Episode 3 Selecting and Working with a Realtor

In this episode we discuss the importance of choosing the right Realtor and How to find the right Realtor. 

Jeff Cunningham is a Realtor (license # 301547) with United Realty Group (Broker license C34827) serving the Triad NC area.
Jeff can be reached at
Email -  jeff.cunninghamrealtor@gmail.com,
website, jeffcunningham.mysalecore.com,
Facebook,- https://www.facebook.com/jeffcunninghambroker/

Gina Milloway is the Mortgage Loan originator NMLS #1676070 & CEO of Triad Mortgage LLC, NMLS # 2385260,   
Gina can be reached at,
Email:  gmilloway@traidmortgagellc.com
Web: https://www.ginamillowayloans.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/mortgageswithgina/
Office -336-290-1891

NMLS Consumer Access:  https://nmlsconsumeraccess.org/
Privacy Policy:  https://www.ginamillowayloans.com/privacy-policy
Triad Mortgage is an equal housing lender 

Transcript

0:02

All right. Welcome to the podcast. Let's get moving with Jeff and Gina. I am one of your co-hosts Gina. Millway your local mortgage advisor. Well, good morning, Gina. I'm Jeff Cunningham. And, uh, I'm the other half of the show here and I am your local real estate agent here in Greensboro and the triad of North Carolina. Awesome. So it's been an interesting week here in North Carolina, lots of rain. We've broken our drought, I think. Mm. Finally. So we always have interesting weather in this area. You just never know the, the kind of, I think the, the word is you stick around long enough. It'll change. That is absolutely true. I've been here now for about 25, 26, 27 years. And, uh, and that is an absolute true statement. Absolutely. 26, 27 years. So you could be, uh, you might be considered an expert in the area. I would think that yes, I could be considered an expert in the area. Yes. Ma'am seen a bunch. all right. So let's talk about today. Something that I think is really important for people to know, and I think there's a lot of misconceptions miss out there around, and that is. Working with a real estate agent and how to pick one and sticking with one. And I think that's, um, really, really important for both buyers and sellers. Would you agree? Oh, totally. Totally, totally. Um, and, and, and, and yeah, we'll get into a couple of these myths of course, but, uh, but yes, staying with your agent I think, is most important. Um, once you stab once you've establish that relationship and it's a good relat. Um, then yes, absolutely. You stick with that individual and. And again, your relationship will grow over the years, uh, will certainly grow through the months that you're working together, driving together and, and, and working towards the same goal. Yeah, absolutely. I think that's a really important point that you guys are gonna be spending a lot of time together. So I think, think it's a really important to go through the process of finding an agent who really fits with you. So let's kind of go through some of those myths to help people understand what working with an agent, uh, a great experience agent like yourself. It's really all about and something I hear, you know, I think people hear and, and think this out there, it. It's cheaper. It's cheaper to do it myself. Hmm. Yes. And, and, and, and that is one of the big myths that are out there. Um, and truth be told, um, for the years before COVID, um, the real estate agent representing you as a seller was typically netting you about 14 to 16% more. Then, uh, you know, uh, for sale by owner or doing it yourself. Um, so myth number one on the seller side. Yeah, the, uh, uh, the seller's agent will definitely bring you an experienced good seller's agent will definitely bring you more on your return. Um, right. And, and same on the opposite side. Um, when you've got a buyer's agent, you know, folks are saying the same thing, I'm gonna drive down the street, just look around, see, wait till I see you for sales sign. And then I'll call that. and you know, of course, uh, they're. Possibly lacking negotiating skills, maybe don't know the area for whatever reason. And, um, you know, again, experienced agent or someone that's been in the area for 26 or 27 years would certainly be able to help you out and, and maybe steer you in the right direction to, to get the right questions. Asked and answered. Yeah, no. So let's, let's kind of talk about on the buyer side. In, in the it's cheaper myth on the buyer side. Good. Let's tell everybody and explain. And typically now there are always, you know, one off exceptions to this, but typically in a transaction or real estate transaction, how is your commission paid as a buyer's agent? As a buyer's agent, typically, just like you said, in 95 to 99% of the occasions, um, the commission is paid to the buyer's agent through the proceeds, uh, from the seller's side. Yes. Um, and, and that's, you know, we, we don't want to always say that the seller pays the commission. But it's basically that, but the proceeds are coming from the seller side of the process, right. Uh, from the, from the process typically. So, and then that typically happens when the transaction closes correct? At the end of the process. That's