Hi everyone.
This is your Tampa Bay Realtor Lance Mohr and in this video, I'm going to give you 5
critical tips when buying a new home and I would highly recommend you stay and watch
the entire video because I'm going to show you how to save time, save money and save
frustration.
Before I get into the 5 new home tips on what ask you a favor if you like this video please
share it on Facebook Twitter or LinkedIn because if you find this video helpful.
If you like this video a lot of other people are going to find it helpful as well.
So let's start off with tip number one.
The first tip is to use a real estate agent when you're buying a new home.
I talked to a lot of buyers and a lot of buyers think well I'm buying a brand new home why
should I use a real estate agent or if I use a real estate agent it's going to cost me
more money or I could get a better deal if I don't use a real estate agent or they might
even think well I'm using a real estate agent I'm going to have to pay the agent money.
So the question is absolutely not the real estate agent and their brokers are paid by
the builders.
The money, their Commission is already baked into the price of the home.
So whether you use a real estate agent to help you and represent you or whether you
don't it's not going to make any difference and let me explain what I mean.
Let’s say the builder’s fiscal year end is December 31st.
The Builder is going to put their projections together in October, maybe early November
but probably October and in their projections they're going to go over everything for the
following year.
They're going to know approximately how many homes they're going to be building.
How much land they're going to be buying.
They're going to go over their marketing cost, their advertising costs.
They are going to figure out what percentage of their homes sell through real estate agents.
Usually, it's 70 to 80 percent.
They're going to make that money in there then in the marketing budget then they're
going to stake the sales representatives and they're going to put that money in there.
They're going to take there construction manager bonuses and put that money in there and in
other words, everything's going to be in there already.
So when you go out to a builder the money's already baked in there whether you use a realtor
or whether you don't use a realtor.
So tip number two.
It's to use your realtor for negotiations to negotiate with the Builder.
Let me give you an example a while back.
I had a buyer him and his wife called me up.
I talked to him a year prior they liked me so they were ready to buy a home.
Their lease was over, he called me up and he said we already identified where we want
to live.
He had the subdivision, he even had the Builder and so I got the information and I said well
what the Builder tell you they'd sell you the home for and he said 198 and I said okay
I know the sales rep let me give Kerry a call.
I'll call you back in about five minutes, see what I could do and he said all right
so I picked up the phone.
I called Kerry and I said hey Kerry this is Lance what do you think Jean Anne would have
let the home go for and he said well hold on.
When he put me on hold for a little bit and he had to go pull the numbers.
Now Gina is the owner of the company and this isn't a small builder.
They're one of the largest builders in the nation.
So he went and pulled the numbers.
He comes back and he says well we could let it go for 193 and I said does that include
the garage door opener?
He said yeah I'll throw a garage door opener in there.
So I called the buyer back and I said hey Mark this is Lance I said I'm just got off
the phone with Cary they'll let it go for 193 and a garage door opener and he told his
wife and his wife says I heard her on the other end of the phone she says how in the
hell can they do that?
How can they sell it for less money when they have to pay him a commission and I said but
I said put your wife on the phone if you would?
So she picked up the phone I said hey Joe with Lance Mohr I said let me ask you a question
I said in the next year five years ten years how many homes do you think you're going to
be buying this through this builder and she said we'll probably just this one and I said
yeah I said you think the Builder knows that and she said well yeah I'm sure they do and
I said okay let's say the next one five-ten years.
How many friends family members co-workers are you going to tell how great this builder
is and through your recommendation they're going to buy a home through this builder and
she says well and I said probably none right and she said yeah probably not and I said
you think the Builder knows that and she said well yes I said okay said well last year I
sold 12 homes through this builder.
Their average sales price is $250,000.
They run about a 20% net profit margin so that's about $50,000 per home 50,000 times
12 $600,000.
I said so last year alone I basically helped this builder net $600,000 who do you think
they're going to give the better deal?
So who do you think they want to work with?
Who's going to sell their homes next year?
Now maybe I might sell five of their homes next year maybe.
I `might sell twenty of their homes next year maybe I'm going to sell 50 in the next 10
years or 100 in the next 10 years who knows but that's the point I'm trying to make.
If you hire an agent that works a lot with new home builders and an agent that knows
what they're doing and I would highly recommend if you hire a real estate agent, especially
for new construction, don't think always agents are the same.
Hire someone who knows what the heck they're doing.
Who knows how builders work and how to negotiate with builders.
Know one thing I want to add about negotiations.
I always tell my buyers upfront.
I say I may not be able to get the home for what you want it for but I'll tell you this
I will get the home at the best possible deal.
The Builder is going to let it go for you're not going to find anyone else in your subdivision
that's going to get it for a better price.
So I always want to tell people that up front because expectations are everything.
I just want to be completely upfront with people and tell them the way it is.
So whatever real estate agent you hire to make sure they're always shooting you straight
and give me and you the honest information that's going to help you.
Alright, tip number three is dealing with issues and problem.
So I also always tell my buyers when I'm talking to him.
I say look you're going to be building to home now it could take one month or maybe
it could take six or nine or ten or whatever but there's going to be people walking in
and out of the home constantly thousands of people and things can happen the chances are
you're going to run into problems.
You're going to have concerns.
There's going to issue it's not if there's going to be a problem or an issue.
It’s how is the Builder going to resolve it.
So what I always tell people to do if they if they happen to be out there.
If they happen to see an issue or a problem or if they have a concern about anything always
keep in the loop.
Let me know.
