Q: My wife and I are shopping for a house, and my father-in-law has told me we should hire a lawyer. Won’t our real estate agent take care of everything for us?
A: Your real estate agent will do their best to help a sale go smoothly. However, since the purchase of a house is one of the most important investments you will ever make, make sure that someone is representing you. That may or may not be your real estate agent.
If you are currently working with a real estate agent, you have probably signed an agreement with them. This agreement will tell you whether the agent will be acting as Buyer’s Agent or as a Transactional Broker. If they are a Buyer’s Agent, they will be looking out for your best interests.
If, however, as is more often the case, they are a Transactional Broker, they DO NOT represent you. Rather, their responsibility is to put the ‘deal’ (the transaction) together.