correct. That happens at the, at the end of the process. Okay. So you're not paying the buyers are not paying you gas. Money to go so, right. So all that, all that is done on the end when the transaction closes and, and this is one of the reasons that we're gonna talk about why sticking with one is important in a minute, but I wanted to make sure that they understood that because I think there's a myth out there that buyers think that they have to pay you or commit, um, To a payment front. Now there are, of course one-offs in different situations where somebody might have a pre-arranged agreement and that's something that you would know on the front end going into it. Right. There would be communication yes. On a contract. Absolutely. And that we, we call that, uh, you know, agency and, and yes, if, if something like that was required, um, then yes, that would be specified upfront in, in paper. And that would be legal documents. Yes. Perfect. Okay. Cool. So. The next myth I kind of wanna talk about is the buyer's agent and the listing agent are always the same. They're, they're the same thing. Yes, yes. Uh, two totally different entities. Um, I do operate as a buyer's agent sellers agent, and, and I work with investors as well. Um, all agents, or I should say all licensed agents can do such, um, but. Yes. Um, if you're asking, do I handle both sides of a specific transaction? Uh, typically not. Um, that is, um, you know, again, something that happens on an irregular and an infrequent basis where, where I would be representing the seller and. We always get telephone calls when we put the signs out. And you know, the first question we typically ask folks is, do you have an agent? Um, for the reason being the fiduciary responsibilities are a little bit separate between the sellers and the buyers and, uh, and I'll be representing one and it is recommended that. Those that are looking to buy a home. Also have a buyer's agent separate from the seller's agent. Yeah. So let's touch base on that a little bit. So if you let's say you're a seller's agent and you have a listing, so that agent. Has a Fu what we call a judiciary agreement to that seller. So they are working for that seller. So if you mm-hmm, call that agent and you start spilling your guts to them before any mm-hmm any actual legal agreement is in place. Then they can use that information to give to their sellers to help the sellers and the negotiation and same thing for our buyers, uh, agent. And if you have an agreement with a buyer's agent that. Buyer's agent is, has a few judiciary agreement to you, to the buyer mm-hmm and not the seller mm-hmm So if that seller told them anything, then they would be obligated to tell you as the buyer. So correct. That's kind of the separation between buyers and sellers agents now. We do have an agency, um, here in North Carolina that is called dual agency where mm-hmm one agent can act as both, but it can be a little, a little tricky. You gotta be careful. You need a really, you need an experienced agent who correct. Can navigate those waters. Why is that so tricky? Well, uh, the, the, uh, laws, ethics and so forth that we are, uh, bound by here in North Carolina, as, as real estate. Um, just dictate exactly that. Um, if we do have agency with a, uh, client, then we are, you know, again, specified buyer or, uh, or seller and in the cases where we do have dual agency, um, just as you mentioned, my fiduciary responsibility is with, um, you know, the initial, uh, contract, which in most cases is a, um, in most cases is the seller's contract or seller's agency. Um, And what that does again, just like you mentioned, protects the responsibility of the, uh, uh, uh, fiduciary responsibility, um, for them. And the experience that we talked about earlier is, is knowing what to say, what to disclose, what not to say and what not to disclose. Um, it, it is just legal jargon, uh, to be honest with you, um, it can be handled by an experienced. I've had a couple that have been settled this year, um, where I've acted as a, a dual agent and, uh, and a designated dual agent. We can talk about that on a later date as well. It's a little confusing. Um, but for the, for, for, for the time being, um, you know, you just need to make sure that you are clear and transparent, uh, when you are representing a buyer and a seller in the transaction and understanding what it is. Your agent can and cannot say. Right. Um, and, and that's part of the relationship that's part of selecting a good agent is, you know, asking those questions up front, you know, do, do you ha do you have the ability to negotiate a contract both ways mm-hmm and if that's not the case, um, you know, there is a box that you can check in your contract that says, you know, maybe I don't want dual agency to be, uh, or you to be representing dual agency in my transaction. Right. And I think it's important for people to remember it's your choice. Correct. It absolutely is your choice. You need to be aware of your rights up front. And I think the main thing for people is, you know, if you pick up the phone and, and you, and you call an agent, ask the agent, uh, things that