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Recently I have come across several people who are looking for properties who are under the impression that they must use the agent who listed the property or even more think that if they go to the listing agent (the one on the For Sale sign) they can get the property for less money.

Let's address the first issue, Utiizing the Listing agent. 

     Properties are listed on MLS which enables every Realtor who is a member of a local board to access the information on the MLS.  Even if it isn't in our board we can go on the Florida Board of Realtors and access every listing in the state.  As an agent I love it when another agent shows my property - Think of the listing agent as the Marketing Agent --and the job of that marketing agent is to market the property so that all the other agents will see it and just can't wait to show it to another client. 

Sometimes prospective buyers spend all day calling all the agents in town getting information so they don't bother their agent until they are ready, but of course they have called ten others who have had to stop and get the information, where their agent would love to have been called and could easily have gotten the information and then would have an idea for what their client is searching.  Sometimes clients say one thing and then go off and look at another and the poor agent has no idea that everything has changed and then the client wonders why the agent doesn't have the new information for them. 

Buying real estate is a two way communication between the buyer and their agent.  When that communication is clear the buying process goes smooth and quickly. 

The second area is that if they go to the listing agent they can get the property cheaper.  There is an agreement between the seller and the agent which decides the commission, and in today's world where we are dealing with a lot of short sales the banks are determining the commission at the last moment.

So the suggestion is to find a Realtor, take the time to let him/her know what you really want, keep communication open and let the professional become your best tool.  With today's gas prices doesn't it make sense to go to the professional and let your fingers do the walking.  On my web site you can go to the active MLS and actually search your criteria, you will know that the properties are for sale. 

I would love to become YOUR Realtor. 

In today's market we hear more and more people discussing short sales - without a lot of information or giving each other wrong information.

So what is a short sale?

A short sale means that you sell your property to a buyer for less than you owe on your mortgage- that includes the home equity lines as well. 

For most mortgage companies you don't have to be behind in your mortgage.  As a realtor I work with an attorney on the short sales because you not only want to have forgiveness on the mortgage but also the promissory note that you signed when you signed for your home. This isn't automatic, some companies are requiring some sort of payback - but it depends on your cash flow and whatever other type of criteria the short sale department decides.  As you have probably deduced, this isn't a science, every sale is different, every mortgage company has different criteria, but it is so much better to do a short sale rather than "letting it go to the bank" the difference on your credit score can be as much as 300 points.  Congress is right now debating the forgiveness of the gain from the forgiveness of the loans.

You can't take anything out of the sale, so you just have to understand that it is going to sell below what you would want it to, but the market has dropped and for many people they cannot refinance because they owe more than the home is now worth.

But believe this, you are not alone, there are a lot of short sales, for the seller it is away to begin again - for the buyer it is a way to get a great deal.

Pat Baker, Leslie Wells Realty, Inc  941-527-8669  toll free 866-434-4056  www.patbakersellsflorida.com