How to Treat Your Boston Real Estate Buyers Agent? Use The Golden Rule

Boston Real Estate buyers come to Boston from all over the world.  The rules change almost everywhere you go. For instance in many European and Middle Eastern countries they often do not use brokers at all, buyers preferring to work directly with the seller. Commissions for agents are as low as 1 percent while in Boston its 5 percent.  They do not seem to think much of their agents and I have to believe that the agents are sparsely educated.

Here in Boston our brokers are well educated and carefully licensed with continuing education and mandatory ethics classes. The dichotomy we have set up between Buyers Agents and Sellers Agents was set up to protect the consumer. Its a checks and balances kind of regulation that keeps both sides honest.


Here are some things to keep in mind when working with a Buyers Agent:

First, if you are coming from out of town and want to get a Boston Buyers Agent to help you please remember that the Buyers Agent could spend a full work week  helping you and not get paid a penny.  Agents here do not get paid unless there is a transaction. There are no salaries for real estate agents. So if after 2 weeks of having your buyers agent set up showings you change your mind, the agent just lost 2 weeks of his time and made no money. As a Buyers Agent I have established some rules that buyers must adhere to or I will not even leave the office.

1. My first question to a buyer who has contacted me is: "Is this a discretionary purchase? Are they just thinking that it would be nice to have a place in Boston, especially if they have children in school here and plan to visit often? Or maybe they live in a rural area and think it would be nice to have a second home to visit the city. If the answer is yes, I get off the phone as soon as possible and continue looking for buyers who NEED TO BUY. You see, I have been doing this since 2002 and believe me buyers just do not buy an expensive condo in an expensive city that they do not NEED. By the time they figure that out and despite their good intentions, the Buyers Agent has lost several days or weeks.

Then the Buyers Agent hears: "Never mind, we will just use hotels when we visit".

2. Once its established you are really looking for a home and I start showing properties, I expect my buyers to show loyalty to our gentlemans agreement. This simply means that if you go into an open house or a FSBO (for sale by owner) without me for some reason you sign in with my name so the Listing Agent knows you are being represented by me and they will refrain from trying to sell you some real estate. I do not use Buyers Agency written agreements. I am looking to my buyer to practice the Golden Rule. If my buyer is going to lie to me the piece of paper is not going to help anyone and who is going to sue? Not me.

3. Plan ahead. All showings in the city involve 2 brokers, the Listing Agent has to be there also. So if you have a list of MLS numbers you would like to see, give the agents 48 hours to set them up for you. Arrangements have to be made with tenants. Just setting up the showings for 15 properties will kill a good part of a Buyers Agent day on the phone.