Most people hire their Realtor because they know how to write a contract, spot hidden issues in home, market properties beautifully, and negotiate with other parties. They provide quality advice (if you hire the right one) and sometimes even a shoulder to cry on if things go unexpectedly awry!
But when you’re thinking about who to hire or how to best utilize your Realtor, there’s one big role Realtors can serve that a lot of people don’t think of: your agent’s professional network.
First, let’s clear something up.
If your Realtor recommends a Lender, it’s not for any other reason than they think that Lender is a good choice. Under the Real Estate Settlement Protection Act (RESPA) t’s actually illegal for agents to receive kickbacks from mortgage professionals.
And while Lenders aren’t the only professionals your Realtor might recommend (stagers, painters, contractors, plumbers, electricians, the list goes on..), we really only do this because we want the best outcome for our buyers or sellers. Think about it: a smooth process for you means a smooth process for everyone.
And odds are, if you’ve done your research before selecting your Realtor, they’re well connected and experienced to know who’s well priced, reliable, and efficient, no matter the service in question.
The beauty of a team.
Working with a team like us doubles both the experience we have to determine who is the right fit for the job, and doubles the resources you have on hand when things come up. Trust us, from cheap contractors whose work implodes 5 months after closing to Lenders who routinely miss closing dates, we’ve seen it all. And knowing who to trust through what is one of the most complicated and often stressful transactions you’ll go through in your lifetime can make or break not only the deal itself, but the stability of your mental state!
All this said, do your own research.
We can provide you all the names you want, but you should always make a few calls first before settling, even for something simple like a plumbing fix or a painter. We trust the people we recommend, but these decisions are important and you should never take anyone’s word (no, not even ours!) as gospel, particularly when large sums of money are involved.
Particularly in the case of Lenders, Attorneys, or other professionals who you will spend a lot of time interacting with, often through tricky and confusing processes, it’s important to find a personality fit as much as it is a financial fit. And we may have very different outlooks on personality and communication styles.
The bottom line?
We recommend because we mean it. Not because we benefit, and not because it was the first person that popped into our head. Trust us, we want things to run efficiently just like you do. So recommending someone just because they’re a family member or it might benefit us down the line would probably just do more harm than good – for all parties involved.
