It is something that we get asked quite a lot - REMAX of Santa Clarita and REMAX of Valencia has quite a presence - when you couple that with our Branding and our reputation amongst the Law Enforcement communities - The Paris911 Team rises above the crowd as that giant red, white and blue balloon that is also above the crowd.
We have represented several teams of officers, deputies and highway patrol officers that have put together several talented people that have a "Normal" day job, but are interested in flipping homes. With flipping homes, when we do it as often as these teams we have relations with, we do give huge breaks in the amount that we charge them. Which is only the right thing to do, when we are listing 5 or 6 homes a month with these groups - paying us our full end is not the way we do things.
Are we worth it? Absolutely, every single time, these flippers have seen it, they have experienced first hand, how the transaction might have gone without The Paris911 Team’s representation. Furthermore, they know how we have had lawsuits come out Lilly white after a buyer tried to see how deep our pockets were - Nonsensical - But the way things go when you have people involved, humans without code.
Real estate investors who flip houses often try to trim costs and boost profits by handling everything themselves. After all, if you can buy directly from the homeowners and sell the home yourself, you can probably save at about 10 percent on real estate commissions alone (a few percent if the sellers agree to share their savings with you and six to seven percent when you sell).
Cutting out the middleman may make sense sometimes, but when you’re investing in real estate, cutting costs by forgoing the services of real estate professional is usually penny wise and pound foolish, especially for the novice investor. By doing so, you expose yourself to more risk, limit your opportunities, and may even decrease your profits.
What You Stand to Gain by Teaming up with an Agent
Investors who think they are saving loads of money by not using an agent usually haven’t done the math or considered the following benefits an agent offers:
• An agent can put you in touch with a reputable mortgage broker who can help you secure low-cost financing for your investments.
• An agent can help you find and evaluate investment opportunities.
• A buyer’s agent can help you negotiate a lower price and better terms when buying the home directly from the owners.
• A listing agent can help you sell your home for more money and in about half the time, on average, as you can sell it yourself. (When you consider that holding costs are about $100 per day, every month your investment property is on the market costs you $3,000.)
• An agent can protect your back by making sure you do not overpay for a property and by helping you avoid the most common pitfalls of buying and selling real estate.
• When the time comes to close on the purchase or sale of a property, your agent can help you navigate the closing to ensure that it proceeds smoothly.
• An agent can help you determine which repairs and renovations will deliver the highest return on your investment dollar.
• An experienced agent keeps his or her finger on the pulse of the market and can help you deal with market fluctuations.
• An agent can refer you to contractors and subcontractors who do quality work for reasonable rates.
• An agent who knows about real estate and mortgage fraud can help you avoid becoming the next victim of or unwitting accomplice to fraud.
Choosing an Agent with the Right Stuff
All real estate agents are not created equal. When you are investing in real estate, you want the best of the best. Here are some of the qualifications you should be looking for:
• A REALTOR®;: Not all agents are certified REALTORs®;. REALTORs®; are held to a code of ethics and much higher standards than your average agent.
• Full-timer: Part-time agents tend to do real estate as a side job and may not have the time, energy, and enthusiasm of a full-time agent.
• Experience: An agent with several years of experience is generally preferable to an agent with little or no experience, but choosing a novice is okay as long as the person is being guided and coached by an agent who has the necessary experience.
• Productivity: Productivity is a sign of quality, and busy agents are generally better than those who have little business. Who has the most SOLD signs in the neighborhood?
• Availability: Although you want an agent who’s busy, you also want the agent to be available and responsive to your needs. Sometimes, the best approach is to work with an agent team. An agent team typically consists of one or more agents along with support staff. With a team approach, you always have someone on call to address your questions and concerns, and if you have a problem that the staff can’t solve, your agent can jump in and handle it.
• Your comfort level: How do you feel in the presence of this particular agent? Can you see yourself working with this person or is this the type of person you usually lock horns with? You don’t need to be bosom buddies with your agent, but you do need to have a rapport that enables you to communicate effectively.
I have seen it before when it comes to flipping houses and the buyer not being represented. When the seller is an investment company or another that has experience with this Aspect of Real Estate - You can be sure that you will get your hat handed to you in short order. When that happens you can usually pick yourself up and shove off.
However, if it happens years later, after the deal was consumated and the investment company has changed their DBA several times over since the transaction closed - You are going to wish you had representation.
During the past when the Good Neighbor Next door was called the Officer Next door program, it was not necessary to enlist the help of a Real Estate agents. HUD believed in self - representation. Paris and I did this without the help of an agent. Today, due to the fraud that had been involved in this program, it is now necessary to seek representation and only Real Estate agents, that are associated with Brokers that are HUD approved can capture these Non-Profit and Good neighbor program homes. - www.GoodNeighborNextDoorProgram.com or www.GNND911.com, with way you will be put on a database so if and when this program starts up again, you will poised and notified by The 911 Team at REMAX of Santa Clarita, 25101 The Old Road, Santa Clarita Ca, 91381. The REMAX office DBA that has chosen to use a city as part of its name might indicate a certain amount of geographical dependency - But that is not the case. It is just a name. REMAX is one of the most powerful Real Estate companies in the World - We have offices almost everywhere. In foreign countries also - You will thank yourself that you had The Paris911 Team represent you during your time of need. -Connor with HONOR.
