Frequently Asked Questions

   Why do I need a buyer's agent?

   Many consumer agencies have long recommended that home buyers seek independent representation from a licensed buyer's agent. Since sellers have representation, it makes sense for buyers to be equally represented.

   The listing agent works for the exclusive interest of her sellers. A buyer's agent works for your exclusive interests as a buyer. In the overwhelming majority of cases, you do not pay any money to hire a buyer's agent. The buyer's agent receives his professional fee from the listing agent. You gain a major advantage. You pay nothing. It is makes practical sense.

   What about working with a buyer's agent who works for a large franchise company?

   Unfortunately, an agent trying to be buyer's agent in a general real estate office may face pressure and conflicted loyalty to both her seller agent colleagues and her manager to push company listings.

   At Wellesley Real Estate, as your buyer's agent, we do not list properties for sale. We do not work for sellers. We work for buyers. We work for you. Our loyalties are not misplaced or divided. We do not try to wear two very different hats. This means that we are not constrained by any obligation to sell you any particular property. We are free to offer you objective advice on any individual home with no exceptions.

   For example, in direct contrast to the seller's agent, we will pass along any positive or negative information about the seller or the property that helps you make a smart investment decision and get the best deal possible. We are on your side. Our critical eye will join your discerning eye to spot potential problems. We will help you ask the right questions and get satisfactory answers. We will help you consider your home buying objectives and reach the best informed decision regarding all of your home buying options.

   If I see a house I like online, why shouldn't I call the listing office and listing agent directly rather than calling Wellesley Real Estate?

   The listing agent works for the owner of that house and not you. Her obligation is to get that one house sold for her client. She may be a very pleasant person but unlikely to be interested in your personal family housing needs and objectives and unlikely to recommend alternatives and options that suit your needs. Her obligation to her seller is to get that one house sold. Her first loyalty is to her sellers. Her second loyalty is to her company and her company's listings.

Bill and Mark

   At Wellesley Real Estate, as buyer's representatives, we make your housing objectives and your family our sole priority. We will listen to you, follow your direction and help you to evaluate each individual listing in terms of all available listings and all of your housing options.

   What is the risk of simply calling a national real estate company with an office in Wellesley?

   Let's be frank. Buying a home in Wellesley is a great choice but a great choice entails a major investment. If you don't know a market, you must be careful in choosing an agency and agent. All real estate offices and all real estate agents are not created equally. Why take a shot in the dark, a random chance that may find you working with a part-time or inexperienced agent? You do have a choice. Why gamble? Since there is no cost, why not choose to be represented by an experienced professional full-time buyer's agent like Bill FitzPatrick, President of Wellesley Real Estate? Read Bill's bio.

   If you make a random call or dash off a random email to just any real estate office in Wellesley, you are at any immediate disadvantage. As an unknown person, without a specific referral, you will be randomly assigned to any agent who happens to pick up the phone or happens to answer your online query or happens to be just hanging around the office. Good luck.

   With hundreds of thousands or millions of your dollars at stake, why flip a coin or rub a rabbit's foot? Who would ever do that? Well, it happens every day to consumers who don't understand how the real estate brokerage business works. Seventy percent of buyers are under the misguided assumption that the agent showing them a home is working for them. This is a very wrong and potentially very costly, inaccurate presumption. Listing agents work for sellers. Period. Full stop. Only a buyers' agency, such as Wellesley Real Estate, works exclusively for you.

   Realize that in upscale communities like Wellesley, many of those working in real estate are not experienced full-time real estate professionals. Some are. However, some are full time parents with their own family obligations who dabble in real estate hoping to score an easy listing or easy sale and make some easy extra money. Others are unemployed workers from other fields who are temporarily trying to make money in real estate while really hoping to stay afloat until the economy improves. Others are inexperienced trainees.

   As you do your online research, you will find a few super agents in Wellesley. These super agents distinguish themselves as listing superstars. They are very successful networkers who are already very busy marketing their own listings and working with their own clients and you are not their client. Even with a referral, you are still an unknown to the superstar. And as such, you are likely to be assigned, at least initially, to one of her team members.

   Read Bill's bio and decide. Do you want to take a chance on being relegated to an assistant? Or, do you want to be represented directly by the founder of Wellesley Real Estate, Bill FitzPatrick? Bill lives in Wellesley and he knows the Wellesley market. At Wellesley Real Estate, you will always be the personal client of Bill FitzPatrick. You will always have Bill's cell phone number, 508-420-1800.

   What do you mean that we pay nothing for representation from Bill and Wellesley Real Estate?

   We mean exactly that. In the overwhelming majority of cases, our professional fee is paid by the listing agency. We will be at your side: from showings to negotiating to inspecting to financing to closing and beyond. You control the decisions. We handle the details. You will have the advantage of Bill FitzPatrick's experience, knowledge of the town, negotiating skills, and discerning eye.

   What if I want to look at houses that are not in Wellesley?

   Most of our clients begin their home searches in Wellesley. However, as the home buying process unfolds and develops, your search may take you to the neighboring towns of Weston, Dover, Needham, Natick, Newton and others. Research will show you that all of the towns surrounding Wellesley are also very livable communities with good school systems. We are members of all regional MLS boards, familiar with the Greater Wellesley area and, as your buyer's agent; we will represent you wherever your home search leads.

   What if I also want to buy a pied-a-terre in Boston or summer home on Cape Cod?

   We can represent your buyer interests.

   Won't any agent work hard to put a deal together?

