Investment professionals agree: the single largest investment most Americans make during their lifetime is the purchase of a home.  If you're thinking of "taking the plunge" by purchasing a new home, don't place your trust with just any Realtor before asking them one simple question: Can you legally pledge to represent my best interests as your client during the entire transaction?

Only an Exclusive Buyer's Agent (EBA) can legally answer "yes" to that question... and you shouldn't settle for anything less!  Because Realtors who elect to exclusively serve real estate buyers never list (or sell) properties, rest assured you will be served as a client during the transaction -- not just a customer.

At Total Real Estate, we pride ourselves on exclusively representing real estate buyers.  In fact, we have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure the best interests of our buyer clients are protected during the entire transaction.  A fiduciary responsibility is defined as: "owing an obligation to carry out the responsibilities with the utmost degree of good faith, honesty, integrity, loyalty and undivided service of the beneficiaries interest."

Other real estate Brokers who take listings (or sell properties) can't legally make this claim.  Those Brokers owe a fiduciary responsibility to the party who pays their commission for the sale of any property, and that party is typically the seller.  What many consumers don't realize is the vast majority of realty companies can (and do!) offer to represent both buyers and sellers in the same marketplace or, worse yet, in the same transaction -- which only serves to expose the buyer to potential conflicts of their best interest.

Think of it this way: Can one person effectively serve two masters?  The answer, of course, is no.  In the context of a real estate transaction, it's similarly impossible for one Broker to effectively serve the best interests of two clients.  Ultimately, because the Broker owes a fiduciary responsibility to the seller, the buyer's best interests are compromised.

From a legal and ethical standpoint, there are no hurdles preventing Brokers from  steering any given buyer into purchasing a home from within their own inventory of homes.  And Brokers who represent both buyers and sellers have a vested interest in making that happen.  Brokers who successfully coerce buyers into purchasing a home from within their own inventory typically stand to earn twice the commission upon the sale!  It's a classic case of double-dipping, furnished at the expense of the uneducated buyer.

The bottom line: In most real estate transactions involving only one realtor, the seller is served as the Broker's client... which leaves you, the buyer, to be represented as nothing more than a customer in the transaction.  And while the seller may pay the commission to the Broker upon the sale of their home, the buyer pays the ultimate price by failing to have their best interests represented and protected during the entire transaction...

The advantages of working with an Exclusive Buyer's Agent during the home buying process is probably best summed up in this analogy: If you were facing charges in a court of law, would you want the same attorney to both prosecute you and defend you?  Of course you wouldn't -- so why risk compromising your interests as a buyer in any real estate transaction?

Today's educated home buyers understand they have a right to full and equal representation, service and protection; just as the seller receives from their listing agent or brokerage.  And savvy buyers are demanding the level of service that only an Exclusive Buyer's Agent can legally provide.  EBA's manage the entire process of buying a home -- from planning, locating and evaluating property to negotiating price and terms, arranging financing, scheduling inspections and more.  We do it all!

Whether you're a first time home buyer or an old pro, a relocation buyer or you just want to take the hassle out of buying a home, insist on receiving undivided loyalty and the protection of your best interests!  Talk to an Exclusive Buyer's Agent first...

Now you know why we say "It's better to be served as our client than another realtor's customer."  And you shouldn't settle for anything less!

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