Rus and UR make good points… and to add anothre caviot I showed homes to 3 different people today. On two of the homes I found the slab to be cracked, in one case significantly. These were both REO homes. I noticed step cracks in both homes and by simply removing the carpets it yielded results. I highly doubt any listing agent or agent holding an open house will do that for you.
I have had a few people come to me after using redfin. If all you are looking for is a simple commission rebate there are alot of people out there who will work with you on that.
Similarly you should want an agent who wants to act as your advocate, not sell you a home. My view on agency is that the agent should provide you information that is unbiased. Whether a sale is made or not should not be of consequence. If you test your agent and they say it is a good time to buy now then I would walk away immediately. That simple litmus test alone should help you filter out most of them, including Redfin agents. If you want agents with quality then you can find them. An honest agent will say that even though the market will head lower (depending on the location) if you want to buy then I will help you as best that I can. It appears to me that the realtors posting here seem to be more then capable and quite honest. I have not done any direct business with any of them but the tone of honesty and straight forwardness seems consistent. Even though he has not posted here in awhile Jim Klinge is a really good guy as well.
Buying a home is not rocket science and if you feel capable enough, then by all means go for it. I feel pretty capable in most endeavors I undertake, even those that are non real estate related or non engineering related (those two being my specialty) yet when it comes to large investments that will affect my life for many years to come, I don’t mind investing in a some expertise to help me out.