   If you are being shown a house by the listing broker, you are at a complete negotiating disadvantage. You are alone. The listing broker has a fiduciary relationship with her seller. She must be completely loyal to her seller and is legally, ethically and professionally bound to divulge to her sellers any and all financial information and strategies that she has heard or overheard in conversations with you or any of your family members.

   You may also be at a disadvantage if you are working with an out-of-town, part-time or younger agent. These agents may be intimidated during the negotiating process especially in Wellesley transactions which may involve a million dollars or more. They may become pressured and timid exactly when strength and confidence are most needed. Wellesley is a very nice community where the majority of homeowners are successful businesspeople and capable educated professionals who are ready, willing and able to present their financial expectations and conditions to their advantage. As a buyer, to protect your family's interests, you must be equally prepared to negotiate hard to ensure that the final agreement represents the best possible price, terms and conditions from your perspective.

   Read About Bill FitzPatrick. Bill has successfully negotiated hundreds of real estate transactions. He will be negotiating on your behalf. Bill realizes that this is your money, your home and your family's peace of mind at stake. He has the experience, skill and patience to present your offers and your position as you direct.

   My company is covering my relocation expenses. Why should I care about working with a buyer's broker like Wellesley Real Estate?

   There is a difference and it's personal.

   As with any major purchase, the decision to buy a home in Wellesley is governed by a multitude of factors. While there may be corporate and financial reasons governing your purchase, there is always a strong emotional component. Your family will be meeting new neighbors and making new friends. At Wellesley Real Estate, we are sensitive to the human issues beyond the numbers. We will help your entire family relocate successfully from tots to teens to seniors. At your direction, we will take the time to introduce you to the wonderful Wellesley community: schools, colleges, restaurants, shops, museums, recreational amenities, religious institutions, libraries, town offices and transportation.

   We don't just help you buy a property in Wellesley. We help you make that property, you home. Let Bill introduce you to everything that makes the town of Wellesley so special.

   As an independent, locally-owned boutique real estate firm, Wellesley Real Estate's reputation and success is built upon a singular commitment to our buyer clients' best interests as well as our experience, expertise and excellence. Taken together, it amounts to the kind of service that will exceed your most demanding expectations. So, yes, make it personal and recommend Wellesley Real Estate to your RELO staff.

   Why doesn't it make more sense to deal with a large agency rather than a small agency like Wellesley Real Estate?

   Regardless of the realty company you choose, you will primarily be dealing with a single agent. Will that adviser be an experienced agent loyal to your family's interests or will it be a random agent loyal to her seller and larger agency? You decide. In doing your due diligence, take the time to study this website. You will have a good idea of the qualifications of Bill FitzPatrick and the services offered by Wellesley Real Estate.

   We are a small boutique agency. You will be represented by Bill FitzPatrick and his personal staff. In your interest, be assured and confident that as Realtors we will always cooperate with all other agents and agencies. Additionally, at your direction, we can recommend builders, contractors, inspectors, banks, attorneys, etc. And, of course, we will cooperate and assist with any of your personal advisors and staff.

   Purchasing a home is a critical transition in life. Choosing a firm with the talent and dedication to see you through the entire process makes all the difference. At Wellesley Real Estate, we make successful outcomes happen. When you are ready to move to Wellesley, please call or email us. We guarantee that you will know very quickly that you made the right choice.

   Do you only sell million dollars properties?

   Wellesley is a great place to live and buying real estate has proven to be an excellent investment. In the town, there is a range of housing from smaller affordable options to grand estates. Guided by your strict requirements and wish list, we will select available offering for immediate showings and will continue to monitor the market for future opportunities. Whether you are relocating, moving up or interested in a condo option, if you are a buyer, you should be represented by Wellesley Real Estate.

   We will be selling a Wellesley home and buying another home in Wellesley. We are interested in having you represent us as buyers. Does this mean that you are not interested in listing our present home for sale?

   We are exclusive buyers' agents, and we mean what we say. We do not list properties for sale. All other real estate offices in Wellesley are geared toward sellers and actively seek listings. They are capable marketing firms and dedicated to serving their clients, their sellers. If you are selling, interview them. If you are buying, come to us.

   Why do I have to sign a contract to look at properties with you?

   There is a mandatory disclosure law in Massachusetts. This means that before showing you properties, all licensed real estate agent are legally obligated to ask you to sign a disclosure form and acknowledge that the agent is acting as a buyer or seller agent. You should sign this form designating us as your buyer's agent. If you elect not to sign, you would not be our client but our customer. Clients receive our full list of benefits. As a customer, our working relationship would be limited.

   As a customer, we would be willing to work with you through the initial interviewing process and initial one day showing process. After researching us online, meeting us and seeing a few properties with us, you should be comfortable enough to sign an Exclusive Buyer's Agreement and become our client. If not, we will amicably part ways.

   We want to look at properties and not get involved in reviewing complicated contracts from any agents. Is that reasonable?

   Contracts protect the interest of all parties. Sellers sign listing contracts. Buyers should sign reasonable buyer agency contracts. Let's keep the paperwork simple. Our Exclusive Buyer Agency form is straightforward. For a specific period of time, we will represent your home buying interests up to and including the closing. For your part, you will work with us exclusively and will guarantee that we will be receiving our professional fee from the listing agent. If things aren't working out between us, either party can cancel the contract. You are professional and successful and your time matters. Likewise, we are professionals. The bottom line is that you don't have time to bother with lazy or inexperienced agents and we aren't interested in being forever obligated to unmotivated lookers.

Wellesley Rentals      Natick Rentals

3 North Main Street, Natick

781-237-RENT (7368)

31 Central Street, Wellesley Square