In today’s real estate climate, the hopeful home buyer must have two weapons in hand if he or she wants a smooth and efficient search that culminates in the best possible deal on the ideal home.
You need a highly competent real estate agent and the most up-to-date technology.
Having the right agent has been essential to home buyers for as long as properties have changed hands. A good real estate agent not only to keep a close watch on market trends and develops an unflappable ability to discern a good deal from a bad one, but he or she understands the clients and their needs and makes the best use of their time by putting them in front of properties that are a good fit.
Technology has always played a role in the process, but its importance has increased incredibly over the last decade. These days, it can mean the difference between snagging that almost-too-good-to-be-true deal that just hit the market and losing out to a faster gun.
Good tech can mean the difference between “stealing” a property at an absurdly low price and overpaying for one. Gadgets on the must-have list for those in the real estate market include an up-to-date smartphone, a GPS (integrated into the smartphone or as a standalone), and a WiFi-capable tablet.
Having this technology at your disposal is vital for at least three reasons:
Communicating with the agent
Real estate is more fast-paced today than ever. Checking in with your real estate agent once or twice a week won’t cut it anymore if you’re serious about the real estate search and finding a suitable property in a timely fashion.
Top real-estate agents make themselves available to their clients 27/7, either by phone, email, or text, and they’re always quick to respond via any of these mediums.
Conducting efficient searches
The old days of finding an attractive property in a real estate booklet, then having to locate the address on a city map and investigate the surrounding area in person are over. Most of the big real estate sites can give you all that information and more.
Best of all, nearly all of them have issued mobile apps, so if you’re up to speed technologically, you can conduct or modify a real estate search at any time and from any place.
Submitting offers quickly
Competition for quality real estate is very competitive everywhere right now. In many areas of the country, it’s downright cutthroat.
If you see a house he really wants, it’s imperative to move quickly. The time it takes to drive to Kinko’s, print out a contract, and fax it to the seller’s agent could be the time it takes to lose the deal to someone who uses more modern technology to submit the paperwork.
One of the beauties of technology is how it has enabled business transactions to take place more quickly and efficiently. But the flip side of is that some people don’t keep up and get left behind.