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Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: HouseBuyer ()
Date: January 07, 2013 11:12AM

Hi,
I wanted to buy a house for the first time in Fairfax County... I have a pretty good credit score and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for an area where I can find an affordable house. I wanted to stay in the county, preferably near Vienna down through Fairfax or on the other side off 66, west Fairfax County will work too. I've tried the Sallie Mae and Freddie Mac foreclosure sites but nothing I liked. Needed enough space for me and my wife upstairs and a walk out entrance to the basement for a friend who plans on renting from us. Any suggestions on how I should approach it? Any recommendations for a RE agent who actually goes through the foreclosure sites and has a good reputation?
Thanks!

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: 404ed ()
Date: January 07, 2013 11:32AM

Find a good buyer's agent in the area you want to live and have at it.

First time home buyer....be prepared to have a LOT of cash for a down payment (especially in the areas you mention).

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: No Money Down ()
Date: January 07, 2013 11:51AM

Hate to tell you but pretty much no agent is going to work for you like that. Worse, if it's something worthwhile then they and/or their firms and associated investors likely will be in the same market competing against you. Not that you might not find something but don't expect someone to come up with a bunch of incredible deals.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: house shopper ()
Date: January 07, 2013 12:19PM

zillow and redfin

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Overpriced Real Estate Mafia ()
Date: January 07, 2013 12:32PM

Buying a house in those areas probably means at least $20k in commissions to people who do very little for you. Still need a lawyer for the contracts and a home inspector to make sure that place isn't about to collapse. I'd look for For Sale by Owner props, but a real estate agent won't show you those. They seller isn't paying tribute to the RE mafia. Imagine what you can do with that extra $20k.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: @HouseBuyer ()
Date: January 07, 2013 01:15PM

Define "affordable". Townhouse or single-family? Beds, baths, etc.?

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: FYI... ()
Date: January 07, 2013 01:30PM

The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: reFYI... ()
Date: January 07, 2013 02:20PM

FYI... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.

and the buyer pays the seller... seller is just going to roll that 6% on to the price.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Z3R0 ()
Date: January 07, 2013 02:38PM

do you plan to keep horsie at housie too?

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: FYI... ()
Date: January 07, 2013 03:07PM

reFYI... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> FYI... Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.
>
> and the buyer pays the seller... seller is just
> going to roll that 6% on to the price.

A seller cannot denamd $106,000 for a house worth $100,000 just because s/he wants to net $100,000. If the house is worth $100,000, that's what it will sell for, and the seller will net $94,339.62.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Bill.N. ()
Date: January 07, 2013 03:32PM

Where to start:

What do you think "affordable" means? Or put it another way, how much can you afford to pay for a house now, including financing that you have already qualified for? That should be your starting point.

Next, remember it is no longer a BUYERS MARKET. We are a long way from the glory days of the last decade but multiple offers and sales for more than listing prices are becoming more common.

It's my understanding that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac only sell homes already foreclosed on. Remember the bank only buys the home if they can't sell it for more at the foreclosure sale. This means that you are looking at the rejects rejects. If the property was really in decent shape and a good buy, chances are that it would have been sold by the owner, or that someone other than the bank would have bought it in the foreclosure sale. Yes a few gems will slip through. Point is that if you want to increase your chances of finding a decent property you need to move to an earlier stage of the foreclosure process. And BTW if you do so, have your cash lined up in advance.

Not a big fan of FSBO in this area, but maybe your experience will differ. One thing that you might want to consider is looking at "stale" listings.

Finally, you need to do your homework on the neighborhood as well as the house. Many HOAs have rules against renting out portions of your residence to non-family members that are far stricter than what County zoning rules allow.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: section 8 sharon ()
Date: January 07, 2013 04:04PM

I think if you call the county and tell them you are here illegally you can be get a luxury condo at a bargain basement price.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Tomas ()
Date: January 07, 2013 08:41PM

Redfin is where it's at. They have a foreclosure and premarket search.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Econ for Dummies ()
Date: January 07, 2013 08:56PM

FYI... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> reFYI... Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > FYI... Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.
> >
> > and the buyer pays the seller... seller is just
> > going to roll that 6% on to the price.
>
> A seller cannot denamd $106,000 for a house worth
> $100,000 just because s/he wants to net $100,000.
> If the house is worth $100,000, that's what it
> will sell for, and the seller will net $94,339.62.


