FAQ

Buyer Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does Goddin Real Estate in Chapel Hill service the entire North Carolina Research Triangle real estate market area?

The three points of the Research Triangle real estate market area are Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh, North Carolina. Goddin Real Estate services all three of these cities as well as all of the communities located within Orange County, Chatham County, Durham County and Wake County, NC.

Whether its single-family-residential real estate in Chapel Hill, 40 acres of land in Chatham County, multi-family apartments in Durham or a commercial building in Raleigh, Goddin Real Estate is active in all facets of the real estate business within the Triangle real estate market area.

2. What is the importance of your years of experience in providing professional real estate advice and guidance in  North Carolina?

Goddin Real Estate has over 20 years experience in the Triangle real estate market. Real estate sales are complex transactions that most people only do several times in their lives. Our experience and commitment to keeping up with new advances in real estate mean we can guide you through the complexities of a real estate purchase and help make sure the result is a successful closing.

Finding an appropriate property is only part of the process. Making sure that negotiations and the numerous details are handled correctly is also a vital part of any real estate transaction. Heading off potential trouble spots and effectively dealing with problems that arise can save you thousands of dollars, lots of time and reduce the stress involved in your real estate purchase.

3. How will Goddin Real Estate help me find properties that fit my criteria?

GRE will set up an automatic daily search of listed properties that meet your criteria, and have any new listings automatically emailed to you each day. We will also search for unlisted properties by checking newspaper classifieds, for sale by owner websites and publications, mailing postcards to selected neighborhoods, working our network of contacts, etc to find the best property for you.

4. Once I find a property that I am interested in buying, how can Goddin Real Estate assist me?

We will assist you in evaluating the property and the asking price and preparing and negotiating your offer with the seller or listing agent. We will continue to guide you throughout the process - negotiating needed repairs found upon inspecting the property, making sure that all of the proper documents are in place for your closing, etc. Heading off potential problems and effectively dealing with those that arise can save you considerable time, money and stress.

5. I am confused about financing my purchase. How can you help me with that?

While we can’t loan you money, we can help you understand your financing options. Getting pre qualified or pre approved for a loan is an important part of the purchase process. We can help you understand credit scoring and learn the pros and cons of the many types of financing available so you can make an informed decision in choosing financing.

6. How is Goddin Real Estate paid for being my buyer’s agent?

Buyer agent commissions are built into the price of listed properties for sale. GRE has several innovative plans which actually result in buyers receiving part of this commission back as a rebate at closing. Depending on the price of the property and the plan chosen, the rebate can be many thousands of dollars that can be put toward closing costs or to reduce the price of the property. Our fee can often be included in the sales price of other properties.

7. How do rebates work?

Buyer agent commissions on listed property in this area generally range from 2.4% to 3.0%. Our fee plans range from $1500 to 2% of the sales price, resulting in a rebate of $1200 - $7500, for example, on a $300,000 purchase.

8. Do I have to pay any money up-front?

Our plans range from a traditional contingency based commission program (we are paid only upon closing) to a fee based program where the buyer agrees to pay for services on an hourly basis regardless of the outcome. Contingency fees will generally be much higher than non contingent fees. You don’t have to pay any money upfront, but by doing so you can save considerable money in the end and greatly increase your rebate. For more information our rebate programs visit our Buyer Rebate Programs page.

9. This seems like a great deal for the buyer. Why are you able to offer rebates when other buyer agents do not?

We are able to offer these rebate programs for two primary reasons. One is that the Internet and other facets of the information technology revolution have made real estate easier to sell, while price appreciation has made percentage based commissions increase substantially. We are able to do more business more efficiently than in the past, while commissions have increased.  We pass on these savings to our clients.

The second very important aspect of our rebate programs is that they are structured to eliminate as many non-paying clients as possible. Real estate commissions are structured so that the good customers (those who close) typically overpay for services to make up for the non-serious customers who consume time and resources, but never actually buy or sell anything. We think the good customer should be rewarded, not penalized.

10. How do you determine who is good buyer?

Our programs involve a commitment from both sides. We commit to providing you with a high level of professional service for a reasonable price. You commit to using our services exclusively and insure that we are paid for our service.

11. Can I look at properties with other agents, then hire you to be my buyer agent in order to collect a rebate when I find one I want to buy?

No. Real estate commissions on listed properties are governed by rules and arbitration standards established by Realtor Associations, one of which is that in order to claim the buyer agent commission, the agent must be involved in the transaction from the beginning, including the initial showing of the property. We can be your buyer agent on properties that you have seen with other agents but will likely have difficulty claiming the buyer agent part of the commission offered through the MLS. This means that you would have to pay us outside of the sale and would not receive a rebate.

12. I am interested. What is the next step?

Goddin Real Estate offers a free initial consultation to answer any questions you may have about the process. If you decide that you want GRE to be your buyer agent, we complete the necessary paperwork and start down the path of finding you the right property.

Give us a call at 919-968-2100 or contact us by email to schedule an appointment.