don't pertain to you ask, you know, you can ask about the house or you can ask about, um, something else, but don't give your information out there until correct until you guys have that set agency. Mm-hmm, what, whatever the role is going to be for your situation, make sure that is set in place legally, before you start spilling your. correct. And that's what we have in place that we do have a form that's in place, which is called working with real estate agents. Um, that form, um, as you're mentioning before you start spilling your guts, um, it it's best to have this conversation with a realtor and get these forms up and up, out in front of you. Um, Or as soon as you do start spilling your guts, that's typically the sign for a realtor to say, Hey, I need for you to understand that I'm going to either represent you as a buyer, a seller, or I'll represent you in dual agency. And that working with real estate agency guide, um, actually spells out what it is that the responsibility is. Per the transaction that we're looking at. Um, and it's a great form. It, it, it's a good opportunity to have this conversation up front mm-hmm so that, um, you as a buyer or seller know that, uh, you will be protected and, or represented in whichever way that you choose. Right. And I think that's a good point to make, because I, you know, I feel like a lot of times, especially on the buyer side, you. Give them the form working with real estate agents. And it's your responsibility to establish that relationship. And I think that buyers sometimes get a little scared when you start asking them to sign paperwork. But the reality is that there are a lot of things that can be shared. And if they're shared outside of that agency, they can be used against you. So absolutely signing the agency really protects you. And your information in the future negotiations are the transactions that we're gonna. it does. And it's not necessarily required that you sign the document as well. Um, typically this conversation or the form itself is to have this conversation. Um, and again, like, like we talked about earlier, it's, it's very important that you trust and, and have, and be able to have these conversations with your. Otherwise, it's just not gonna be a significant relationship. And, you know, it's not gonna be an enjoyable or as an enjoyable experience. Um, but absolutely working with real estate agents, the form itself, um, again is a great, uh, uh, great topic, you know, of discussion. All right. So this kind of leads me into the, the next subject that I wanna talk about and. How does someone find a great real estate agent? Because you want somebody who's experience who can navigate these waters for you. Transactions can get, you know, tricky. They can, you know, go sideways, unexpected transactions, go sideways. It happens all the time. So you need somebody who can help you navigate that. So, you know, I, I mean an agent, Jeff, how do I, how do I find you? well, there's a, there there's a few different ways to find an agent. Um, for me, um, you, you've got my phone number, of course, and, and anybody else that's listening to us or watching us, you can always find my information down below, um, specified, you know, again, how to get in touch with us. Uh, you'll have a phone number. You can either text or call. Um, but regardless of that, or I should say separate of that. If you have a referral system, uh, you have somebody in your family or somebody, uh, as a friend or co-part or co-partner co-worker um, that may have just done some real estate transaction in the area. Um, referrals are fantastic. Um, You will typically get a honest answer or an honest answer from a friend of yours or your family member. Let's hope mm-hmm that, um, you know, the experience with Jeff was, uh, was just fantastic. We got overing price. We, uh, settled on time. Um, The transaction seemed seamless. I didn't have to ask Jeff 27 questions. Every time something was done, it just got done. Right. Um, those are the types of referrals that we love to have and love to give. Um, of course you'll also get some referrals. You might get some referrals on the other side where, Hey, do not use this individual for whatever reason, though. Somebody may have had a bad experience. Um, they may have just been inexperienced who knows. Um, but I would highly recommend that you do, you know, ask for referrals from your friends, um, family members and, and even lenders like yourself, Gina, you, uh, you, you know, very well mm-hmm um, you know, an experienced agent can make your life a little easier during these transactions. Oh, yes. Um, or it can really make it a, a nightmare if, uh, you know, um, the agent has no clue of what's going on. Absolutely. Absolutely. And that's really important from my side of it. As far as you selecting an agent that is experienced mm-hmm There are so many things, like I said earlier, that that can take different turns. And, you know, even though, well, here's one of my, my, the hardest things that I've had with an agent is one, somebody who hires aunt Susie, because she got her license last summer and she's doing it, you know, occasionally part-time, you