Dangers When Buying A Home: Quality Of Life Issues

Quality of life issues are very important to most home buyers. Priorities are highly individual, and a skilled buyer's broker will know their region -- and get to know you -- well enough to advise you on and help you weigh such matters as:

• Seclusion vs. Convenience
• Community
• Age and types of construction (Old stone houses? Modern architectural marvels?)
• School districts
• Recreation
• Transportation
• Shopping
• Cultural activities

…and the list goes on. This is where no website or cyber-salesperson can help you in the way that a trained, experienced buyer’s broker can. You need--and should expect--someone intimately knowledgeable about the community that he or she is serving.

Many of these hazards will be evaluated during the structural inspection. However, potential environmental hazards off the property can be evaluated by your buyer's agent or other appropriate professionals. Here again a knowledgeable local real estate professional representing your interest can be invaluable. They know the area they serve intimately and are aware of where local landfills, industrial sites, listed superfund sites, etc., are located, and can determine their proximity to the property you may be interested in.

A buyer’s agent can give you valuable information with regard to cultural and historical assets in the area. They can give a great deal of information that will help you evaluate the attributes of the community within which a home is located. There are certain legal restrictions on the opinions they can offer, but they can point you to invaluable resources.

The Single Most Valuable Service

If the only people who are giving you quality-of-life information are agents of the seller, how likely are you to get the information you need? Providing you with the information you need to make truly informed decisions about quality-of-life issues may be the single most valuable service your buyer broker performs.

Invaluable services that you get for free!

Note: The terms "buyer's broker," "buyer's agent," and "buyer representative" are used interchangeably on this site. Different locales use different terminology for the same idea: a real estate professional who represents you -- the buyer.