During the summer of 2007, my wife and I started looking at new homes and townhomes in various Atlanta neighborhoods. We did all the search work ourselves, visiting many sales offices and websites. Since this was our first home purchase, we wanted to hire an agent to help us with the purchase. Preferably, one that would give us a partial rebate of the 3% buyer agent's commission.
After many web searches, I came across Ronnie Orston at Hoffman International Properties. Her website detailed a program where if you bought a new construction home through her, you would get 2/3 of her commission (generally 2% of the home's value). I called to get details and discovered it was totally legit. Her feeling was that you were entitled to part of the commission since you did all the work finding the home. And with the web, it is quite easy to find all new construction homes in your desired area.
We decided to sign with her. Since she would only be getting 1/3 of the buyers agent commission, I wasn't sure how much attention I would get. Well, she was amazing! She would often call and email to check in on us, and was very helpful whenever we called with questions (and we had many). She was also accessible late nights and weekends. Her professionalism and friendliness were superb. She was also a great negotiator, as we got a terrific deal on the home.
We ended up buying a townhome in the Brookhaven/Dunwoody area, and received our rebate check from her a few days later (2% of the home's value buys you a lot of nice furniture!). Another bonus- a Federal Court has ruled these types of rebates are tax-free. Also, commission rebates are LEGAL in Georgia (look it up). A few local agents told me rebates are considered illegal kickbacks, but they are 100% wrong.
In the end, Ronnie is a no-brainer choice for anyone who is buying new construction and doesn't need hand-holding in terms of finding new homes. Many buyers go into sales offices without agents, and demand a discount because the builder won't have to pay a commission. Sure, they'll probably give you a discount. But if you use Ronnie, you know you will be getting an additional 2% rebate on top of whatever discount you negotiate with the builder. If you have decent negotiation skills, this is the way to go. read more