Bcn Advisors introduce la figura del personal shopper inmobiliario a sus servicios

What is a real estate personal shopper?

It is a real estate service that knows better than you do what you are looking for, offers you a pre-selection of the best properties on the market, indicates the most intelligent offer price and covers all the legal and technical aspects of buying your home. All this is done by just one person: your personal real estate shopper, and now Bcn Advisors puts it at your disposal.

Origin of real estate personal shoppers

Real estate personal shoppers did not arrive on the Spanish real estate market until 2010, and the term did not begin to be registered in Google searches until 2013.

To this day, real estate personal shoppers are still an exception in our field, the Barcelona property market.

Here’s why we’ve just added this service to our luxury real estate agency Bcn Advisors and why you’ll want a real estate personal shopper to help you buy a property in Barcelona.

A real estate professional on your side

Have you ever visited properties you want to buy with the sole support of a family member or friend? You could be making mistakes that the Americans discovered decades ago.

In the United States, it is unthinkable to visit properties you want to buy without a real estate agent working specifically on your behalf and at your side.

Differences between a real estate agent and a real estate personal shopper

Here are the main differences between a traditional real estate agent and a real estate personal shopper:

Accuracy

A real estate agent will show any interested party a property. A personal property shopper will search the property market on your behalf, and select a list of properties that perfectly match your needs for you to visit.

Objectives

A real estate agent works for the seller. A personal property shopper does not have properties for sale and works exclusively for the buyer.

Financial interest

Many estate agents in Spain earn a salary from commissions on property sales. A real estate personal shopper may determine a fixed fee in advance or a fee based on the final sale price.

Negotiations

A real estate agent only transmits his offer to the seller. A personal property shopper takes the initiative on offers and is adept at suggesting the right price and negotiating a lower final price for you.

Analysis

A real estate agent will focus on the best features of a property. A personal property shopper will analyse with you the pros and cons of a property, and that only after having previously identified a list of properties that fit your needs and preferences.

Market research

A real estate agent is in the business of selling property. A personal property shopper will research average property prices, asking prices, neighbourhood demographics and the history of the property market in the area for the properties you are interested in.

Investments

A real estate agent will sell a property whether it is a good investment or not. A personal property shopper will study the expected return on investment and advise you on the suitability of a property type, its location and any other specifics.

Legality

An estate agent is not obliged to carry out legal checks on a property. A personal property shopper will carry out legal checks on any flat or house you are interested in, identifying outstanding debts and charges before you sign any contract, and assisting in the creation and validation of purchase and sale contracts.

Aftercare

The work of a real estate agent ends once the sale has been signed. A real estate personal shopper can help you change utility bills into your name, put you in touch with professional renovation companies, help you get a mortgage, take out insurance, sort out council tax bills and register your name in the land registry.

What does a personal shopper do?

Buy 70% faster with a real estate personal shopper

According to the Spanish Association of Real Estate Personal Shoppers (AEPSI) a real estate personal shopper saves you 70% of the typical time it takes to buy a property. This is extremely valuable if you have little time to spare due to work or family commitments, or if you don’t live in the area where you want to buy a new home.

Here’s what it means to work with a personal property shopper:

– Step 1: Initial meeting to clarify the type of property, budget, facilities required, location, investment objective and return on investment, if applicable.

– Step 2: Market research to identify all potential properties within your focus to draw up an extensive list.

– Step 3: Further market research of neighbourhood demographics, investment potential, if applicable, and site visits to narrow down the shortlist of selected properties.

– Step 4: Accompanied visits to the list of properties, followed by an analysis and background check of the properties you are interested in.

– Step 5: When you are ready, negotiate the purchase price with the seller.

– Step 6: Legal support to prepare earnest money contracts and examine the property for outstanding debts, encumbrances or other problems. If everything is in order, legal support to verify the purchase contract at the notary.

– Step 7: Any subsequent support with utilities, taxes, insurance, mortgages, removals, decorating, maintenance reforms and registration at the land registry.

A personal property shopper can also save you time on special property purchases, such as those involving inherited properties, bank owned properties and those requiring more complex investment strategies.

Save between 5% and 20% with a real estate personal shopper

As you can see, a personal shopper does a lot of work. But this does not mean that you will pay more for using the services of a real estate personal shopper.

According to the AEPSI, you save an average of 5-20% on the final purchase price. Why is this?

For a start, this saving takes into account any legal oversights that leave buyers with unexpected bills or charges or debts, as well as the overall time saved during the buying process.

The savings are also due to the negotiating skills of the personal property shopper thanks to their knowledge of the market and experience in making offers.

Finally, a top-notch personal property shopper will have contacts with real estate agents, developers and building owners who can offer you properties that are not yet on the market or not yet publicly advertised. By giving you exclusive access to these properties, you will be able to enjoy lower prices overall, not to mention a quicker purchase.

Buying a house in Barcelona with a real estate personal shopper

Bcn Advisors is pleased to expand its catalogue of client services with the addition of Alejandro Rocosa, personal real estate shopper, to our team.

“Thanks to Bcn Advisors’ experience and good relations with the rest of the real estate agencies in the sector, we can access and detect the “ideal property” in much less time than usual, saving in some cases up to 70% in terms of search time. A personal property shopper visits all the properties that fit the clients’ preferences and needs, and we are able to identify the characteristics of the properties that are a “yes” for our clients and those that are not. We provide the data and documents to ensure an easy purchase of the property,” says Alejandro.

Knowing that the final purchase price will depend on both the seller and the negotiation, the personal shopper accompanies the client to detect the minimum purchase price and bring the transaction to a fair sale. “For us, a good sale is one in which both the buyer and the seller are satisfied with the established agreement and in 100% of the cases this implies a purchase that is adjusted to the market reality”, concludes Alejandro Rocosa.

What is a real estate personal shopper and which are their functions?