Of course, your Buyer’s Agent really won’t be working for free if you end up buying a home and getting all the way to settlement.  That can be a big if.

More to the point, though, are all those time when the buyer’s agent is out there running his car, using his gas, taking up his time…and all for naught.

“I Saw This House”

Hey that’s great!  You were driving around and you happened to see a house in the neighborhood you like and the house looked nice from your car. What do you do? Call the phone number on the sign and when that doesn’t yield the desired result you call your Buyer’s Agent (Oh, yeah. The person you agreed to work with exclusively to make your home purchase).

“Hey, I saw this great house.  Can you show it to me…now (or very, very soon)?”

It’s like the Buyer’s Agent is sitting around waiting for the phone call to come in.  Except that they’re not.  They’re working with other clients, or they’re in a continuing education class, or an office meeting. They may be having dinner with their spouse and kids.

No matter. Now…and for free.

“I’m Not Working With Another Realtor.  Really. Honest. I Wouldn’t Lie To You.”

It never ceases to amaze me at all the “scripts” that come out of people’s mouths when they want to see a house (or houses) and the Buyer’s Agent they actually have a Buyer’s Broker Agreement with is unavailable.

• “I haven’t signed anything yet.” (Wait. I didn’t ask if you signed something.)
• “I’m pre-approved for a loan. No, I can’t remember the name of the mortgage company. I’ve got the letter at home.” (Yaeh. Me, too.)
• “I really want to see these this weekend.”
• “I really want to get into a home before [insert unrealistically quick date here].”

All of these and more are intended to make us want to jump into our car and run out to whatever house or houses are on the person’s list and to heck with anything else.

Of course, the worst part is finding out that the home hunter goes back and calls their Buyer’s Agent to say they’ve found the house they want and now it’s time to write the offer.

Is  A Retainer A Good Idea?

There are some Buyer’s Agents out in the world that are now asking for a retainer. Anywhere from $500 to $1,000 – up front – from the buyer client along with the signed agreement for Buyer Representation. If the house hunter buys a home the retainer is immediately converted to part of the earnest money deposit needed with the offer.  If the house hunter never buys a home, changes his or her mind or is just flat out kicking some tires, the retainer would revert to the Buyer’s Agent to compensate them for their time, gas, and general expertise.

In other words, no free ride.  No quickie phone call “just to see” a place. No calling random agents to see a house when the agent the house hunter has an agreement with is out of town or has other commitments.

If you were seriously in the market to purchase a house, would you be willing to pay a $1,000 retainer to your Buyer’s Agent knowing it would go to your earnest money deposit for your home purchase?

I’d love to know…leave some comments and tell me what you think.