Weve all seen it before: a client whos so excited about buying his or her first home that theyre making classic mistakes.

As a Realtor, its your job to help them do the right thing. The good news? You can do that while building their loyalty and earning their respect and its probably easier than you think.

 

First, lets cover the newbie mistakes:

First Time Homebuyer Mistakes

• Buying too much house. Actually, its not really too much house; its buying more than they can afford afford (just because theyre approved for a certain loan amount doesnt mean they can really afford it). Your clients need a serious budget before they can start serious house shopping.
• Forgetting about additional fees. Many first-time homebuyers dont think about HOA fees, utility costs that go up over time (especially when appliances get old) and maintenance costs.
• Ignoring the need for a home inspection. We all know that big things that go unchecked will seriously affect the value of a homelike mold in the crawl spacebut many first-time homebuyers might assume everything is as it seems.Unless your buyer is a licensed contractor, insist they hire a licensed home inspector to look at the systems of the property.
• Believing that foreclosures are always the best deal. Yes, theyre sometimes less expensive to purchase; at the same time, renovations and unexpected repairs can cost far more than the home itself.Since most foreclosures are sold as is this is critical to remember.
• Rushing. Sure, its exciting but its unequivocally one of the worst things to rush into.

Youre an experienced Realtor. You already know all of this, so what does it mean for you?

Positioning Yourself to Do Business

Many agents dont go out of the way to educate their clients. Thats where you can really set yourself apart. Lets face it: people have a desire to do business with smart, caring people. (As an aside, thats part of what makes BenchmarkRealty special.)

We recommend building an information packet that covers all five of these mistakes. People love a take-away! Make sure its branded by putting your logo and contact information on the top of each page. Include:

• A budget worksheet
• A worksheet that includes possible additional expenses
• An information sheet on home inspections with at least 5 local inspectors contact information
• An information sheet on foreclosures
• A step-by-step guide that illustrates the whole process for first-time homebuyers

Naturally, branding is incredibly important. Your logo, Facebook URL and Twitter handle need dedicated space, as do your web address, phone number and email address. (Dont forget that the company name and phone number must appear in all advertising.)

Making Sure You Have an Edge

At Benchmark Realty, its our mission to make sure our agents have the tools they need to build successful real estate careers. We embrace the Total Freedom concept and give our agents 100 percent commission from day one.

If youd like to talk about becoming a Benchmark Realty agent, call us at (615)371-1544 or fill out the form below. Well set up a meeting so you can discover how you can take control of your real estate career with Benchmark Realty.