Open House Times, Virtual Tours & Advice from your Friends at HGTV's FrontDoor.com

Three Open House Traps Buyers Should Avoid

When you're touring a home, it's easy to lose focus on what you came to do -- see if the house is right for you.

Geoff Williams, FrontDoor.com

 

 

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Real estate agent showing home to buyers
The agent's job is to call your attention to certain features. Go through the home on your own and ask questions.

Trap 1: Sight-seeing with the real estate agent

Remember who is buying this house -- you, not the real estate agent. That means you're in control, not them.

Sam DeBord, a broker and Realtor with SeattleHome.com, points out that a lot of agents will walk the buyer through the house -- which is all well and good. They know the place and are being a good host.

But if you're able, he says, "Try going back through the home a second time afterwards. Your focus will be on what the agent is talking about the first time -- what they would like you to notice. You may see different things about certain rooms when your eyes are not being directed by someone else."

DeBord adds, "This isn't a sight-seeing tour. You can and should ask as many questions as possible. As a buyer, you are in the power position in today's market, so you should direct the conversation about your potential home purchase."

But be careful about that conversation, especially if you and the agent are people persons. Katie Wethman, CPA, MBA, says that it's all too easy for a potential buyer to get caught up in a long, meandering conversation with the agent and forget that you came for the house.

"They are there to sell you on that particular house, at best, or talk you into signing on with them as a client, at worst," says Wethman, who would know. She is a Realtor licensed in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C.

NEXT: Open House Trap 2 >>