know, here and there. Sure. You know, aunt Susie, just trying to make a few extra dollars and we can't blame aunt Susie for that. Right. Right. But the problem with somebody who's part-time or someone who maybe is working another job, a full-time job is being able to get in hold a hold of them and get the items that, I mean, in a timely manner. So on the mortgage side of it, even though I don't typically work at nine to five schedule, a lot of things are done in that nine to five schedule with banks, your underwriters, your, uh, processors, uh, employers, things like that. So. I may need a document. I may figure out that I need it at eight or nine o'clock in the morning. And if I can't get ahold of aunt Susie until six o'clock because she's working at the post office, mm-hmm then we've lost a whole day, essentially on, on my side of it, in my terms. So it's really, really important that. The realtor, um, that you select has great communication skills is responsive, is available to do the things that need to be done. And that that's important on all, anybody who's involved in the transaction, not just the real estate agent, but, um, the lender as well. So those things are very, really, really important to make the transaction go smoothly because. Time lost is time lost. You don't get that back. It is, it is. And setting those expectations as you're mentioning upfront is, is truly key. Um, then that goes back to selecting or, or part of your selection, uh, criteria for, for, for who you will hire as a real estate agent. Um, You know, I, I, I I've been dealing with, and I have dealt with, uh, folks that are outside of, uh, the state. Uh, I've had a, I've had a family move down here from Virginia last year. Um, and this individual worked, um, in a government position and she was working from seven in the morning till seven 30 at night. And the only time we could communicate with each other. I think between 1130 and 12, typically at lunchtime, or we'd have to wait until, you know, after eight o'clock at night. Um, and as an agent and, and, and, you know, as a, as a mortgage broker on your side, um, yeah, I just, they're not typically nine to five, but establishing and knowing that expectation, knowing that guideline or the boundary up front is going to help everybody out. Um, so if we're rushing to close a mortgage, 35 30, 6, 37 days. And knowing that that's gonna be a tight timeline, you know, we must share with our clients that, Hey, if we can't reach you in a certain period of time, we may lose a day or as you mentioned, you know, just some time. Right. Um, and, and, and that can be frustrating. But again, we should be able to overcome that based on conversation upfront and establishing those expectations. Right? Absolutely. So let's talk about, let's talk about personality a little bit. So, you know, unfortunately not everybody likes everybody. And, uh, we spend a lot of time with the clients during this transaction. And I think mm-hmm, for your side, for the realtor side, you spend a great deal more, especially one on one. A lot of times you're meeting clients at the house. You are, you're showing them houses, you are doing setting up inspections. Um, mm-hmm so there's a lot more of that face to face a one-on-one time with the client and getting to know them, getting to know the house that they like. So I think it's really important. um, for personality don't wouldn't you agree? Oh, I agree. Yeah. Oh, absolutely. You've gotta be able to mesh well. Um, you know, and, and, you know, we, we, we just have to be able to communicate during this process. Um, we are, uh, in, in the middle of July right now in 2022, um, we are going to be dealing with some issues where. Um, some folks may have some reluctance to what it is that they just purchased is what I'm hearing now is one of the big, um, uh, big one, one of the big surveys that's going on for people. Uh, typically millennials who have just bought houses, um, that we are somewhere in the 45 to 52, 50 3% of the folks that just purchased a house in the past year or year and a half are truly dissatisfied with what they just bought. Um, recent being the market we were just in was so. Tough and rigorous. And, um, you know, we've got a lot of folks that just ran into a house, looked for 15 minutes and panic buying. some panic buying. Absolutely. Um, and, and now they've been in it for a year. Um, they might not be happy with the maintenance. Uh, they may have just found that there are new items in the home that need to be replaced, that they weren't thinking about as far as an expense, you know, a year or two ago. Which again, an experienced agent should be able to guide you along that, uh, trail and let you know, Hey, two to three years, you may be looking at a new roof. You may be looking at some windows. You may be looking at whatever, um, you know, may be an issue for you coming up. Um, You know, and again, if you get blindsided by that, like we're seeing now in large numbers, you know, um, folks are, are, are looking at putting homes back on the market, um, which, you know, again, great for realtors. Um, but you know, at the same time, um, it can be a