would you buy a house from a male real estate agent with long shaggy hair?

Question

i am in real estate school and i am about to start interview and i live in austin. i have medium length (about 5-7 inches long). should i get it cut before i interview, i really love my hair and i took me a year to get it like this, and i live in a pretty liberal city (austin, tx). i am22 years old. lemme know what you think

Answer 1

Sure. It's absolutely legal and people do it all the time. The question is whether you should. Advantages: Ummm. None. The commission is paid by the seller (unless you have a buyer's agent, you're buying from a FSBO (for sale by owner), the FSBO refuses to pay a commission, and you're willing to. I'm not sure about the previous comment about a $200 charge. But the commission is paid by the seller. Using an agent, you have access to the MLS. Yes, some of the information is online--you can find all the listed houses yourself. But there's a lot of information a Realtor has access to that you don't. That includes everything from property history to the ability to quickly and accurately pull comps. Plus, in addition to the "Public/Internet" comments you can find on the house, there's another section of comments that only agents have access to. Although you really should have a lawyer review the documents even if you're using a real estate agent, many people don't go to that expense. However, if you're buying without an agent, you absolutely need a lawyer. And that'll cost. There are plenty of other reasons, too, for using an agent. They do a lot of behind-the-scenes work. For instance, if you're buying a condo or a home with an HOA, they get the documents. They know what other documents are necessary where you are. So, there aren't many advantages (if any) that I can think of for buying a house without a real estate agent. One additional note: The comment above mine, clearly from an investor (I'm one, too), notes that you can do it, and I agree. However, there are other contingencies that even investors include in their contracts. In addition to clear and marketable title, investors usually will put in a financing contingency. Especially if they're using "hard money," they need to protect themselves if the ARV (after repair value) isn't high enough. There are similar contingencies included in contracts that real estate agents use. Many investors buy a property "as is," but many also include an inspection contingency. It may be stated that way, or it may be a more general "Contract is subject to approval by partner." One difference that probably doesn't affect you is that most investor contracts state that the contract is fully assignable. Most/all real estate agent contracts state that the contract is not assignable. So there's a lot more to writing a contract--even for an investor--than making sure there's a clear title on the property.

Answer 2

If commission, money and success are important to your new profession, you want to have as many things as possible in your favor. This would mean trimming your hair.

I know this hurts and you have every right to express yourself any way you want, I personally prefer long hair myself, you will always run across people who will interpret long hair as placing more importance on your personal expression than on the clients benefit.

They may not be correct and in the minority, but do you want to sacrifice 10% of your commission? If so go ahead and keep the hair, no big deal. But if you are hungary for success and advancement it will always involve sacrifice.

Good Luck whichever you choose.

Former Employment Consultant

Answer 3

As long as your hair is styled and clean, I don't think people are looking at the length of it. You can always cut it later if you find out that it is a hindrance to your job.