyers, capture their information and follow up. As a result, we've been getting excellent results since I implemented this technology in 2015. 

Misconception 3: All the information I want is on Zillow and Trulia. Why would I want a buyer's agent?

Reality: Yes, information is abundant on the internet; however, when you are about to make one of the largest investments of your life, you need more than information. You need knowledge. A local Realtor should be able to tell you what areas of town are moving quickly, where might be the best fit for what you're looking for in a location, provide you true comparable properties, recommend negotiation strategies, and recommend a price point to submit your offer based on recent data.  

Once a property is under contract, a buyer's agent will suggest lenders, inspectors, and title companies. A good buyer's agent will get you from contract through escrow seamlessly while watching contract details and timelines and keeping your earnest money safe. Another drawback of large online real estate websites is their outdated listings. They can be as much out of date for up to 4 months. So, a home you might have fallen in love with online may have been sold three months previously. My website is updated every 15 minutes directly from the Park City MLS to avoid these problems.  

The Importance of Using a Local Park City REALTOR®

All the agents on the Real Estate in Park City team are established local agents. This is important because using an agent specializing in the greater Park City area is crucial in any transaction, especially in New Construction. In addition, it never hurts to ask where an agent had their last five transactions. 

We will help you find a great home builder or a development that fits your needs. We have many vendors and home builders in our network. Unfortunately, many new construction developments in the greater Park City area are not yet on the market. An example of this could be builders only building spec homes and bringing them to market after they are built.

The greater Park City area is its community within Utah. Using a well-connected agent can grant you access to properties months before the general public. A local agent will also be able to match you up to a community you might overlook if you were searching independently. At Real Estate in Park City, we approach buyers to look at all options. We then cut back the fluff to find the exact property that meets their needs.

Negotiating With the Builder or Builder's Agent for New Construction

In a New Construction community, the builder's agent represents the builder's interest. Therefore, we advise having your advocate with your best interest in mind. That is why you should use an agent when purchasing a home from a builder.

At Real Estate in Park City, we ensure the builder follows the contract and gets you all the homes you agreed to purchase. We review and negotiate all contracts to benefit you, not the builder. Builders typically have their custom contracts written by their attorneys, and we are versed in protecting the buyer in the buying and building process.