little daunting, you know, if you're moving again, you know, within a two, two year period, you know, a full household to move is, you know, not, not the easiest thing to do. It, it, it something that requires a little bit of management. Right? Absolutely. So, so again, coming back. you know, pick the right agent and yeah. You know, do your, you do your due diligence in that and make sure that, uh, the personalities match, you guys are gonna spend so much time together. It's really important. You need to be able to trust your agent, you know, when they tell you something, they're not trying to. Talk you out of a house or talk you into a house, correct. They trying to give you the points of the house. Mm-hmm you know, what you need to look out for and, and, and be honest. And, and I think a good agent would, would tell you the good and the bad, you know, along with it. Well, that's, that's absolutely true. Absolutely true. And that's, that's one of the other myths that I think we should, we should work on busting if we can. Um, at least with Jeff and Jeff's clients, um, you know, uh, I, I have, as you just mentioned, um, Not talk folks out of buying a home, but I've certainly pointed out a couple of issues that would help in making their decision whether or not it would be a good home for them or. Um, and that's what we have to do. And we have to be careful of that. Again, my responsibility is, is the fiduciary on, on whichever side that I'm representing the buyer or, or the seller. And, you know, if, if I, you know, fell short on, you know, Hey, I, I didn't let you know that this, that, or the other thing was, um, you know, again, a potential pitfall. You know, uh, that's something that, uh, again, you need to be able to communicate, right. And, and talk about these things. And, and again, that's, that's, that's part of it. Some folks think that we're just out here for, for money and just out here for the paycheck. And, and that's really not the case. You'll find that in some cases. Um, but that is the necessity of, of having the conversation up front with that agent to find out what it is that you can focus on. And, um, and again, maintain that relationship based. Common agreement, right? Absolutely. So let's talk about a few things. Um, and this is one of my pet peeves as a lender. So when you find that that great agent that you love and you're ready to work with, and you're ready to get started with, and you come to me, you do your preapproval. And then all of a sudden I get like a phone call from another agent saying, Hey, I'm representing, you know, XYZ client. And I'm like, well, I. You know, with this agent and now you're not. So one of my pet peeves is mm-hmm. not. Continuing to work with the same agent jumping from agent to agent. Um, yeah. You know, maybe going and looking at a house and, and, you know, picking up the phone and calling the agent that's on the sign when you've already started working with an agent. And for me, the reason why it's a pet peeve is because as your loan officer, I deal with your financials. I deal with a lot of very sensitive material. Mm-hmm um, not only personal financial information. Such as date of birth, the type of loan that you're doing, your social security number. Um, but the terms of your loan, which are important in your negotiating power. So for me, I'm personally, I'm not gonna work with someone who's jumping from agent to agent. You know, if agent a sends you over to me and then you work with B and C and D I'm not gonna do that because there's too much personal information that can be shared. It's not safe. Right. I don't know who is actually acting as your agent at that point. And I'm not talking about. Let's say, you know, you just have a, a personality conflict with agent a and then you decide to move to B mm-hmm that's okay. Cause that happens. Sure. I'm talking and I've had people do this and I've had to have real conversations with them that they need to stop and then they still didn't stop. So for me, it wasn't a good fit because I don't wanna put myself in a situation where I'm sharing information that doesn't need to be shared or I'm sharing it with a right person. Correct. Um, mm-hmm so what do you, you know, how do you feel about that? oh, absolutely. Uh, totally agree with you. And, and, um, you know, we, we, we, we try again to really keep people out of that frame of mind or, or, you know, frame of thought, um, you know, an individual that I'm gonna be working with again, um, we need to have some level of trust because yes, we are gonna be dealing with some confidential information. Um, and if, you know, you're just willing to share that confidential information. With anybody and everybody, um, well, that's not really confidential anymore, you know? And, um, you know, and at the same time, you know, there has to be a, um, um, Uh, say a level of, you know, responsibility mm-hmm um, you know, we, we are establishing a relationship. Um, and, and, and I, and I'll tell you, I, I don't necessarily work with, you know, everybody. Um, for the reason being, I, I just, you know, my personality might not mesh with somebody else's and we have a five