Buying new with or without an agent in Irvine?

[ch]

Hi All,

I'm new to this forum and looking for friendly advice in regards to needing an buying agent for newly built homes in Irvine. We visited several locations in the Irvine area for new homes and it seems that you can buy without an agent, but what will I lose or gain from not having one?
Could you share your thoughts and insights?

Thank you

 

[irvinerealtor]

Welcome ch,

Pros - If you have an agent with you it is an extra set of experienced eyes to look for things you might not notice on your own.  Depending upon your own level of expertise, this may or may not be that valuable to you. You can also gain some insight into what has previously been offered that the builder might not share otherwise. In some cases (but not all), builders are offering an additional broker's co-op ($$$) for agents, to incentivize the agents to bring clients that they would usually be showing re-sale homes to, solely.  If you choose to go through with the new home purchase, you can negotiate with your agent to cover costs from that offering, according to what you both agree is equitable.  This can be as a credit through escrow, and/or covering costs of a professional inspector, or other solutions... 
If things go sour, having the experienced legal backing of a brokerage can also help you get your deposit back, as well.

Negatives - You have to put up with the agent   
Also, most builders require that your agent be with you during your first visit, so plan accordingly if you are choosing that route.

Good luck, and if you are looking for help, there are several that frequent this forum to choose from.

-IrvineRealtor

 

[akula1488]

If you are buying newly built homes (Woodbury, Woodbury East, Stonegate East, Portola Springs), some of the sellers actually offer buyer agent commission for something like 2.5%. You can pre-negotiate with the buyer agent to see if you can split the commission. Getting 1.25% back from the purchase price is good, right?

 

[usctrojancpa]

If you are buying newly built homes (Woodbury, Woodbury East, Stonegate East, Portola Springs), some of the sellers actually offer buyer agent commission for something like 2.5%. You can pre-negotiate with the buyer agent to see if you can split the commission. Getting 1.25% back from the purchase price is good, right?

That's more than fair because the amount of work for the agent is a lot less for a client buying a new home versus one buying a re-sale.  My advice would be to get something in writing from the buyer's agent that spells out the contribution before signing the purchase agreement because unfortunately you can trust most agents as far as you can throw them. 

The commissions vary across the various projects....some are 2.5% while others are 3% while even others are flat dollar amounts like $10k or $15k.  I think there are only like 1-2 developments that are not offering any buyer's agent commission.

 

[usctrojancpa]

Hi All,

I'm new to this forum and looking for friendly advice in regards to needing an buying agent for newly built homes in Irvine. We visited several locations in the Irvine area for new homes and it seems that you can buy without an agent, but what will I lose or gain from not having one?
Could you share your thoughts and insights?

Thank you

You definitely don't need a buyer's agent to buy a new home, especially if you have enough comfort doing so.  A good agent can be helpful to point out various things or give you their input during the upgrade process or if there are any hiccups.  If you do decide to use an agent to represent you on buying a new home, ask that they contribute a portion of their commission into escrow towards your closing costs because as I mentioned the work involved for the agent on a new home purchase is less than that on a re-sale home purchase.  Also, a good agent might be able to negotiate you a lower price along with upgrade incentives and/or closing cost credits.  One of my buyers is buying a new property in Woodbury and I was able to get him a lower price along with some other incentives.

 

[ch]

Thanks Everyone! 
Everyone has great points on both positions - I'm better educated in making my decision thanks to you all.

Happy Holidays!

Sincerely,

CH