Um, no. The market overall reflects the added costs. The house with a $100K market price has an implicit 6% incorporated in the price. It may not be stated explicitly as such but, from an economics standpoint, it is there.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Everyone pays it ()
Date: January 07, 2013 09:15PM

reFYI... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> FYI... Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.
>
> and the buyer pays the seller... seller is just
> going to roll that 6% on to the price.

Yeah, there is nothing worse than this "well the buyer/seller pays that". Spoken like someone with a "Consult a Realtor" sticker on the back of their car.

In the age of the internet, there is no need for a real estate agent, unless someone just doesn't feel like doing the work to look for a home. Is that worth 3% of a $500k transaction? Hell no. More people need to refuse paying these exorbitant commissions and maybe the price of the whole transaction will deflate by 5-6%. 5% of the average Northern VA home is hardly pocket change. That is a decent car. A finished basement with a movie room. A pool and jacuzzi in the backyard of that new home. I'd want to keep it personally. Especially since I don't need someone to do internet research for me, not for $15,000.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Steal/ex ()
Date: January 07, 2013 09:39PM

Everyone pays it Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> reFYI... Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > FYI... Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.
> >
> > and the buyer pays the seller... seller is just
> > going to roll that 6% on to the price.
>
> Yeah, there is nothing worse than this "well the
> buyer/seller pays that". Spoken like someone with
> a "Consult a Realtor" sticker on the back of their
> car.
>
> In the age of the internet, there is no need for a
> real estate agent, unless someone just doesn't
> feel like doing the work to look for a home. Is
> that worth 3% of a $500k transaction? Hell no.
> More people need to refuse paying these exorbitant
> commissions and maybe the price of the whole
> transaction will deflate by 5-6%. 5% of the
> average Northern VA home is hardly pocket change.
> That is a decent car. A finished basement with a
> movie room. A pool and jacuzzi in the backyard of
> that new home. I'd want to keep it personally.
> Especially since I don't need someone to do
> internet research for me, not for $15,000.


Agreed. It was different back when houses were $100K. Although still a bunch on a relative basis you could at least somewhat justify $1K each for the agents, rest to the firms. Not so much when it's $30K on a mid-market $500K sale. Sorry, not nearly that much value provided.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: buyer beware ()
Date: January 07, 2013 10:17PM

Watch the foreclosure sales. Sure they sound sweet but think of what happened. Some chump let the house go into default. If he didnt care about keeping up the payments do you think he cared about keeping up the home.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: 404ed ()
Date: January 07, 2013 10:19PM

Yah, big risk there. I looked at some foreclosure properties - even in some tony areas (Towleston Road there was one; Vale Road; Hunter Mill Road).

Even in wealthy properties, things get stripped: appliances; chandeliers; etc.

also, in this area, unless you have a real abatement program for nasties like mice, termites, and the like, expect them to make their way in after a year or two without preventative maintenance.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: shortsale ()
Date: January 08, 2013 03:36PM

If you are patient you can get properties at 10-20% under market value by looking for short sales. Get an agent that knows short sale transactions well and make sure they check daily for listings in your area of interest.

If you study you could certainly do this on your own by checking Realtor.com a once or twice a day though Im not sure 'potential short sale' shows up on the public data like it does on the Realtor database (more detailed with entire listing specifics). If you go this route be advised it takes 2-4 months and your likely hood of closing is dependent upon the lender approving the short sale (that is what takes so long). You will also be paying all the closing costs and purchasing the property 'as is.'

If you prefer no agent at all simply canvass the area you are interested in knocking on every door and leaving contact info stating your interest to purchase - might work.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: FYI... ()
Date: January 08, 2013 03:59PM

Econ for Dummies Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> FYI... Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > reFYI... Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > FYI... Wrote:
> > >
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> >
> > > -----
> > > > The seller pays the commison, not the
> buyer.
> > >
> > > and the buyer pays the seller... seller is
> just
> > > going to roll that 6% on to the price.
> >
> > A seller cannot denamd $106,000 for a house
> worth
> > $100,000 just because s/he wants to net
> $100,000.
> > If the house is worth $100,000, that's what it
> > will sell for, and the seller will net
> $94,339.62.
>
>
> Um, no. The market overall reflects the added
> costs. The house with a $100K market price has an
> implicit 6% incorporated in the price. It may not
> be stated explicitly as such but, from an
> economics standpoint, it is there.

Yes, that's what I said.

