The process of buying and selling real estate is very stressful for clients for whom it is at the same time one of the most beautiful and difficult periods in life, given that the burden of responsibility for this type of work is difficult for many to bear
In addition to constantly questioning whether they have made the right decision regarding the price or choice of real estate, buyers and sellers are also afraid of the outcome of the business in the legal sense and often repeat: “I just want everything to be clean, not to have any problems …”
This sentence is a concentrate of all fears, anxieties, warnings, bad stories, but also plans, dreams, great desires… It doesn’t matter what kind of mediator it is addressed to, because not all agents and agencies are the same.
Who to contact for real estate brokerage without any problems? This question is only a part of the nightmare, which a large number of people go through who decide to buy or sell an apartment, house, plot….
The easiest way is for those who can get a recommendation from people close to them. Such clients are more relaxed from the beginning of the cooperation because they perceive the agent as a person they can trust. It is harder for those who are not that lucky, and they are often confused by numerous pieces of information, some of which are placed in such a way that they look more like fairy tales than instructions on how to safely go through the demanding process of buying and selling real estate.
One of such stories is the one about the so-called online agent.
What is an online agent and how does it differ from one who works in a classic real estate agency? Which is better?
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Let’s start from the beginning!
And in the beginning, it was… CLIENT! Without it, there are no sales, no purchases, no commissions. Do we know what our clients’ biggest wish is? Some we know, and some you didn’t understand well because you offer them everything except what they need most, and that is a SENSE OF SECURITY!
What does the so-called online agent?
He says he does his job exclusively from the office. He does not go to the reception of the apartment, nor to the fields, he does not have direct contact with clients because he communicates with them via e-mail, SMS, or phone. All the necessary information is on the site, so how do you manage it.
The seller fills out the form, sends the scanned documentation, waits for the team to record the apartment, and sets dates for viewing. And potential buyers come to see the apartment exclusively alone, without an agent, to get to know the seller.
They came to the information about the apartment by searching on the site of an online intermediary, which looks like a candy store. Everything is so beautiful, colorful, the apartments are perfect, clean, whitewashed, washed, incredibly lit… unreal.
And while buyers in the field compare fantastic images from the site with the real condition of the property, the agent sits in the office during that time (if his working hours have not passed) and waits for a call, SMS or e-mail to “mediate”.
How does a PROFESSIONAL agent from a classic agency do all this?
First of all, PROFESSIONAL agents often reach clients through a recommendation or by arranging a cooperation agreement after a scheduled meeting and conversation in the agency. In the case of a sale, the agent goes to the reception of the apartment at the agreed time, which means reviewing the entire documentation and talking to the seller.
A professional knows the answers to all questions, and there are always many of them, starting from the price of the property, through doubts related to the course of work, to plans to buying after the sale. In addition to the mandatory signing of the Brokerage Agreement, two things are crucial at this stage of the sale:
Absolute knowledge of the work that allows a PROFESSIONAL CLASSIC agent to help the client understand the complex process of buying and selling, and
A direct, soothing way to talk to a salesperson who thus meets an agent he will be able to rely on at all times until the job is done
The result of this meeting is the foundation of something very important, and that is the SENSE OF SECURITY that the client acquires because he trusts the chosen mediator!
If it is necessary to supplement the documentation in any sense, the agent will draw the seller’s attention to that, provided that the mediator’s lawyer can be involved in this process.
Of course, the agent will take photos, and often a video or display will be taken that allows a virtual “walk” through the property. The fact is that this segment of the classic agency needs to be improved since the quality of their advertising on the portals is not uniform.
Only an agent who has a lot of knowledge (theoretical and practical) and experience in working in the field, can provide quality information to the client.
Each purchase has its own specifics and represents a valuable experience for the intermediary, regardless of the years spent in the business. Real estate brokerage is actually working with people, and that is a big challenge for any agent.
He must be available to clients, correct to colleagues, accurate and precise in contact with notaries, tax administration, utilities (EDB…), and all this is achieved by constant work, NOT sitting in the office and corresponding with clients, but by the presence in the field, by direct participation in each segment of sales.
