The One Without an Agent

You know those little boats people ride around in in Venice? Gondolas? You go for a ride on them, but there’s a guy who’s job it is to row and to keep you from falling in or hitting your head on the footbridges that you glide underneath. Could you ride in the gondola alone on your trip to Italy? You probably physically could, but why would you? Would you risk falling overboard or a severe concussion? Probably not. The same goes for using a Realtor to buy a house. You CAN buy a house alone, but it’s like riding one of those boats blindfolded like in the movie Birdbox. Here’s what I’d like to discuss:

The other day I listed a home in Castle Shannon. I had 2 offers within hours, and 5 overall within 48 hours. About 3 days after listing, the Realtor.com inquiries started rolling in. 3 of them. By the time they saw the listing I had already sold it. This goes for all the national websites. If you want a fighting shot at getting a house you better have a REALTOR telling you about it the moment it’s posted online, and in many cases your Realtor knows about houses BEFORE they are listed. In a crazy market like this you don’t stand a chance without an agent working FOR YOU.

Two days ago in one of my Facebook groups a woman was talking about being stunned and upset that her taxes were about to double because her current assessment was being appealed by the school district, as often happens when someone buys a house that’s worth much more than what the Allegheny County assessment has recorded. Realtors are supposed to warn their buyers about this potential outcome, especially if the old assessment is really far below the new value. I, along with other agents, saw this post and all wondered the same thing. WHY in the world hadn’t this woman’s agent warned her?? If it’s doubling, that means it was a VAST change in value and would certainly be appealed by the school district. Guess what her answer was? She bought the house without a Realtor. She’s angry at the mortgage company for not warning her, but that’s not the mortgage company’s job. They aren’t in the know about that sort of thing. REALTORS ARE. That’s an expensive mistake. Since hiring a Realtor is FREE, it’s a doubly expensive mistake.

If you are trying to buy a house, HIRE A REALTOR. There’s no cost to you, and they work for YOU with only your best interest at heart both ethically and legally.

Don’t fall off the gondola. Ask for help. 412-818-4734 or email me at wendyweaver@howardhanna.com.

I can set you up in a RealScout account which shows you new listings in real time. All you have to do is ask me to.

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