Why Using a Sarasota Real Estate Agent is Important.

This article from Harold Bubil, of the Sarasota Herald Tribune appeared in our local paper.  I think Harold does a great job in summing up the reasons for using a real estate professional in this market.  I recently received a call from a potential customer who was trying to navigate the waters of a purchase without using the proper professional to help him get the job done.  Don’t get caught in stormy waters.  Call a professional and then buy or sell your home and get the job done.


"Even with Web, help from a pro is needed"

By Harold Bubil

Published: Sunday, December 26, 2010 at 1:00 a.m.

The vast majority - 90 percent -- of home shoppers use the Internet to search for a new home, according to the National Association of Realtors. And why not? It's easy, and it gives consumers access to thousands of local and millions of national listings -- information that in decades past was closely guarded by Realtors who carried thick MLS books.

I am beginning to wonder, though, if all this information is too much information.

In searching real estate websites, I get the impression that there is just so much property to choose from that the consumer truly could benefit from the counsel of an experienced realty agent, one who can help him find real value in the right location.

And with so many foreclosure and short-sale homes on the market, each requiring extra diligence and effort on the part of agent and client, why would anyone want to go through this process alone?

I can recall Realtors telling me in the late 1990s that "there just isn't anything decent on the market for $80,000 to $100,000 any more." Well, welcome back to the '90s. The Coldwell Banker site shows 109 homes priced from $75,000 to $100,000 in Sarasota alone. The fine print is that a good number of them are distressed sales, including a few partially renovated houses where the renovator obviously ran out of money. These houses "just need TLC," the listing description says.

Real estate has gotten so complicated in the post-boom era that buying, and especially selling, is even less of a do-it-yourself project than it was in the past.

Before the boom that started in earnest around 2003, it was rather difficult to make a mistake in buying real estate. Mistakes were covered up by steadily appreciating prices.

Since 2006, of course, prices have fallen dramatically. Buyers get stuck with their mistakes.

A good agent can help you avoid them, and maybe save you from hours of mind-numbing search on the Internet.


If you are thinking of buying or selling a home in the Sarasota area please give me a call and I can help.

Posted by Sara Leicht - SaraSellsSarasota.com on

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