Shopping for Houses Isn’t Like Shopping at Nordstrom’s

February 13, 2007

nordstrom.jpgStanding at my open house the other day, I decided to make a study of how buyers shop for their dream homes. To each person or couple entering the condo open house I was hosting, I said, “Are you looking to buy a house today?” Some laughed, grabbed the flyer I was holding and marched past me; others giggled, replied yes and with those, I held conversations; and then there were those who said, “We’re just looking!” hoping their reply would be enough to make me go away. But standing in front of the door I had no where to go.

So I asked, “Do you have an agent?”

“No! We don’t need an agent yet.”

“Well okay, then tell me what are you looking for? Maybe I can help you find it.”

“We’ll know when we see it.”

“Well build me your dream home.”

“Really, we’re just looking. Would you mind if we just had a look?”

Receiving similar replies such as these from “lookers,” it finally dawned on me that either buyers have become so jaded by the agents jumping on them at open houses or they think that going to an open house is just like shopping for clothes at a department store.

When I go shopping, I don’t like to be bothered, unless of course I can’t find anything or want to make my purchase NOW! I race through shopping malls swatting sales people away until I really need them. And I get the feeling that that’s what most buyers are doing when they go to open houses. They drop by each property hoping they won’t have to talk to an agent. But what, I wonder do buyers do when they find their dream house? Ask the listing agent holding the open house to double end the deal? Ask the agent holding the open house for the listing agent to represent their offer? Would you go to just any doctor and ask him to do surgery on your heart? I encourage you as a buyer to consider that maybe at the moment you find your dream house, that that isn’t the best time to need an agent.

Here’s the deal – shopping for houses or condos isn’t like shopping at Nordies! Buying property is – as we all know – a really big deal. There’s big bucks – especially here in Silicon Valley – at stake. When people buy houses, they get emotional; their transactions require facilitation; and it requires an expert – someone you are comfortable with and trust – to make sense out of the mounds of paper work necessary to negotiate and close a deal.

Are you one of “those” buyers who are waiting to find the perfect agent at just the right moment? You’re just out there on Saturdays and Sundays looking at property – without an agent – and thinking you’ll find the agent when you find the property! If so… reboot your search. In the market we’re in here on the Peninsula between San Francisco and San Jose or anywhere for that matter, you want an agent working for you from day one. When you find that property, you may only have two – three days to receive disclosure documents, review and understand them, as well as be prepared to get in the ballgame of multiple offers. So instead of swatting agents away at the door of their open houses, start interviewing them next Saturday and Sunday. Use the web they are trying to catch you in as an opportunity to interview them. You don’t have to keep them. But get a sense for how they will serve and work with you if they were your agent. How can they make your search easier? Ask them about the real estate company they work for? What do they know about the market in which they work? What your goal is, is to find an agent who is going to go to bat for you; someone who has YOUR best interests at heart; someone who is going to be in your real estate life for life. Your agent needs to be a negotiator; familiar with contracts; and most of all they need to understand your wants and needs because as your agent it’s all about you and getting you what you want at the best possible price.

So the next time you’re at an open house, interview the agent guarding the door and find out if that agent is right for you. That way when you find your dream house, you’ll be poised and ready to make an offer that gets you exactly what you want.

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Written by Ana Hays, Realtor, Alain Pinel Realtors · Filed Under Choosing an agent, For buyers, Open houses, Real estate 

Comments

9 Responses to “Shopping for Houses Isn’t Like Shopping at Nordstrom’s”

  1. Greg Swann on February 13th, 2007 7:38 pm

    Bravo, Ana! This is a great post. Won’t do any good, alas, but great nonetheless.

  2. Bernie Ryan on February 14th, 2007 9:02 am

    Ana, I agree wholeheartedly — a good relationship with a realtor is a big plus. We had a realtor who had been involved in the buying and/or selling of homes of four separate family members, so we really trust her. When we put a bid on a house we LOVED and it was rejected, we were so disappointed. Afterwards, nothing we saw impressed us. About one month later, our realtor took the initiative to check out what the house had sold for. As it turns out, it was still on the market! The original bidder was not able to sell their house first. Our realtor called us, we put in another bid that day and we now live in a wonderful home that’s perfect for us. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her great work. In fact, now we have her looking for a retirement condo for my dad. I like your blog - very informative - keep up the good work!

  3. Lenore Wilkas on February 14th, 2007 9:39 pm

    Ana, having held many condos open with few coming through it’s easy to get visitors to chat, but when there are groups and groups coming through, try and talk to any one of them! Ha, just as you get to a good point in the conversation, you’re interrupted. But, isn’t that life on our Peninsula? We have a unique market where a buyer must be prepared for battle. What bubble? Not here. Not until we have a reasonable supply of housing. Not.

  4. Real Central VA - Tracking the Charlottesville and Central VA real estate market and more » Shopping for an agent and more on February 15th, 2007 5:23 pm

    [...] Shopping for houses isn’t like shopping at Nordstrom’s [...]

  5. Christian Sterner on February 16th, 2007 11:14 am

    Great way of thinking presented here. I’ll remember this one.

  6. Bruce Whitson on February 20th, 2007 3:37 pm

    Nice discussion Ana and so true! Advice for the Silicon Valley home buyer: Buying a home is a “process” especially here on the Peninsula. You need to know what you want, where you want to live and how much you can spend? A Realtor is best qualified to guide you through the process of answering those questions. Once the questions are answered be ready to jump in with both feet otherwise you will always be chasing a price point and always asking why you never can get the house you want?

  7. Phoenix Arizona Real Estate - Dalton’s Arizona Homes Blog » Blog Archive » Consumer Oriented Carnival of Real Estate on February 21st, 2007 6:31 am

    [...] Anna Hays, a new contributor to 3 Oceans Real Estate, let home buyers know that Buying a Home Isn’t Like Shopping at Nordstroms. [...]

  8. erin on February 21st, 2007 6:42 pm

    I found your post via the Carnival of Real Estate - your insights are right on target. We’re a nation of browsers, especially with the Internet making home searching more of a leisure activity than it used to be.

  9. Jeff Brown on February 22nd, 2007 10:17 am

    Anna - Very well put. Seems we think alike.

    http://www.bawldguy.com/2006/10/13/is-your-real-estate-investment-broker-like-a-nordstroms-sales-guy/

    You wonder sometimes just what folks would have purchased had they followed your advice instead of treating real estate like buying shoes at Nordie’s?

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