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9 Quick Tips on Finding a Great REALTOR®

Diane Buchanan • Jun 13, 2019

So, you want to buy a home. Or maybe you want to sell your home. Either way, working with a real estate professional or REALTOR® is a really good idea. But with all the agents out there competing to earn your business, how do you find the right one? Here is a quick list of tips that should help you narrow down the list of potential suitors. From there, its up to you!

Do Your Research. Hands down, the best advice available is simply do your research. It sounds so basic, but regardless of how many more of these tips you read and follow, if you do your homework and gather as much information about working with a potential REALTOR®, you will lessen the chance of getting a dud while increasing the chance of finding someone who will really work hard for you.

Ask your friends and people you trust. If you know someone who has recently bought or sold a property, ask them who they used. From there, ask about their experience, get them to explain both the positives and negatives, ask how the agent communicated, were they easy to reach, were they responsive. And so on. If you feel comfortable with their recommendation, get the agents name and proceed to google them.

Just Google Them. This is great advice on almost any subject. If you are looking at hiring an agent, you will want to google them first. Don’t simply look at the first few results, take a look a couple pages deep. You will be surprised by what comes up down the line, maybe they have been involved in legal action in the past, these things are good to know and discuss with them if you want to extend an interview to them.

Check Out Online Reviews. A lot of sites like Google, Facebook, Yelp, and various local media publications will have sections where client testimonials are shared. Because these are shared publicly on independent 3rd party sites, they tend to be more reliable than say the testimonial section on an agents website. The more reviews you can find the better, just as you shouldn’t let one rave review sell you, don’t let one bad review deter you. The key here is balance.

Check Out Their Website and Social Media Presence. It’s no longer 2006, a good website that is mobile friendly is necessary. A REALTOR’S® job is to sell your property or find you the best property available on the market before someone else scoops it up. How they communicate online and how they use technology is a window into how well they will be able to represent you in an online world. You want to find an agent who is up to speed and understands how information is shared online.

Check Out Their Credentials.  Have they won any industry awards? Have they won any local awards or people’s choice awards? There is probably a reason for it. Good agents tend to get recognized.

Do they Sell Real Estate Full Time?   In order to be extremely successful at selling real estate, they have to put in the time. It is very hard to do that working part time hours. You will want to find an agent that works full time in real estate so they are available when you need them to be.

Have an interview. After you have spent the time finding an agent that comes highly recommended by friends, and you have done your research, you should have an informal interview to see if you get along with them. If you are looking to buy a property, you might want to meet in a local coffee shop in the area you would like to buy in and ask questions about the area. If you are selling, consider having the agent over to your property and have them provide you with an estimated sales price. You can also discuss their commission structure and the plan they would have to sell your place.

Don’t Feel Any Pressure. Finding a great agent is important, if you feel uncomfortable with someone, chances are other people will as well. Sometimes it works out and you simply “click” with a certain agent, while other times you might have to interview 3 or 4 agents before finding someone you want to work with. Not all agents are created equal, some are better than others, and some are A LOT better than others.

The key to finding a great REALTOR® is to do your research ahead of time. Make sure this is someone you feel comfortable with. This will save you time, heartache and money down the road. The last thing you want to have to do is find another REALTOR® half-way through the process.

Of course if you would like an introduction to a REALTOR® or two that I have worked with in the past and highly recommend, please let me know, I would be happy to pass some names on to you. Contact me anytime!

DIANE BUCHANAN
 Mortgage Broker

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Pay Down Your Mortgage Faster

