Realtors provide a valuable service. We bought in a particularly desirable region in 2021. We put in eight offers before getting one accepted. Our realtor knew the necessary legal forms and requirements, and wrote each offer for us. They also had a background in flipping houses, and were able to give us advice on renovations, and which houses were just bad choices during tours, pointing out flaws we might not have noticed, and telling us when problems were probably easier to fix than we might expect.
Car dealerships are mostly useless. If you've done even cursory research, you probably know more about the car you're buying than the salesperson. Their only purpose is to extract money from you.
They probably got paid ~$50,000 for the service they provided for you. The service may have been valuable, but do you think it was $50,000 valuable? Do you think it should be very difficult to avoid paying that $50,000 if somebody doesn't want the service they provide?
Realtors provide a valuable service, I’ll agree, but I don’t think one in line with the price you’re paying, which is propped up by their cartel system.
I've had pretty universally bad experiences with dealerships, especially ironic in relation to what DeSantis has said here because I distinctly remember advocating myself that something should be covered under the manufacturers warranty, and the dealership said it wouldn't be, and I was very certain it would be, and I had to call the manufacturer (Kia) to get the dealership to play ball. They didn't want to go the warranty route because it turns out, it paid less for the repair.
Realtors on the other hand, I've had some good interactions there, the last 2 I used saved me money and got me more for my dollars, at least.
At least Realtors only become involved when you want them to be involved. There is no regulation that requires real estate transactions be conducted through a Realtor.
Around here, a lot of properties get listed and sold by the local law office. Granted, they don't put in the same kind of marketing effort that Realtors generally do, but when the market is hot buyers will search high and low to find your property for sale anyway.
Unless the market is weak and one needs someone working 24/7 to find a buyer, going straight to a lawyer to sell a property/buy a property is a no-brainer. You are going to need one anyway.
They do but in this day and age the information asymmetry is not that huge or isn't there anymore (depending on the customer). They put up a good face to hook you in. My experience is that they become less enthusiastic (to say the least) once they know that their "sales" force powers will not work on you.
No but having one who knows the law, all the little things to look for, and fights for you even while you are signing paperwork is worth it. (Our realtor was awesome and totally worth the money, at least as a first time buyer).
