Buyers' agent for Chevy Chase, Kensington, etc., in Montgomery County

[Anonymous]

We'll soon be looking for a house to purchase, possibly in Chevy Chase, Kensington, or nearby parts of Montgomery County. Any strong recommendations for realtors whom we should consider?

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

We have used Bobby Taylor w/ Long & Foster twice and were very happy. His # is 301-452-1013 (cell phone). I'm not sure of his office #, we always called him directly however here is the link to his website.

http://www.bobbytaylor.org/

[Anonymous]

Absolutely: Cindy Holland, the buyer's specialist with the Speaker of the House Team (www.speakerofthehouseteam.com). Cindy works with her sister, Peggy Speaker, who specializes more as a listing agent. Cindy is a terrific buyer's agent. She knows that area well and owns a house in Kensington. They're Long and Foster agents and their office is on Chevy Chase Circle. Cindy worked with us for months and she is really terrific. I can't say enough good things about her. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

we boughtt two homes with Angelica boiteux with Long and foster. she lives in the bethesda area and has little babies who go to school there. she was knowledgeable about the area and helped us rent first and hen buy a house

her phone number is [phone] her cell
and her email is [e-mail]

she is quick and resonsive since we had little time to look it was a pleasure!

[Anonymous]

how much does a buyer's agent cost?

[Anonymous]

That depends on the service that you go with. If you are using a company who has 'Buyers Agents' the service fee or 'commission' is charge through the buyer but paid by the seller at settlement. Essentially costing you nothing. I work with Long and Foster and we (by we I mean Long and Foster, not myself) charge an admin fee of 295 which is a check you write at settlement. If you work with a company such as The Buyers Edge, etc. You pay them a fee upfront, usually 3% of what your target home price would be and then they are reimbursed at settlement and a check is either cut back to you or goes towards your downpayment. Essentially it 'costs' you nothing to work with a Buyers Agent, but if you think about it, you are paying the purchase price. So all things being equal... That being said, please let me just say, that in the State of MD, VA and in the district you have the LEGAL right to work with a Buyers Agent and that if you are a buyer and write a contract through a selling/listing agent you are not doing yourself any favors. They owe no responsibility to anyone but their client, the seller.

[Anonymous]

We bought our house in Chevy Chase DC using Polly Driscoll (she also sold our Woodley Park condo). She is fabulous -- always available and responsive, very hard-working, and really knows both NW DC and Montgomery County well. It took us almost 3 years to find our house, so we developed quite a relationship! One of the best things at the beginning was take us on a driving tour of NW DC, Silver Spring, Kensington & Bethesda, showing us around and telling us lots of tidbits about each of the neighborhoods. It was so educational for us, who didn't really know much about neighborhoods outside the District. Anyway, I absolutely love Polly. Her info is here: http://www.expertsinrealestate.com/

[Anonymous]

p.s. To answer your question about costs, the sellers pay a commission (generally either 5 or 6%) which is split between the buyer's and seller's agents. So, buyers essentially get their agent's services for free.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:p.s. To answer your question about costs, the sellers pay a commission (generally either 5 or 6%) which is split between the buyer's and seller's agents. So, buyers essentially get their agent's services for free.

i think this is wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:p.s. To answer your question about costs, the sellers pay a commission (generally either 5 or 6%) which is split between the buyer's and seller's agents. So, buyers essentially get their agent's services for free.

i think this is wrong.

No, that is correct. The commission fees come from the buyer. Not so much out of pocket but out of the final sale.

[Anonymous]

It's right. Look at your HUD-1 form from when you bought your house & you will see that both commissions were paid by the seller. Buyers still have to pay lots of closing costs (in DC about 3% of the sales price), but not the agents' commissions. Though, as noted by a previous poster, buyers may have to pay a nominal fee ($300) to the broker, but many agents will pay this on the buyer's behalf.

[Anonymous]

the thread title is misleading. OP is buying and looking for an agent, but she's really not looking for a true 'buyer's agent.' A true buyer's agent is paid by the buyer and supposedly has the buyer's best interests in mind. most 'buyer's' agents can be a great help for buyers, but they are ultimately paid by the sellers so not necessarily 'working for' the buyer.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Sorry to hear that my thread title is misleading!

11:43 poster, can you clarify your distinction between a "buyer's agent" and a "true 'buyer's agent'"? I am a buyer, and I do want an agent working for me, with my best interests in mind. Is a buyer's agent not the right label for that person?

[Anonymous]

I think may here are confused and have had a lot of incorrect or misleading information passed around through their experiences or through someone else's.

A buyer's agent ALWAYS has the buyer's best interest at heart. As with any business relationship it is prudent to have a signed contractual agreement between all parties. Listing agent and seller, selling (BUYER) agent and buyer, and in the case that a person wants to purchase a property without an agent they MUST (read: PER LAW) have a Declination of Buyer Agency between Listing agent and prospective buyer.

The are only two slight differences between what a previous poster commented about a buyer's agent and a 'true' buyer's agent. An agent working with a brokerage i.e. Long and Foster, Coldwell Banker, etc. is that they may take listings and they may also take on buyers as a selling agent. They are able to work on either as they choose. In the state of MD, VA and in the District it is up to the purchaser to practice due diligence and realize that they have the option to be represented. I mentioned this in another post, that ignorance is no excuse and that no one is doing themselves any favors by working with a seller's agent (as they owe no responsibility or duty to the buyer). Then there are 'true' Buyer's Agents. These are people who NEVER, NEVER take on listings. They NEVER work with sellers at all. Some think this is good, I think it is stupid. Look up the Buyer's Edge company, they have founded a few associations and you can see that they really stick to the point that a person who works as a listing agent could never keep a buyer's interest at heart. They are mostly referring to DUAL AGENCY and the fact that a brokerage that offers DUAL AGENCY (meaning that you can purchase a property listed by a specific company using a buyer agent that also works for that company) never has anyone's best interests at heart.

It is very confusing stuff and I think that with everyone throwing information around based on second-hand, third-hand and friend of a friend knowledge makes it more so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think may here are confused and have had a lot of incorrect or misleading information passed around through their experiences or through someone else's.
...
It is very confusing stuff and I think that with everyone throwing information around based on second-hand, third-hand and friend of a friend knowledge makes it more so.

No, it's not confusing at all. It all comes down to who's paying the agent sitting next to the buyer at the closing table. It's the person sits across the table.

Thanks for clearing up the terminology though. So the OP is seeking recommendations of a SELLING AGENT, commonly referred to as BUYER'S AGENT. So by definition of the titles, listing agent is the person markets the property, and selling agent is the person sells the property to his client, and both gets commissions from the seller.

Practically, most buyers have no problem having the other side picking up the tab for the selling agent's services to the buyer. But some do, and that's why there's the (true) BUYER'S AGENT who gets paid by the buyer.