Yeah. I mean, you can get by without an agent, but a good agent can take care of all the things you might not know, and can often sort of tell if the house you want to look at is a dud (so you don't need to go see it), and can help you not get disadvantaged in the process. And it doesn't cost you (the buyer) any extra money, contrary to popular belief. A good agent can also help you accurately read the selling agent, in order to guess the exact minimum amount you can offer and still be accepted.
I realise this explanation is a bit all around the place, so an example: my mum has a client who comes to my mum for all her real estate needs (this client buys and sells a lot). My mum had to go to Malaysia but the client couldn't wait, and went ahead and bought a place (even though mum had told her to wait). The client, in this instance acting as a person with no agent, got screwed by the selling agent. Not in any illegal way, obviously, but she just didn't read the offer properly and was severely inconvenienced.
The flip is that sometimes you're fine without an agent. Msh + Susie seemed to go just fine, but having an agent when we bought our place (in this instance, yes, my mum) saved us at least $20 000.
I don't mean to talk so much about my mum! She's just who I learnt all about real estate off. And she's very successful and has repeat clients, so I believe her. :o)
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I realise this explanation is a bit all around the place, so an example: my mum has a client who comes to my mum for all her real estate needs (this client buys and sells a lot). My mum had to go to Malaysia but the client couldn't wait, and went ahead and bought a place (even though mum had told her to wait). The client, in this instance acting as a person with no agent, got screwed by the selling agent. Not in any illegal way, obviously, but she just didn't read the offer properly and was severely inconvenienced.
The flip is that sometimes you're fine without an agent. Msh + Susie seemed to go just fine, but having an agent when we bought our place (in this instance, yes, my mum) saved us at least $20 000.
I don't mean to talk so much about my mum! She's just who I learnt all about real estate off. And she's very successful and has repeat clients, so I believe her. :o)