How to buy a house in a hot market:

Fire your buyers agent (or don’t get one). You’re at a disadvantage with a multi-offer scenario.

Work directly with the seller agent.

Make offer with 2% credit to seller and 1% more commission for the seller agent.

Disclaimer before the buyers agents try to burn me at the stake:

Don’t do this if you don’t know how to represent your own best interests.

But if you know what you’re doing, this is the best way to win the house because it can be $10-30k that isn’t going to your agent.

My FIL has a property under contract in Athens GA under this exact scenario.

4 offers right at $370k. One was ours.

Other 3 had buyers agents.

Seller agent credited 2% ($7400) on top of our highest and best and he made an extra 1%.

We paid less, seller made more.

We won.

That sellers agent making $14,800 vs $11,100 was HUGE.

40% more commission and you think she doesn’t want to sell to us?

She told us exactly what other terms were important to seller.

We hit them.

Then he talked seller into taking our deal.

And her job is to make the seller the most money.

That 2% ($7400) that would have went to my agent went to the seller.

They ended up making $5k more than they would have over the second best offer.

It was a win for everyone except the agent we didn’t hire.

And most importantly - my FIL is going to own the damn house!

The three folks who hired agents to represent them as buyers are still looking.

Which method would you choose?