After five years of sizzling growth, U.S. home price appreciation is showing signs of cooling.

Pending home sales — a leading market indicator — are down from a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors.  In many of the nation's hottest markets, brokers also are reporting a growing gap between sellers' asking prices and what purchasers are willing to pay.

For prospective home buyers, the market shift provides a chance to remaster an old negotiating tactic: the art of the lowball offer.  Strategies for securing a below-market price vary by locality. In any region, however, experts say bargain-hunting buyers can close favorable deals by applying a few basic principles, and by always using an Exclusive Buyer's Broker to help them negotiate the best possible price.

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When someone decides it is time to sell their home, they interview several Realtors from different companies to determine which one is best for them. They want someone who will represent them and someone they feel will do an effective job at marketing their home.

However, when someone decides to buy a home, they usually end up with their Realtor through sheer accident. Why don’t homebuyers search for a Realtor the same way that homesellers do?

Instead, homebuyers usually end up with a Realtor as a result of answering an advertisement. The advertisement will give a brief summary of a home available for sale along with the price, but it says nothing at all about the Realtor. 

So…does it really make a difference?

Listing Agents and Selling Agents

You see, there are two "sides" to every sale.  The listing side and the selling side.  Most deals have an agent representing each side, so there are generally two agents involved   The seller's side is represented by the listing agent.  The buyer's side is represented by the selling agent (sometimes known as the buyer's agent).

Agents can deal with both buyers and sellers, but the majority tend to focus their efforts on one or the other.  Some even exclusively handle either buyers or sellers.

So what should you do?

We simply recommend that you take as much care to hire a real estate agent as you would for any other professional.   Ask questions.  Ask about education, experience, and focus.

After all, buying your next house is probably the biggest purchase you've ever made in your life.  Does it make more sense to find your agent by accident…or by design?  Look for an agent who will represent ONLY your best interest in the transaction!

Buy when times are hard. Buy when blood is running in the streets. Buy after a flood, blizzard, riot. During such times, insurance firms and banks have properties they don't want. Owners are also desperate, as they suffer the anxieties of having to feed a white elephant.

Winter and summer are real estate's dead seasons.  Check the units in the spring or fall. At the start of winter or summer, bid on what is left.  In the summer, sellers who don't have their houses sold by June start worrying if they'll be out in time for their children to change schools.  In the northern states, November and December are panic times for sellers, especially if the house is vacant.  Thoughts of heating bills and water problems loom large.  Any buyer looks good at that time of the year.  During the winter, sellers tend to price their properties more realistically because there are fewer buyers.  Because there will be less demand for mortgage money during this time, affordable mortgages may be easier to get.

Try to find a motivated seller, someone who wants to sell for such compelling reasons as divorce, death, a job change, or old age.  Brokers generally aren't too candid about the seller's motivations.  And, as agent to the seller, the broker doesn't have to reveal these motivations if that is what the seller wants.  However, you should get a sense of the seller's desperation by his reaction to your first offer.

In some states, in the eyes of the law, the broker represents the seller until a purchase agreement has been signed.  At that time, the broker is also obligated to act as the buyer's agent. Even though the law is changing in this regard, question whether your broker can truly serve two masters, since he has a financial interest in representing the seller's position.  That is UNLESS you have hired your own Buyer Broker to represent YOUR best interest in the transaction.

Exclusive Buyer's Agents never take listings and never represent sellers! They always represent buyers only and never practice dual agency. All other so-called "Buyer's Agents" have listings to sell you! As a homebuyer, you have a choice!

Ordinary listing and selling agents represent the seller. This means they must legally negotiate in favor of the seller and put the seller's interests first. Their objective is to SELL YOU a house.

Buyer's Agents, on the other hand, are advocates of the buyer. Only a Buyer's Agent can legally put the buyer's interest first and negotiate in favor of the buyer for a lower price and better terms.

Learn more about Buyer Agency…