Remember, the buyer couldn't care less what the seller will pay in commission. All s/he cares about is what the house is worth to him/her.

A seller cannot demand $106,000 for a house worth $100,000 just because s/he wants to net $100,000. If the house is worth $100,000, that's what it will sell for, and the seller will net $94,339.62.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Helpy ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:08PM

Everyone pays it Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> reFYI... Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > FYI... Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > The seller pays the commison, not the buyer.
> >
> > and the buyer pays the seller... seller is just
> > going to roll that 6% on to the price.
>
> Yeah, there is nothing worse than this "well the
> buyer/seller pays that". Spoken like someone with
> a "Consult a Realtor" sticker on the back of their
> car.
>
> In the age of the internet, there is no need for a
> real estate agent, unless someone just doesn't
> feel like doing the work to look for a home. Is
> that worth 3% of a $500k transaction? Hell no.
> More people need to refuse paying these exorbitant
> commissions and maybe the price of the whole
> transaction will deflate by 5-6%. 5% of the
> average Northern VA home is hardly pocket change.
> That is a decent car. A finished basement with a
> movie room. A pool and jacuzzi in the backyard of
> that new home. I'd want to keep it personally.
> Especially since I don't need someone to do
> internet research for me, not for $15,000.

+1...in the mid-90's I spent 5 years working for a travel agency. Once the internet became mainstream for travellers and the office's bookings fell off the table, I found another job and put in my notice. I'll never forget walking out on my last day and the owner who had been a travel agent for 42 years at that point said, "I hate to lose you but, you should go on and open your own office..."

I just looked at her, shrugged and said, "Now that all aspects of travel can be booked on the internet...the world has chosen and the world wants the best prices on their travel. That means travel agents are no longer useful."

Fast forward to 2005 and my Mom who is 75 and living in suburban Detroit still uses a travel agent. She needed me to drive her to pick up her tickets. The office hadn't been renovated since the late 70's and there wasn't a single person in there under the age of 50. When I asked the agent about their customer demographics she said, "Honey...the only people who walk through that door anymore are people without Internet access..."

It's taken real estate a bit longer to go mainstream over the Internet but, within 10 years the only people using real estate agents will be people without internet access and one-percenters who can afford the fees.

6% of $300,000 is $30,000. You could buy a lot of good, not great, furniture or a new car or 2 decent used cars with that kind of cash. That's a lot of money to me. You have to ask yourself, "What am I getting for the 6% the agent's earning?"

OP, you've really missed the opportunity to find a foreclosure deal. As stated above, you may find some short sales but, you have to be willing to be patient because they're very competitive. You'll want an agent that specializes in short sales but YOU HAVE TO QUALIFY THEM! Just because they say they specialize in short sales does not make it so. Question them...what is a short sale? Show me your current short sale listings. How many short sales have you transacted? What is the state of the short sale market in NOVA? Will you consider short sales conducted by other agencies or are you limited to transacting only your agencies own short sales? And on and on...you don't have to know everything about short sales but you need to do your homework so that you can at least qualify your agent's ability to help you buy a short sale property.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Knower of things ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:09PM

shortsale Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If you are patient you can get properties at
> 10-20% under market value by looking for short
> sales.

In a short sale, the lender(s) agrees to accept lower proceeds from the sale of a property than the borrower owes the lender. Usaually, a short sale occurs because the borrower owes more to the lender(s) than the property is worth.

A property sold through a short sale could sell at a below-market price, but that is not the purpose of the short sale.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: math ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:24PM

