A Buyers Agent in South Carolina DO I NEED IT?
Hi, John Weber in the Low Country with Charter One Realty, today I’m going to talk to you about the exciting subject of Agency. Real Estate Agency. First things first, it is springtime in the Low Country and I can’t really find a prettier place to shoot a video than this. The azaleas down here are just beautiful.
Anyway, if you’re new to the channel you might want to consider subscribing. I put a lot of videos out on all kinds of subjects. About the Low Country, things to do, real estate law like today. So a lot of you have been contacting me through emails or calling me and asking questions about buyers representation, buyers agent, what kind of commission do you have to pay. So here’s the scoop: in South Carolina, which is, all the states have different laws and it’s confusing for people who don’t really do this for a living.
But in South Carolina, there we operate under agency and realtors, real estate agents, when they meet you for the first time, they’re required to give you a sheet of paper that is an agency disclosure. Basically, telling you with rights you have, and what selections you can make as far as buyers representation. Things like that. But the fact is when you walk into a real estate office, you’re treated as a customer. And when they meet you, they’re supposed to give you the disclosure.
Not a lot of people do that, but they’re supposed to. When you got in to a real estate office and you’re a customer, classified as a customer, they’re all going to be very nice to you and they’re going to be fair with you, but they want you to buy their product. Especially if you walk in a developer office. Such as, down here, Palmetto Bluff, Hampton Lake, some of the smaller builder operations. They’re selling developer products and they represent the developer, the seller. So when you want to work with a buyer’s agent, I am classified as a buyer’s agent. You all are coming down from the north, or wherever you’re coming from, and I would give you a buyer’s agency agreement.
Meaning, that you then become a client instead of a customer. When you’re a client of a buyer’s representative, like me, I look out for your best interest. I go to work for you, I look out for your best welfare, full accountability, on and on and on, and I represent you. We’re going to look at homes and home sites, that are represented by seller’s agents and they look after their clients interest.
So I’m looking after your best interest, we’re going to look at a lot of properties, we’re going to put offers in, I’m going to deal with that realtor who’s looking out for the seller. So, it’s really the best way to go and who pays the commission? You want to know who pays the commission. In South Carolina, in a typical situation, the seller is paying commission. So you don’t have to pay me a commission. And if you want to get a buyer’s representation agreement, it’s down below in this video. I’ll have it down there along with the agency disclosure and you can see what I’m talking about.
There’s a paragraph in there that I typically check off and it says, “The commission is obtained through the transaction that the seller is paying through the MLS.” And that’s typically how I get paid a commission. You do not pay a commission under a typical, normal situation. So I think that’s very important to understand. It’s a pretty cool set up actually. You come down here from Ohio or Michigan, or wherever you’re coming from. You work with me, or a buyer’s agent, realtor. And we’re going to look out for your best interest, go to work for you, and the other guy pays commission.
So it’s really a good set up. I typically am a buyers broker. I don’t even have any listings. A lot of people in this business get listings. Now, I’ve had listings, and I will get listings in the future, but it’s not something I really work all that hard to do. I work with buyers and that’s my expertise and it has been for 35 years. So, hopefully that’s it in a nutshell, and you understand what I’m talking about. You enjoyed the azaleas and subscribe to the channel. Ring the bell to get notified when a new video comes out, down below I have a lot of free guides.
You’ll see the agency disclosure and the buyer’s representation agreement. So it’s a good thing to read. Anyway, the other guy pays commission typically. Come see me, John Weber 843.295.2114, that’s my cell. Anyway, call me, email me, and I will be your buyer’s agent and we’ll find your dream home.