subject: Benefits Of Hiring A Realtor In Rochester Mn [print this page] Rochester Minnesota is a city of some 100,000 people that straddles the banks of the Zumbro River in the southeastern part of the state. It offers its residents a wide range of attractions and opportunities, and no one knows more about what makes it special and how to make the most of it than a local real estate agent.
WHY ROCHESTER?
Rochester is best known as the home of the Mayo Clinic, which is the city's largest employer and a magnet for some two million visitors each year, but there is more to Rochester than the clinic. IBM operates a large manufacturing facility that has grown steadily since 1956, when it opened the first of its buildings, a glass-clad facility designed by distinguished architect Eero Saarinen. Three residences designed by another noted architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, also live on in Rochester.
Downtown businesses, hotels, restaurants and medical buildings are connected by skyways and underground walkways that shelter pedestrians from winter weather, and the city is served by bus lines and by Rochester International Airport a few miles south of downtown.
Rochester is hardly all business, however. The city has over 100 parks occupying more than 3,500 acres, several golf courses and more than 85 miles of paved trails available for biking, skating, running and walking.
WHY WORK WITH A REAL ESTATE AGENT?
Buying or selling a home is a rare event for most people and the process can be complicated and challenging. To compound the stress inherent in this unfamiliar territory, a home is often the seller's most valuable asset and the buyer's single biggest expense. A real estate agent who has been there before, who knows what goes into a successful transaction and who knows the city and the neighborhood thoroughly is an invaluable ally whether you are buying or selling.
For the Seller
The first order of business in selling a home is marketing, and marketing begins with pricing. A good agent knows this, and can evaluate the properties that are out there competing with your home. If there are specific physical factors that affect your home's value, an agent knows what they are and which ones are worth addressing.
A real estate agent also has advertising tools that go well beyond placing an ad in the paper and putting up a sign. Agents look to the Multiple Listing Service for word of properties new to the market, and supplement the MLS with a network of other agents working with interested buyers.
Finally, an agent is there to shepherd the transaction through negotiations, inspections, appraisals and a host of regulations that apply to real estate transactions, all of which need careful attention.
For the Buyer
In many ways, an agent's work for a buyer is the reverse of what a seller requires. A good agent knows what is on the market and whether a property is a good value, both objectively and in light of the needs of a specific buyer.
Buyers confront with their own issues when dealing with negotiations, inspections, appraisals and regulations. To add to the burden, most buyers must also navigate the often-frustrating business of financing the purchase, a process that can seem even more complicated than actually buying a home. Good brokers know the ins and outs of mortgage lending, where things go wrong and how to make things go right.
All of the many unfamiliar steps that make up every real estate transaction go more smoothly with the help of a seasoned real estate agent.