minute conversation and I'm more than happy in all cases. Um, either. Carry on with our relationship or actually refer another agent over to them who, you know, uh, may well, may WESH with may mesh with them a little bit better. Um, you know, I, I, I have, you know, I think 14, 15 other members of my firm that I deal with on a regular basis. Um, so you know, the personalities are you. A to Z. Um, and, and, and, and it's very, very important that you do, right? Like you mentioned, you know, have that relationship and be able to mesh with these folks cuz that information's gonna get shared and, and you would like to be able to trust the information absolutely. Going to the right person. Absolutely. And, and here's, here's another thing that I wanna, I wanna put out there so that people understand, and it just goes back to that first, that first myth about it's cheaper to not to hire an agent. Mm-hmm when you start working with a real estate agent. You, there is a mutual understanding that they're gonna go through this journey with you. And that agent is not getting paid until, until. Transaction closes. So mm-hmm, when you begin the relationship that agent is setting up profiles, you know, to get you home sent you their, their viewing homes, especially in this market where, as a buyers agent, where the inventory is so low, there's. It's, you're almost having to have your, you know, like you're just waiting for that notification that a home is coming on the market, you know, so you're, you're just constantly waiting and, and doing work and putting a lot, a lot, a lot of time into finding this person a home and, and helping them move forward. So mm-hmm, it's not fair to any agent that you talk to. To be jumping around and, and using multiple agents from monetarily speaking. I mean, put, you have to put yourself in that situation. If you are a commission paid, um, employee, how would you feel somebody do that to you? So sure. You know, there's a mutual respect there that needs to happen on both sides. Yes. Mm-hmm Yes. And that's, uh, you know, again, as, as, as we mentioned earlier, having an open land of communication between the two of you, you know, again, your client and your agent, um, you know, there must be clear communication and easy communication going through. Now. It can, it can go in any, any form you really choose, whether it be email. Phone or text. Um, but you know, typically you wanna make sure that you have an open line absolutely. That, uh, that you guys can communicate on. Um, you know, for whatever questions that need to be answered really at whatever time as well. Right. Um, I I've had many calls, you know, after eight or nine o'clock at night, you know, Hey, I forgot where's the water main, you know, or, you know, can you tell me, is that gas, heat, uh, you know, whatever the question might be. That's just what it is. It's it's, again, my fiduciary responsibility is taking care of one of the largest investments you are gonna make in your lifetime. And, um, and I wanna make sure that you get it right. Absolutely. Absolutely. And Jeff does a fantastic job, just so y'all know if you're in the area, you need an agent. Jeff Jeff is all of those things that we have talked about. He's he's he's yes, I am. Thank you. Yes. He's he's always, he communicates, well, we, we constantly text back and forth about transactions. Um, we had several conversations this weekend, you know, so he is absolutely one of those agents that, um, is a hundred percent on. So a highly, obviously highly recommend, uh, Jeff, if you need an agent and. If you're, even if you're not in this area, feel free to reach out to him cuz he does have contacts all over. So, um, you know, even if you're not looking in an area that he serves, he still would be happy to help you guys. So, um, look for that contact information in the link below and um, yeah, I reach out to Jeff if you need an agent absolutely buying or selling or both. Awesome. Gina that's perfect. Thank you very much for doing that. Yeah. Anywhere. Well, I think we've, we've covered about it all. Any last tidbits or did we. I think we've got it pretty much squared away. You know, again, the important the message that we just wanna make sure, uh, that we get across here is that you do communicate with an agent. Um, you know, again, it's gonna be a much better experience for you. It's gonna be a much cleaner experience for you. Absolutely. So you go ahead and, and have a relationship established with the, with a trusted profess. And, um, you know, and, and move along and, and, and close this transaction with the same relationship and intact. Yes. Um, at the end. So yes, less hassle, smoother, easier process. That is what I think, everybody in this transaction. Looks for smoother, easier. easier. Yeah. The way the world has been going now. Yes, we need, we need smooth and, and, and controlled as, as much as we can right now. Yes, yes. To the finish line. Absolutely. So, all right. Well, I think that about covers us today. Uh, we'll see you back in about another week for another episode till then. Thank you guys for sticking with us and we'll see you next time. Thanks Gina.