Real estate presentation is part of the job of any classic agent. In agreement with the clients, he schedules the viewing and transmits all the necessary information to the customer. The seller does not participate in the presentation, nor does he have to attend it, if he agrees with his agent.
The presence of a classic agent in the field, represents a kind of security for both parties, given that buyers sign statements about looking at the apartments and that the agent met the seller when receiving the property.
An experienced mediator, already at the first conversation with a potential buyer, can conclude whether scheduling to see an apartment makes sense at all. If through the conversation, the buyer realizes that the property does not suit him, the question usually follows: “Can you offer me something similar?”
The difference in the answers of a classic and an online agent is huge.
Classic real estate agencies usually cooperate with each other and are able to offer the buyer a suitable property, regardless of which agency is selling it.
An online agent can only offer real estate from his database because he does not cooperate with other intermediaries. This prevents him from devoting himself to working with buyers, in terms of compiling the best offer for clients seeking help to buy an apartment.
So, a classic agent can be hired by both sellers and buyers, unlike an online agent who is actually dedicated to selling only those properties that he has to offer, while he practically does not deal with buyers who are looking for a property outside of it.
After a longer or shorter period of looking around and thinking, buyers can decide which property suits them best. Clients then enter the next important phase of the business, in which they must not be left to chance, and that is negotiations!
Experience shows that it is best to make an offer through an intermediary because a direct conversation about the price between clients can bring more harm than good. Each side is in that situation, clinging to its position, the conversation can turn into a misunderstanding and such an outcome does not bring anything good to anyone.
Therefore, negotiations should be led by an experienced, classic agent, who is able to indirect contact, calm down, and properly advise clients who are then often nervous, indecisive, or scared.
After the agreement on the price and the payment deadline, an appointment is made for the preparation of a pre-agreement or a purchase agreement. It is an opportunity for clients to meet again, this time in “neutral territory”, in the mediator’s office, and to listen to the agency’s lawyer in a more relaxed atmosphere, who has been entrusted with the legal part of the job. It is a precious time, in which all ambiguities should be clarified, all fears calmed down and the next steps clearly presented.
This is followed by solemnization (verification) of the pre-agreement or contract, and if necessary – verification of the pledge statement (if it is a loan), possible powers of attorney, consent, etc. All the time, the classic agent is with his clients and as the business progresses, his direct presence is becoming more and more valuable.
This type of support and communication does not exist with the so-called online agent.
He needs to send an email, text message, or call him by phone. He does not follow clients, but “tele directs” them from lawyers, through notaries, to the bank.
Of course, the classic agent is with his clients on payment, as well as on the handover of real estate, which means that he participates in the purchase process from start to finish, and for him, the end of work is the moment when he hands clients documentation on translated electricity, regulated taxes. , what an online agent doesn’t do at all…
CONCLUSION:
The vital job of buying and selling real estate should be entrusted exclusively to a PROFESSIONAL, who works in a classic real estate agency.
Dear clients, be sure to check on the website of the Ministry of Trade, Tourism, and Telecommunications, whether the agency you hired is among the registered intermediaries and whether the agent who works with you is registered.
You should know that the Assembly of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce has adopted the Code of Business Ethics of Real Estate Brokers and Leasing, which determines the basic ethical principles and norms of professional conduct of intermediaries.
The general principles prescribed by the Code are the principle of responsibility, truthfulness, transparency, ethics, acting in good faith, as well as the principle of respecting good business practices towards clients, business environment, own employees, and other intermediaries.
At present, the Code has been adopted by 160 agencies that make up the group of intermediaries at the SCC. They employ 40% of agents who deal with mediation on the territory of Serbia, thus covering 60-70% of the market.
The application of the code of ethics will enable clients to receive an even higher level of protection from the intermediaries who have accepted it compared to the previous one.
And so, don’t take any chances! Buying and selling real estate is not a game of chance! Let your choice be a CLASSIC MEDIATOR, a PROFESSIONAL who loves his job is constantly educated, and has your priority, but also his – SECURITY!
Continued: The biggest dilemmas in buying and selling real estate – Part One
Continued: The biggest dilemmas in buying and selling real estate – Part Two
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