Helpy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Everyone pays it Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > reFYI... Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > FYI... Wrote:
> > >
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> >
> > > -----
> > > > The seller pays the commison, not the
> buyer.
> > >
> > > and the buyer pays the seller... seller is
> just
> > > going to roll that 6% on to the price.
> >
> > Yeah, there is nothing worse than this "well
> the
> > buyer/seller pays that". Spoken like someone
> with
> > a "Consult a Realtor" sticker on the back of
> their
> > car.
> >
> > In the age of the internet, there is no need for
> a
> > real estate agent, unless someone just doesn't
> > feel like doing the work to look for a home.
> Is
> > that worth 3% of a $500k transaction? Hell no.
>
> > More people need to refuse paying these
> exorbitant
> > commissions and maybe the price of the whole
> > transaction will deflate by 5-6%. 5% of the
> > average Northern VA home is hardly pocket
> change.
> > That is a decent car. A finished basement with
> a
> > movie room. A pool and jacuzzi in the backyard
> of
> > that new home. I'd want to keep it personally.
>
> > Especially since I don't need someone to do
> > internet research for me, not for $15,000.
>
> +1...in the mid-90's I spent 5 years working for a
> travel agency. Once the internet became mainstream
> for travellers and the office's bookings fell off
> the table, I found another job and put in my
> notice. I'll never forget walking out on my last
> day and the owner who had been a travel agent for
> 42 years at that point said, "I hate to lose you
> but, you should go on and open your own
> office..."
>
> I just looked at her, shrugged and said, "Now that
> all aspects of travel can be booked on the
> internet...the world has chosen and the world
> wants the best prices on their travel. That means
> travel agents are no longer useful."
>
> Fast forward to 2005 and my Mom who is 75 and
> living in suburban Detroit still uses a travel
> agent. She needed me to drive her to pick up her
> tickets. The office hadn't been renovated since
> the late 70's and there wasn't a single person in
> there under the age of 50. When I asked the agent
> about their customer demographics she said,
> "Honey...the only people who walk through that
> door anymore are people without Internet
> access..."
>
> It's taken real estate a bit longer to go
> mainstream over the Internet but, within 10 years
> the only people using real estate agents will be
> people without internet access and one-percenters
> who can afford the fees.
>
> 6% of $300,000 is $30,000.You could buy a lot of
> good, not great, furniture or a new car or 2
> decent used cars with that kind of cash. That's a
> lot of money to me. You have to ask yourself,
> "What am I getting for the 6% the agent's
> earning?"

someone whom can add, subtract and multiply at least to .00
I think you could use a Realtor just to check your math. If you miss a detail that simple yet critical I can only wonder at how utterly hosed you would be in a real real estate transaction. I submit to you sir that YOU are the reason Realtors continue to be valuable

>

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: 404ed ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:33PM

I've bought three houses and sold 2, and I really have a hard time justifying in my head what exactly they did for 6%.

Staged the house real nice - yes, but there are staging companies for that.
Had a pre-public opening for other realtors - yes
Worked with the mortgage companies on the loan - yes, but since then I've done two refis on my recent house without the need for a realtor.

Beyond that, I am not sure what they did.

I remember in my second and third purchases, the selling agents were all busily trying to get me to use their inspectors (their business contacts), their settlement company (RGS or someone like that), and their title insurance.

I ignored all of that and used an inspector that I knew (and charged less), used a real estate law firm that charged substantially less than RGS Title, and got a rate from the real estate firm on title insurance that was bought at a substantial discount because I had used them before.

I understand and fully appreciate that the realtor himself/herself does not see that 3% (maybe 1% to 1.5% with the balance going to their agency), but seriously, is this really needed in a hot seller market?

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: shortsale ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:38PM

Knower of things Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> shortsale Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > If you are patient you can get properties at
> > 10-20% under market value by looking for short
> > sales.
>
> In a short sale, the lender(s) agrees to accept
> lower proceeds from the sale of a property than
> the borrower owes the lender. Usaually, a short
> sale occurs because the borrower owes more to the
> lender(s) than the property is worth.
>
> A property sold through a short sale could sell at
> a below-market price, but that is not the purpose
> of the short sale.

Short sales do almost always sell at below market price for several reasons.

1. The sales are 'contingent on lender approval.'

2. They are sold under market because qualified buyers not only have to submit to the owner's lender's approval they have to wait for it - some 4-10 weeks last I checked.

3. Short sales sell for under market because they are often sold 'as is' thus the buyer takes on some risk in purchasing the property.

4. Short sale properties often suffer from at least some neglect due to the owner's financial difficulties.

5. Short sales are subject to counter offers from the lender if the lender does not accept the contract sales price.

6. They can sell for below market because not every buyer wants to be party to the emotional distress (from the seller) involved in many short sales...

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: lotsofways ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:46PM

I purchased my first home using only the sellers agent (he got 5%) to show me his listing and do the forms. I sold that home using only the buyers agent (he got 3%) to bring the prospect and do the forms. I purchased the next home as a FSBO - we had no agents involved and no commission was paid.

I did just get rid of a home via short sale and this truly is the only time I feel the agent earned the commission. They were experts in the process and helped with the considerable paperwork and in managing the purchaser. If you are in a short sale as an owner I highly advise using a real estate agent with a team of people to help you manage the paper and the loan servicer.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: scam ()
Date: January 08, 2013 04:54PM

>
> Um, no. The market overall reflects the added
> costs. The house with a $100K market price has an
> implicit 6% incorporated in the price. It may not
> be stated explicitly as such but, from an
> economics standpoint, it is there.


