Warning! The big red flags that signal a bad Buyers Agent

Starting my career as a Buyers Agent in 2008, there weren’t many of us around, and I regularly had to explain how we work and the value we bring.

Fast-forward to today, and it’s great to see the industry growing and more people choosing to trust a Buyers Agent with the biggest purchase they’ll ever make. However, the past few months have opened my eyes to a new wave of Buyers Agents who have written their own rule books. 

Whether you’re a first-time buyer, a seasoned investor or anywhere in between, buying a property can be emotional and stressful. Working with a professional to focus your search and guide your journey can significantly ease that burden, but it pays to be discerning about who you invite into your corner. 

Please keep an eye out for these warning signs if you’re thinking about using a Buyers Agent.

Red flag 1: A Buyers Agent pops up from nowhere. 

Cold calling has been going on for years, but it’s on the rise. It’s a practice that may seem like an honest hustle to win clients, but it’s a lousy way to start a relationship. There’s a good chance the Buyers Agent purchased a list of names and numbers from sales agents who’ve created databases from open homes and enquiries. Now whether this is legal or not depends on the size of the list and the agency who sold/ gave it to them, but that is for another blog… 

Once you’re on the call, you’ll quickly realise they have little to no strategy other than trying to play with your emotions, tap into that FOMO, and get you to sign on the dotted line.  

A personal referral is a good way to find a Buyers Agent however it is still important to do your own due diligence. A good place to start is to ask them whether they receive or give out any referral fees and if they work exclusively as buyers agents ( and not sell on the side too). Just because your cousin Lara has a good experience with them once doesn’t necessarily make them a good judge on the quality of service they received. 

I would say that length of time in the industry ( as a buyers agent, not selling agent) is a critical factor. In my experience it takes many, MANY, years before someone has enough experience to start charging someone to help them buy a property, as every transaction is so vastly different, it takes so much due diligence and knowledge to make quality risk assessments. You are constantly dealing with different people and market conditions just to name a few things. …so longevity in the market is key here. You do not want a buyers agent honing their skills on your house purchase…

Red flag 2: The phantom five stars and social media stars 

Online reviews are always worth reading; just be sure you pay attention to WHO has left the review. It’s not uncommon for Sales Agents to leave glowing reviews for the Buyers Agents bringing them all their clients. Whilst it is very important for your buyers agent to have positive working relationships with selling agents, I wouldn’t pick one solely on those reviews. 

The review might even be vague about who they are, so dig deeper! The more detail they can give you the better. In fact, it has happened to us that our Google reviews left by our clients were removed by Google because they were so long and lengthy that Google thought they were fake! Oh… the irony…

The same goes for social media. Whilst all the apps are a must for most businesses nowadays, I mean.. guilty as charged, I know I have thrown a few reels and TikToks out there, it is important to dig deeper than that. Social media is marvellous at creating fake realities and sometimes people fall for a brand or image of a person that is nothing more than a pretty facade or house of cards ..pardon the pun! . 

As such I recommend you look at the quality of the purchases for their clients. I strongly believe that a buyers agents should help a client BUY BETTER - A better quality property at a better price - simple as that! Ultimately you can buy a sh*&*y property all by yourself ( I will dedicate another blog on that topic)  but you really don’t need our help for that, let alone have someone charge you for the privilege. 

Red flag 3: A Buyers Agent that sells to you.

Buyers Agents are not there to talk you into buying any one particular property. They should never be pushy and whilst we can play many roles in your property search, a salesperson should not be one. 

I am of the opinion that it is a buyers agent’s role to show you the good, bad and the ugly in a property. We more than scratch the surface on each property we evaluate and look at the property critically beyond the cool styling and fresh lick of paint. It has to be said that no matter what budget you have, there is no such thing as a ‘perfect’ property, however a buyers agent should give you perspective on which property will make a good choice and which property to walk away from. 

We do not have a time limit on our agency agreements for this very reason; there is no ticking time bomb hanging over your head.  It is our way of showing you that the search can take as long as it takes - sometimes that is a couple of weeks, sometimes a couple of months or longer. The focus should be on buying you the RIGHT property at the RIGHT time, not buy FAST. So perhaps question the agreement if you have come across this. What happens if you haven't bought at that point? 

A Buyers Agent going hard on one listing or leading you to listings from the same agency repeatedly is another major red flag. Heavily favouring off-market properties may also be a sign that the agent only thinks of their commission. Which leads me to red flag 4….

Red flag 4: A questionable commission structure.

I’ve heard of Buyers Agents offering two different fee structures: 1% commission on a purchase if the property was listed ‘on’ the market and 2% commission for properties purchased ‘off-market’. 

This kind of practice creates significant bias. They’ll steer their client to the off-market purchase, whether it’s the best option for them or not because they’ll double their commission! 

We charge a fixed fee for your service, quoted up front, simple and fair, irrespective of where the property bought is found. As far as I am concerned a % fee commission makes sense for a selling agent, however for a buyers agent to charge this way is a clear conflict of interest. 

No matter what, it always pays to research. Take your time before selecting a Buyers Agent, and keep alert for anything that sounds dodgy or too good to be true. 

If you’d like an honest chat about your situation, my team and I are always on hand to offer advice. No cold calling guaranteed! .