The Essential Role of Real Estate Brokers in Property Transactions

Definition: A real estate broker is a person employed to negotiate and arrange real estate transactions. This would include writing contracts for listing and purchasing homes, land, and commercial properties. The broker, sometimes called an agent is there to intermediate between buyer & seller or landlord & tenant & to make it all happen.

There can be considerable risk if agents are not properly trained, supervised & display professional conduct. It is important to work with companies & brokers who have been recommended or have a track record.

What Real Estate Brokers do

Let us look at this in four parts, one for how they work with real estate sellers, another for buyers, one for working for bother sellers & buyers, and the last for their duties under their control.

Brokers working for sellers:  Some of their duties include:

• Using benchmarking (market comparisons), experience, collaborations, or ground-up construct-yourself-costs, determine the ideal selling price for the market.
• List homes for sale on the local & international advertising media such as Anuntul.ro, Imobiliare.ro, Titerez.ro, Homezz.ro, etc.
• Share the listings with other internal & external brokers to get buyers' views of the property.
• Advise the seller in preparing their home for listing and showings.
• Conduct viewings, and report to owners the results and feedback from viewings.
• Submit all offers to the seller for consideration.
• Help the seller to negotiate offers to try and execute a purchase contract with a buyer.
• Work on the seller’s behalf in coordinating the transaction process.
• Deliver and explain documents, disclosures, and transaction items.
• Work with the seller through to the closing and their move-out from the home.
• Share the transaction commission with successful buyer brokers.

Brokers working with Buyers:  This is the other side, working with people wanting to buy or rent a property giving advice and services to help them locate the property, make a decision, and complete the transaction. Typical tasks include:

• Help buyers to locate all properties in their desired area in their price range and meet their criteria & realize it when you have met their objectives.
• Coordinate and help buyers to visit and view properties.
• When a decision is made to attempt a purchase, help the buyer to craft their initial offer and purchase agreement.
• Work with the buyer on their behalf in negotiations with the seller through their agent/broker.
• Once a purchase contract is executed, coordinate the transaction process on the buyer side.
• Deliver and explain documents in the transaction process.
• Coordinate inspections, reports, and repair negotiations.
• Assist buyers through closing and taking possession.

Brokers working with Buyers & Sellers:  This in some countries is illegal because it is open to abuse. The argument is that it is hard to represent both parties. It is no different to a seller of any product where you represent the product and still advise the buyer at the same time. To do it well, you need a healthy amount of integrity, ie that thing you do when no one is watching.  To represent both parties, you need to use data, not opinions, to back up your advice. Eg, use comparative data when setting the price & the same when advising a buyer where to choose, by showing alternatives with pluses & minus for each.

• For me, I use the grandma rule. Would I want my Grandma to be given this advice? & if so, then it is the right advice. Ie, you are the one tasked with telling the truth & presenting the facts & not simply polishing something up for sale.
• Help buyers locate all properties in their desired area in their price range and organize the viewings.
• When a decision is made to attempt a purchase, help the buyer to craft their initial offer and purchase agreement.
• Work with the buyer on their behalf in negotiations with the seller through their agent/broker.
• Once a purchase contract or pre-contract is executed, coordinate the transaction process on the buyer & seller side.
• Deliver and explain documents in the transaction process.
• Coordinate inspections, reports, and repair negotiations.
• Assist buyers & sellers through to closing and taking possession.

Supervising internal Marketing staff:  When a broker has marketing assistants at their disposal as we do at White Mountain, the broker supervises the advertising of the properties, arranging & selecting photographs

Some brokers prefer to represent sellers/ landlords only, focusing on having a good portfolio of desirable property & waiting for clients to come to them. When the owner gives you exclusivity of advertising over other agencies, this further reduces the risk that your work in marketing will be in vain.

Other brokers prefer to work for the buyer or tenant, the one searching. This can end up as simply being a free tour guide if you are unable to a/ read the real intentions of the buyer/ tenant & b/ draw your client to make a decision & act.  Many buyers/ tenants need help in reaching a decision & it is the broker's role to help that happen.

If this sounds like an interesting career to you, get in touch via info@whitemountain.ro