Aaaargh - for goodness sake, houses get sold more than once

A 30 year old house $500k house which had been sold 6 times would has probably had nearly 200k of its value (in house inflation adjusted dollars) expropriated by realtors

6% realtor fees are one of the reasons why housing booms and busts are so extreme - on the up, you have to recover your 6% for the next house so you accelerate the market bubble, on the down, who can afford to lose another 6%?

Countries like the UK do it for 1-2% - and that was true even before the internet

There is no way that there is $60k's real work in selling a $1M house. The problem is that the industry is just bloated and inefficient - there are too many realtors for the number of sales which keeps the cost high

Its a prime candidate for regulatory reform via the FTC - its an artificial drag on the economy

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Agent Zero ()
Date: January 08, 2013 06:01PM

I can see a selling agent being worth some money if they do a good job marketing the house and get it sold quick. $15k on a $500k transaction? No sir. Maybe $5k if they can meet your performance deadline, whatever that may be.

Buying? Not much to that. Not worth more than a $1k, and that would be a fairly long search.

I saw travel agents mentioned, and IMO, they are a different animal. I used a travel agent for a nearly two week long trip to the beach at a resort. The agent knew the place well, well enough to recommend a 2-3 rooms out of the 100 or so that we would want to be in because they had a nice view, or were in a section where there was a chef at the pool at lunchtime, near a restaurant with a nice bar, and were near the edge of the resort so you didn't have much traffic coming through and were quieter. I never would have known that kind of stuff, even though some Trip Advisor reviews will mention details like that. Then since she has connections there, she made sure we got one of those rooms. She arranged for a car service to take us to and from the airport, booked some things at the resort for us, and we got probably $500 worth of services comped. We went on the resort's site and Expedia, etc. and checked the rates, we didn't pay more than we would have without the travel agent.

It was the same deal when we shopped for a cruise. The travel agent knew the boat, knew where you wanted to stay on the boat, knew about the ports and had offers for upgrades, comps, etc. that we wouldn't have had with a booking website. The price wasn't much different than what the websites had either.

Either way, the travel agent offered me inside knowledge about the vacation and had connections to improve our trip. I know she made money somewhere, but it didn't appear to come directly out of my pocket. I'd use one again, even if it did cost a small premium over booking through a website on my own. The service had value.

On the flip side, a real estate agent doesn't offer any of that. A buying agent looks at MLS listings and says "Oh, we have a 4 bedroom in Oakton, would you like to see that?" You can look up the same listing on your laptop. Does she live in the neighborhood and can tell you the neighbors are great and they aren't white trash pricks? No. Is the realtor a home inspector who can tell you the furnace is about the die and the roof is probably leaking? No. Is the realtor an attorney who is going to read over the contracts and make sure you aren't getting fucked in the deal? No. The only thing she has, is a membership in the "club" of real estate agents, so they'll talk to her. I've heard about people trying to not use an agent to buy and they won't even get a call back from the selling agent. The other agent won't deal with them without "representation". Same with a FSBO seller. Good luck having real estate agents roll up to your house. They'll skip right over it. It is collusion if you ask me.

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Helpy ()
Date: January 08, 2013 06:42PM

math Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Helpy Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Everyone pays it Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > reFYI... Wrote:
> > >
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> >
> > > -----
> > > > FYI... Wrote:
> > > >
> > >
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> >
> > >
> > > > -----
> > > > > The seller pays the commison, not the
> > buyer.
> > > >
> > > > and the buyer pays the seller... seller is
> > just
> > > > going to roll that 6% on to the price.
> > >
> > > Yeah, there is nothing worse than this "well
> > the
> > > buyer/seller pays that". Spoken like someone
> > with
> > > a "Consult a Realtor" sticker on the back of
> > their
> > > car.
> > >
> > > In the age of the internet, there is no need
> for
> > a
> > > real estate agent, unless someone just
> doesn't
> > > feel like doing the work to look for a home.
> > Is
> > > that worth 3% of a $500k transaction? Hell
> no.
> >
> > > More people need to refuse paying these
> > exorbitant
> > > commissions and maybe the price of the whole
> > > transaction will deflate by 5-6%. 5% of the
> > > average Northern VA home is hardly pocket
> > change.
> > > That is a decent car. A finished basement
> with
> > a
> > > movie room. A pool and jacuzzi in the
> backyard
> > of
> > > that new home. I'd want to keep it
> personally.
> >
> > > Especially since I don't need someone to do
> > > internet research for me, not for $15,000.
> >
> > +1...in the mid-90's I spent 5 years working for
> a
> > travel agency. Once the internet became
> mainstream
> > for travellers and the office's bookings fell
> off
> > the table, I found another job and put in my
> > notice. I'll never forget walking out on my
> last
> > day and the owner who had been a travel agent
> for
> > 42 years at that point said, "I hate to lose
> you
> > but, you should go on and open your own
> > office..."
> >
> > I just looked at her, shrugged and said, "Now
> that
> > all aspects of travel can be booked on the
> > internet...the world has chosen and the world
> > wants the best prices on their travel. That
> means
> > travel agents are no longer useful."
> >
> > Fast forward to 2005 and my Mom who is 75 and
> > living in suburban Detroit still uses a travel
> > agent. She needed me to drive her to pick up
> her
> > tickets. The office hadn't been renovated since
> > the late 70's and there wasn't a single person
> in
> > there under the age of 50. When I asked the
> agent
> > about their customer demographics she said,
> > "Honey...the only people who walk through that
> > door anymore are people without Internet
> > access..."
> >
> > It's taken real estate a bit longer to go
> > mainstream over the Internet but, within 10
> years
> > the only people using real estate agents will
> be
> > people without internet access and
> one-percenters
> > who can afford the fees.
> >
> > 6% of $300,000 is $30,000.You could buy a
> lot of
> > good, not great, furniture or a new car or 2
> > decent used cars with that kind of cash. That's
> a
> > lot of money to me. You have to ask yourself,
> > "What am I getting for the 6% the agent's
> > earning?"
>
> someone whom can add, subtract and multiply at
> least to .00
> I think you could use a Realtor just to check your
> math. If you miss a detail that simple yet
> critical I can only wonder at how utterly hosed
> you would be in a real real estate transaction. I
> submit to you sir that YOU are the reason Realtors
> continue to be valuable

> >

Hey I NEVER let the facts get in the way of a good story...Good catch, math. I got carried away with my 3's. That should have read 6% of $500,000 is $30,000. Thanks. :)

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Re: Buying a house for the first time in Fairfax County
Posted by: Tung ()
Date: January 09, 2013 01:37AM

Hi,

I'm an agent with Fairfax Realty. I've read through all of the comments from everyone. Some of the comments are absolutely correct but also depend on an individual.

Yes sure, every single one of us can spend as much time and do enough research then we all can do the job the real estate agent can do. However, getting the job done doesn't mean you have the best of it.

For example, any body can take a little time out to learn how to paint a house. After finish painting the house, I'm sure it looks pretty nice but how is it compare to a professional painter? If you know someone who have just painted their own house for the first couple times, look closely at the wall, you'd see residual of paint (lines of extra paints) on the wall.

Home owners can sell their houses themselves, but let's look at this together.

Home owners selling their own homes.

The house will only expose to a small % of buyers due to limited resources and time.

Real Estate agents selling home

The house will expose to if not all then the majority of buyers because most agent already have an inventory of buyers and buyers that are able and ready.

so which which house will sell faster and for more money?

There are also other aspect of negotiations and marketing skills and the current market knowledge that the well a trained real estate agent possess that is beyond any homeowners could reach in a short period of time when trying to sell their own houses.

If you're a buyer, as some folks mentioned, you don't have to pay anything. The sellers would have already agreed to a set an amount that will be paying for the buying agent when listed with the listing agent.

A lot of time, you'll be able to find houses on the internet by yourself, however there is a lag time, so when a perfect house are up on the market, by the time you see it, it's too late.

If you'd like, this is what I would be able to help you with.

1. I have the technology, that I can set up to send you houses that meet your needs and wants up to the minute or daily, which cost you nothing but save you lots of time surfing the net.

2. I can help you get pre-approval for financing - so you know exactly what kind of house you can afford - This is very important, some buyer need up to 20% down, some only need 5% down, and some can buy a house with zero down, so depend on the needs and qualification of an individual buyer.

3. I'm here to help, all my services are FREE to you. You can contact me at tungmai@mris.com so I can further assist you.

Thank you

Tung

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