Magazine Excerpts from leading

magazines & periodicals

Note: Given a choice, every buyer everywhere will elect to use a "Buyer's Agent."  Because Illinois law now allows other kinds of buyers agents than "exclusive buyer agents," the following articles have been published,  defending, in fact, our "exclusive" variety. 

(Our library has an extensive group of quotations, under "Media Comments".)

The best buyer agents are no longer a secret.  The word is out about Exclusive Buyer Agents (EBA's) the only agents dedicated to only serving you, the real estate buyer.  Traditionally, real estate transactions favored the seller.  In the mid-1990's, it became the buyers' turn to level the playing field.  Savvy buyers wanted the benefits of real estate representatives who were working for their interests exclusively.  U.S News & World Report

"To Buyers: If you want representation, work with a bona fide buyer broker. They are legally obligated to represent your interests in any negotiations with sellers." The Consumer Federation of America states, "A buyer broker (is) legally obligated to represent your interests in any negotiations with sellers. The Consumer Federation of America and AARP recommended using buyer's agents."   Smart Money Magazine

"A conflict of interest is more likely when a real estate firm that represents sellers assigns you one of its brokers as a buyer agent. That's why many people believe an "exclusive" buyer broker is preferable. If there aren't any in your area, and you have to use a listing broker, "make sure they disclose when they are showing you properties they have a financial interest in," says Stephen Brobeck, executive director of the Consumers Federation of America." Business Week

"Agents: How to hire one for your side." "Most agents who show you homes don't represent your interests. They work for the seller, and their object is to sell the house for the highest possible price." USA Today

"You have a whole new evolution of practice in the marketplace," said Sharon Millet, a Maine real estate broker who headed the 22-member NAR task force that issued the report. Millet said that the report's recommendations are designed to give home buyers and sellers easier access to the "kind of representation" that they want." Washington Post

'Buyer Advocacy appears to be taking off." "I'll never buy a house any other way." - Mrs. Renee Talley, Highland Park TX Wall Street Journal "Exclusive agencies are the best. They remove any conflict of interest, which is the main reason for considering a buyer broker in the first place. Kiplinger's CHANGING TIMES

"When one salesperson has a home listed for sale, and another salesperson working for the same brokerage locates a buyer, the second salesperson can't be a true buyer's agent. Why? Because both people work for the same brokerage. A "dual agency" with both buyer and seller is the usual solution. To solve this problem, a few states are experimenting with laws allowing the agent who finds a buyer for a home listed with the same brokerage to be a fully disclosed buyer's agent for the buyer. This "legal fiction" enables the buyer to work with his own agent who, by law, doesn't also represent the seller." Robert J. Bruss - Real Estate Weekly/The Virginian-Pilot

"Level the playing field when you buy a home...You may get a better deal with your own broker pulling for you...The introduction of buyer brokers takes a horribly one-sided process and simply makes it fair," says one broker." Medical Economics