So if they happen to go out there and they see a problem with their new home the Builder
may know about it.
The construction manager but what you want to do is you want to form a paper trail.
So I asked them, I say email the construction manager and let them know the problem but
see myself and the sales rep on there so we're all in the loop because we're all in this
to work together and work as a team to make sure you're happy and if the problem is not
getting resolved.
I may have to step in and that's what I'm here for.
So here's a great example.
I was having a gentleman and he actually didn't want to work with a realtor in the beginning.
He thought he could get a better deal upfront then he went to the Builder.
They told him he can't.
So he got to hire me.
We're going down the road about four months into it.
The Builder was breaking his home.
It was a brick home.
So they were breaking his home and he calls me up and he says well, unfortunately, the
brick looks great but they bricked up the wrong color and I said okay have you talked
to the sales rep Rachel and he said she said he said yes I did I spoke with Rachel and
Rachel told me to come in and get my earnest money back.
If I didn't like the brick they were not going to re-brick it and I said okay.
I expected that if you watch my other videos builders like two-year-olds or no-no-no.
So I just I drove over to Rachel's office.
I sat down and talked to her and she explained everything to me and I said we'll give me
your sales manager’s phone number.
I want to talk to him and so she did.
I picked up the phone he did a little research.
They reprint his entire home.
They took everything off.
I talked to my inspector.
I wanted to make sure they were doing it correctly the inspector told me what they had to do
they did it was completely reburied.
So the thing is again this comes to a real estate agent you need to hire an agent that
knows what they're doing.
An agent that's a problem solver.
They could get things fixed and know-how builders work.
Know what the expectations are and again I don't want anybody to ever think when they're
working with me I'm going to be able to part water or just do things you know anything
but at the end of the day.
I've been in this a heck of a long time.
I know a ton about new construction and whoever you hire as a real estate agent, just make
sure they they know a lot about new construction and they are a problem fixer.
They're a problem solver.
So tip number four.
It’s visiting builders.
If you ever go out to visit a builder you always want to make sure your real estate
agents there.
Don't just go out and start popping in model homes without your real estate agent because
a lot of times agents actually stand out in front of model homes.
Some of them stand inside model homes and trying to steal the customers and this is
becoming a problem with all the real estate agents and the business they call it poaching.
I think it's absolutely sleazy.
So I just I don't think realtor should operate that way.
I think the realtor should put their customer first.
Not worry about the Commission because at the end of the day if you treat people right
you're always going to be rewarded.
I'm just not into that.
I don't like to hear that stuff but the Builder wants to make sure that you actually do have
representation.
That someone didn't I hate to say this but someone didn't just poach you because builders
call it poaching.
So anyhow always make sure you have your real estate agent.
I understand that sometimes maybe your agents out of town or maybe they're with other buyers
and you want to go and look at properties and I completely get that.
So if that is the case contact your real estate agent.
You want to work together.
So tell them where you're going to be going and they could call up the sales rep let them
know you're coming.
Let them know your real estate agent is a real person because if you go in this the
model and you register in your real estate agents not there.
They may not let you use a real estate agent and again it's not that they don't want you
to use a real estate agent because builders love using real estate agents because we bring
them 70 to 80 percent of their clients and I've had builder reps that I've literally
followed around for year in and year out 10, 12, 14 years.
So they want to work with real estate agents but they want to make sure everything's being
done the right way.
So always make sure that you contact your real estate agent or if you walk into a model
and your agents there don't sign the registration card just tell them you don't feel comfortable
signing the registration card.
You just want to look.
You have a real estate agent.
The real estate agent just can't be there because if you go in and you sign the registration
card and you start talking to the sales representative there is a chance that they may not let you
work with the real estate agent and its sort of like shooting yourself in the foot.
So then you know just to make sure your real estate agent is with you when you go into
the model homes.
All right so the fifth tip is let me help you if you have any questions at all.
Don't hesitate to reach out and contact me again I do these videos to help people.
If you live in the Tampa Bay area reach out to me.
Call me.
Contact me.
I would love to help you.
If you're somewhere else.
If you're somewhere else in Florida or another state and you don't know a real estate agent
that knows about new construction reach out to me.
I'll put my contact information below and actually, you could go to my Contact Us page
of my website.
Tell a little bit about where you live.
Where you're looking?
Maybe what zip code you're looking in and I know agents all over the country especially
in the new home construction industry.
I could get you set up with an agent in your area.
It's literally going to take me five minutes.
So it's no problem at all.
I want to help you.
I want to make sure you have a good experience.
If you watched any of my builder review videos and this is just sort of a side note.
I do want to build a review video and I read a lot of comments from people who have really
really bad experiences and I don't want to say certainly that that doesn't happen.
I know it does but the two questions I always ask people if you read my comments and they
have a bad experience.
Is number one did you have a real estate agent represent you and number two.
Did you get a home inspection on the home you're buying and I'll tell you?
So far 100% of the time a number got an answer back to those questions it's really important
that you do both of them.
You work with a real estate agent and hire someone who again is really knowledgeable.
It's sort of like if you were if you were brought up on a Crimean income it would you
just go to the public attorney that they're going to give you or would you go to the best
attorney out there to get the best representation?
Now, what happens if I told you neither one of them is going to charge you any money?
Well, you're going to go to the best and that's the same thing you want to do when you pick
a real estate agent.
So if you have any questions.
Don't hesitate.
If you like this video give me a thumbs up and don't forget to share it.
I appreciate you watching my videos and I hope this was helpful.
Have a wonderful day.