You Need a Good Buyer’s Agent
A True Story
Several years ago I was representing a client buying a home in Westlake Hills (a small community in West Austin). I visited the town hall to review some paperwork on the property. We were only 2 weeks away from closing. During a casual conversation one of the town hall workers shouted out, “Just don’t forget the owner of that property owes me 260 inches of trees.” I stopped cold and said, "What?" At that point I learned the current property owner had cleared 260 inches of trees from the property (something we’d not been told). A Westlake Hills ordinance says you can cut trees down but, to protect the “look” of the neighborhood, those trees must be replaced. That’s a lot of trees to replace if each was 3-4 inches in diameter. Because of my discovery, the seller had to resolve the problem with the town before selling, but just as easily, if I had not caught this, my buyer would have inherited this (expensive) problem.
Bottom line: Caveat emptor. Let the buyer beware.
Why Choose Steve Dalbey
For most families, choosing a new home is the biggest financial decision they will ever make. There are many complicated decisions necessary and considerable hard work is required to ensure the purchase transaction goes smoothly. To protect your interests and help ensure that you make the best possible decisions, it is important to have someone on your side that is knowledgeable in the local real estate market.
As your real estate agent, my focus will be on finding your dream home and then negotiating to help you buy it with the least problems and the best possible price.
Once we have talked and I understand what you are looking for, often I can take you directly to 2-3 homes that are near perfect fits for you. This is because I visit personally somewhere between 40 and 60 new listings each week. More than just reading about them on a computer as most agents do, I visit them. I know the market.
When we have found the right home for you, together we will develop an offer price and a negotiating plan. I will analyze the market and recommend an offering price to you. If you agree, I will present your offer to the seller and negotiate on your behalf to buy the house at the lowest possible price. Negotiating is a strength of mine. In the last year, I helped one client buy a $1.6 million home for $925,000 and another client buy a $1.1 million home for $905,000.
Once we are under contract, my work really begins. Here, my attention to detail can help you considerably. I will help you with home inspections, survey, appraisals, the title search, the closing and other important steps along the way. In short, I will be with you the entire way offering guidance and counsel. There is considerable paper work necessary in this process. I am knowledgeable about contracts and will be there to help you with this also.
Important Tip: In Texas, for a modest, non-refundable fee, you can negotiate some extra peace of mind by making an option period a part of your contract for purchase. This is a period of time (often 7-10 days) when you can get out of the contract for any reason. During this time period you will conduct home inspections and do other due diligence. But, regardless, you can still terminate the contract at any time, for any reason. While this option period is not a mandatory part of Texas real estate contracts, I nearly always recommend it.
And…My Services are Free to You
As you may know, the seller pays all real estate commissions in Texas, so, as a buyer, it costs you nothing to work with me. I am compensated by the seller.
Looking to Buy? Contact me Today.
E-mail me at steve@stevedalbey.com or call me at my office in Austin at 512-480-0848.
I look forward to talking with you.