Nation Lending’s loan officers are actively engaged with our clients while they’re shopping for a house. House hunting can be a tedious endeavor. Online tools to help with buying a home on the internet offer the appearance of ease of access but Nations LOs know that things are complicated in the world of buying a home today, and in complicated situations, hiring a professional agent or broker to help can make a huge difference. Using the internet to buy a home is almost impossible although there are mobile apps that will make it seem easy. There are advantages of house hunting online. Nations’ clients can quickly see a huge number of properties on the market, with some details about each and the asking price. It’s a good way to get a feel for the broad outlines of the market. Most sites let you tailor a search to certain types of homes or certain areas. Online sites often list details of who is handling the sale, so you can follow up if you find a promising home. You might have to dig around in the listing to find it, but it is there. But Nation Lending’s loan officers will remind clients that there are pitfalls in a complicated market and looking only online may leave you vulnerable to them. Online listings are only as good as the information that was input. If the listing doesn’t show it, you don’t know it, but a buyer’s agent can quickly do more research and a good one already has. Not every home for sale, or every detail about it, is available online. She may know that the price on a home is about to be reduced or that a brand-new listing that is perfect for you is about to hit the market. An experienced agent knows what other comparable homes are selling which can mean the difference between an offer that’s rejected or accepted and the difference between paying the right price and paying too much. Only you can best judge whether buying a home on the internet all by yourself will work for you but consider the money you may save by hiring a pro. The good thing about hiring a buyer’s agent is it doesn’t cost you one dime more than going directly to the listing agent without representation. In fact, in can cost you big time if you don’t. And your Nations Lending loan officer is happy to recommend a real estate agent if you like!