🏡 Understanding Buyer Representation Agreements with The Agency Team Hawaii

E aloha, my name is Dylan Nonaka and I have the pleasure of serving as the team leader and broker in charge for the Agency Team Hawaii. And I want to thank you for considering working with a member of our team in your property buying search. And so in this video, I'm going to briefly talk about our team and share the value that we can provide you as your representative and how buyer's representation agreements work. Because they are a change. They've been in effect, mandatory effect, for the last about year, and a lot of times there is some misunderstanding or just some questions around how buyer representation agreements work, and I want to clarify that and make sure that you feel comfortable signing one before you go and tour homes with one of our agents. So first, just to be clear and upfront, buyer representation agreements are required since August 17th of last year for any buyer to tour a home, to get access to a home with a representative. So it's something that is just part of the process. Now you can think about it very similarly to a listing agreement where we must have a signed agreement with a seller in order to market their home. And now we must have a signed agreement with a buyer in order to show them homes. And so what this means for you is that you really want to evaluate who you work with and ensure that they meet the needs that you have as a buyer and can represent you properly and to the expectation that you have in your property buying search. And so if you choose to work with us and one of our agents, here's what you can expect from our team. The first thing is, is we are the number one team in the state of Hawaii. We helped over 800 families last year purchase property in the state of Hawaii. We have agents on all four major Hawaiian islands. We have the ability because we are a team. And if you work with our agents, they are not just an individual in a brokerage, they are a part of a team. And our aim is to serve you at the highest level possible. And we can show you property really anywhere in the state of Hawaii within 4 hours because of the access that we have and the coverage that we have all across the state. In addition, we have agents that are experts in every type of property in the state. So if you're looking for a short-term rental, you're a first-time home buyer, you're an investor, you're looking for farmland or land properties, looking for an off-the-grid property, a luxury property, we really have an agent that is a specialist in all of those areas. And if your agent that you're working with has any questions or needs any support, we have somebody that we can bring in in order to provide that level of expertise for you. So you don't have to rely on your individual agent's expertise in just the area that they live in or the type of property they normally serve. We can really serve you and answer any questions you have at any level in terms of buying property here in the state of Hawaii. And in addition, we have 3 brokers that serve on our team that are here to assist and 5 brokers that serve statewide and are always available to assist. So you have a really high level of expertise at every level when it comes to your needs and any questions you may have or challenges that you encounter in your property buying search. So this agreement, A buyer's representation agreement, like I said in the introduction, is just like a listing contract when you sell a home. You have to have a mutual understanding of the responsibilities that your agent has to you and your responsibilities as a client of the brokerage. It's going to outline the length of the agreement. So the time that we are under contract and any additional terms. So you have transparency and you completely understand what our contractual relationship is in terms of serving you and providing you with representation. Just always remember, all of the terms in the buyer representation agreement is negotiable. So if you want to have a shorter agreement, or you just want to limit to a certain area of an island, or one island specifically, or a type of property, we can absolutely do that. Your agent will have that discussion with you about what it is that you're comfortable with. And of course, if you're very comfortable, we can sign a blanket agreement that covers 6 months, a year, or whatever you are comfortable with and meets the needs that you have in your property buying process. The most important thing, which of course everyone is concerned about, is how does compensation work? Because when you sign this agreement, you are agreeing to compensate our brokerage for your representation, and we have to put in a specific amount in that term. But what's important to understand here is it does not compel you at the end of escrow to be surprised with a large expense that you didn't think, uh, was part of the purchase price of the property. You will be clear and informed right up front when we are in the offer process before you agree to a fully executed offer on what that cost is going to be. And what we are seeing now that we're almost a year into this new process is that in most cases, 95%+ of the time, sellers are still offering compensation and covering the cost of representation for a buyer's agent. And so just know that that's part of the offer process. There are specific paragraphs, Paragraph C3 and C4 in the contract that are going to outline this, and this is negotiated at the time of making an offer. And you will know who is responsible for compensation at that time. And if a seller is absolutely not willing to provide any type of assistance or contribution towards that compensation, you will know that going in and you can factor that into your overall purchase offer price or into your down payment plan if you're doing financing. So the numbers work for you and there are no surprises at the end, but But again, in the vast majority of cases, 95% plus of the time, sellers are still contributing. And it's a pretty straightforward process. Like it's always been, we've just separated out sellers agree individually to pay their agent and buyers individually agree to pay their agent, but we can negotiate into an offer that a seller contributes the cost of representation for the buyer. So just know you won't be surprised. You won't get hit with a $10,000, $15,000, $20,000 bill at the end of closing. You'll know going in right up front. What your net costs are going to be. And there's additional closing costs like escrow and title fees that we can factor into that. So your agent will be scheduling or has maybe already scheduled a meeting with you to go over all of this. They'll be available to answer any of your questions. And of course, I am always available to answer questions if you have any concerns. And we can go over this in more detail and talk about your specific situation. But again, we look forward to working with you. Thank you for considering one of our agents. We are the highest trained, most effective, and professional group of real estate agents in the state of Hawaii. I'm sure about that. That's my job to ensure that. And so you can expect a very high level of service from your agent. And if you don't get that, you can always reach out to me and I'll make sure that we make that right. So again, thank you very much for considering the Agency Team Hawaii and good luck on your property buying search.