The convenience of a personal real estate shopper

This article was written and published in Spanish and has been translated into English via Google Translate. Click here to read the original article.

Surely you have already heard about this figure, from the Anglo-Saxon countries, who came to Spain back in 2010: the personal real estate shopper. Grosso modo, this professional is responsible for protecting the buyer when it comes to the sale of a home.

The personal real estate shopper is in charge of looking for the property that interests the client, negotiating the purchase price and closing the best option for the client. It avoids a few of the headaches that come with home buying. Although the purchase of a home is one of the most important decisions someone can make, it is also undeniably one of the most stressful moments in a person's life. "Will I be wrong? Will I be buying very expensive? Is it the neighborhood that suits me? How will the neighbors be? How about the endowments goes the neighborhood?"

All of these questions, which are already starting to take hold in Spain, are not in vain. There is an association that is looking to answer them all, the Spanish Association of Real Estate Personal Shopper (AEPSI).

This professional usually saves the buyer time, acknowledges any concerns, provides the necessary documentation, and saves money: between 5% and 20% of the exit price of the house.

AEPSI's goal is to address the problems that come with buying a house. In fact, "One in five buyers regrets having bought the house," say Jordi Clotet and Helena Gallardo, authors of the book "Personal Real Estate Shopper, the Nexitum method."

Why such a high percentage? "The purchase of a home is based on a high percentage of emotional aspects, and in many cases the illusion of buying a specific property and the fear of being anticipated by another buyer makes them neglect to verify essential points of the 'check list' that guarantee a safe and optimal purchase. With what kind of neighbors we are going to live together, the state of the property to which the apartment we buy belongs, or the expenses inherent to the property, we are acquiring are some of the most forgotten points among disgruntled buyers," they say.

And many times we throw ourselves into the pool following more emotional than rational reasoning: "What motivates the purchase must always be supported by objective and real concepts. We recommend focusing the purchase from a double perspective: the attractiveness of the characteristics of the home and its location. In this double perspective, the key to success both in relation to current objectives and their future market value," they explain in their book.

Will you end up living where you want or will you settle for where you can? "You live where you can, but many times you do not realize that you could live where you want..."

So, how much do the services of these professionals cost? The real estate companies usually work with a percentage on the price of the house, but when it comes to the personal shopper, the fees are not an expense. In most cases, having the services of a PSI which represents a saving in the total of the operation much higher than their fees. A PSI guarantees a safe, quiet purchase, and at the best possible price. The professional fees are budgeted to each client depending on the order they make and they are always a fixed amount, thus avoiding commissions based on percentages that make the final price more expensive," they explain.

In short, surely it is a figure that adds clarity to the process of buying a home but it would be appreciated that such clarity is reflected in their rates, to know in advance how much money we are talking about.

This article was written and published in Spanish and has been translated into English via Google Translate. Click here to read the original article.

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