By Diane Buchanan • 08 May, 2024
Being a home owner is excellent, having a huge mortgage isn’t. So, if you have a mortgage that you’re looking to get rid of as quickly as possible, here are four things you should consider doing. Accelerate your payments Making the change from monthly payments to accelerated bi-weekly payments is one of the easiest ways you can make a difference to the bottom line of your mortgage. Most people don’t even notice the difference or increased payment. A traditional mortgage with monthly payments splits the amount owing annually into 12 equal payments. Accelerated biweekly is simply taking a regular monthly payment and dividing it in two, but instead of making 24 payments, you make 26. The extra two payments accelerate the paying down of your mortgage. Increase your regular mortgage payments Chances are, depending on the terms of your existing mortgage, you can increase your regular mortgage payment by 10-25%. Alternatively, some lenders even offer the ability to double-up your mortgage payments. These are great options as any additional payments will be applied directly to the principal amount owing on your mortgage instead of a prepayment of interest. Make a lump-sum payment Depending on your lender and your mortgage product, you should be able to put down anywhere from 10-25% of the original mortgage balance in a bulk payment. Some lenders are particular about when you can make these payments; however, you should be eligible if you haven’t taken advantage of a lump sum payment yet this year. Making a lump-sum payment is a great option if you’ve come into some money and you’d like to apply it to your mortgage. As this will lower your principal amount owing on the mortgage, it will reduce the amount of interest charged over the life of the mortgage. Review your options regularly As your mortgage payments debit from your bank account directly, it’s easy to put your mortgage on auto-pilot and not think twice about it until your term is up for renewal. Unfortunately, this removes you from the driver's seat and doesn’t allow you to make informed decisions about your mortgage or keep up to date with market conditions. So let’s talk about an annual mortgage review. Working through an annual mortgage review with an independent mortgage professional is beneficial as there may be opportunities to refinance your mortgage and lower your overall cost of borrowing. By reviewing your mortgage at least once a year, you can be sure that you’ve always got the best mortgage for you! There is no cost involved here, just a quick assessment and peace of mind. If you’ve got questions about your existing mortgage or want to compare your mortgage to options available today, please connect anytime. It would be a pleasure to work with you.

Lowering Your Overall Cost of Borrowing

By Diane Buchanan • 01 May, 2024
If you’re like most Canadians, chances are you don’t have enough money in the bank to buy a property outright. So, you need a mortgage. When you’re ready, it would be a pleasure to help you assess and secure the best mortgage available. But until then, here’s some information on what to consider when selecting the best mortgage to lower your overall cost of borrowing. When getting a mortgage, the property you own is held as collateral and interest is charged on the money you’ve borrowed. Your mortgage will be paid back over a defined period of time, usually 25 years; this is called amortization. Your amortization is then broken into terms that outline the interest cost varying in length from 6 months to 10 years. From there, each mortgage will have a list of features that outline the terms of the mortgage. When assessing the suitability of a mortgage, your number one goal should be to keep your cost of borrowing as low as possible. And contrary to conventional wisdom, this doesn’t always mean choosing the mortgage with the lowest rate. It means thinking through your financial and life situation and choosing the mortgage that best suits your needs. Choosing a mortgage with a low rate is a part of lowering your borrowing costs, but it’s certainly not the only factor. There are many other factors to consider; here are a few of them: How long do you anticipate living in the property? This will help you decide on an appropriate term. Do you plan on moving for work, or do you need the flexibility to move in the future? This could help you decide if portability is important to you. What does the prepayment penalty look like if you have to break your term? This is probably the biggest factor in lowering your overall cost of borrowing. How is the lender’s interest rate differential calculated, what figures do they use? This is very tough to figure out on your own. Get help. What are the prepayment privileges? If you’d like to pay down your mortgage faster. How is the mortgage registered on the title? This could impact your ability to switch to another lender upon renewal without incurring new legal costs, or it could mean increased flexibility down the line. Should you consider a fixed rate, variable rate, HELOC, or a reverse mortgage? There are many different types of mortgages; each has its own pros and cons. What is the size of your downpayment? Coming up with more money down might lower (or eliminate) mortgage insurance premiums, saving you thousands of dollars. So again, while the interest rate is important, it’s certainly not the only consideration when assessing the suitability of a mortgage. Obviously, the conversation is so much more than just the lowest rate. The best advice is to work with an independent mortgage professional who has your best interest in mind and knows exactly how to keep your cost of borrowing as low as possible. You will often find that mortgages with the rock bottom, lowest rates, can have potential hidden costs built in to the mortgage terms that will cost you a lot of money down the road. Sure, a rate that is 0.10% lower could save you a few dollars a month in payments, but if the mortgage is restrictive, breaking the mortgage halfway through the term could cost you thousands or tens of thousands of dollars. Which obviously negates any interest saved in going with a lower rate. It would be a pleasure to walk you through the fine print of mortgage financing to ensure you can secure the best mortgage with the lowest overall cost of borrowing, given your financial and life situation. Please connect anytime!
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