Do You Need A REALTOR® In Calgary Or Airdrie?
Sometimes no. Occasionally it costs you nothing either way. And once in a while, walking in alone costs you your representation entirely, which is the situation nobody warns you about.
Do you need a REALTOR®? Plain answers for buyers and sellers in Calgary, Airdrie and all surrounding communities, from Tara Molina Real Estate Group, a real estate team led by Tara Molina, REALTOR® CCS®, and brokered by Royal LePage Benchmark.
Do I Need A REALTOR® For This?
Can I go to an open house on my own? Do I need an agent to buy from a builder? Can I show my own house? People ask these quietly, because asking an agent feels like asking a barber whether you need a haircut.
So here are the answers, including the ones where the honest reply is that you do not need us.
When Do You Actually Need A REALTOR®?
The short answer first. Open any card for the full one.
Do I need a REALTOR® to go to an open house?
No. Go on your own, any weekend you like.
Read the full answer +
Open houses are public. Nobody is going to turn you away, and you do not need to bring anyone. One courtesy though: if you already have an agent, say so when you sign in. The agent hosting works for the seller, and telling them you are represented saves everyone an awkward conversation later.
If you are not represented yet, remember the person greeting you is not neutral. They are lovely, they are professional, and they are paid by the seller of that house.
Do I need a REALTOR® to buy a new build from a builder?
No. But this is the one that catches people out, so read the next paragraph.
Close
You can walk into a showhome alone and buy directly from the builder. Plenty of people do. What most buyers do not know is that if you want an agent involved, you generally have to register them on your very first visit. Walk in alone on Saturday, come back with an agent on Tuesday, and many builders will refuse to recognise them.
That rule catches people constantly. It is not a secret and it is not a trick, it is simply a policy nobody mentions until it is too late to matter.
Is the person in the showhome my agent?
No. They work for the builder.
Read the full answer +
The area sales manager in a showhome is genuinely helpful and usually knows the product inside out. They are also employed by the builder, which means their job is to sell you that builder’s homes on that builder’s contract. That contract is written by the builder’s lawyers and it is not the standard Alberta purchase contract you would use on a resale home.
None of that makes them the villain. It just means they are not on your side of the table, and you should not expect them to be.
Can I show my own house while it is listed?
Technically yes, but you should not want to.
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If your home is listed with an agent, showings run through the booking system so there is a record of who came through and when, and so feedback comes back to you. Showing it yourself breaks that chain and, more practically, buyers do not say what they actually think while the owner is standing in the kitchen.
There is also a safety dimension to letting strangers into your home unaccompanied, which is worth naming even though nobody enjoys thinking about it.
Can I sell privately, without an agent at all?
Yes. It is entirely legal in Alberta.
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People do it successfully, particularly when the buyer is already lined up: a family member, a neighbour, a tenant. If you have a buyer and a lawyer, you may not need much more than that.
What you are taking on is the pricing, the marketing, the negotiating and the paperwork. That trade is sometimes worth it and sometimes not, and you are the one who gets to weigh it. We would rather say that plainly than pretend it is never an option.
If a realistic price range would help either way, our home evaluations are free and come with no obligation. Afterward, the only thing you will hear from us is what is happening in the market in your own community.
I already have an agent. Can I look at homes without them?
Yes, and most people do.
Read the full answer +
Drive by, walk through open houses, scroll listings at eleven at night. Nobody expects you to be chaperoned. Just tell any agent you meet that you are already working with someone, and loop yours in before you write anything or register anywhere.
If You Remember Nothing Else, Remember This.
Register your agent on your first visit to a showhome. Not the second, not when you are ready to write. The first.
Everything else on this page is reversible. You can go to an open house alone and hire someone next week. You can start a private sale and change your mind. This one is not reversible, and it is the reason we wrote the page.
If you are even considering a new build, take an agent to the first showhome you visit. If you have not chosen one, take any agent. It costs you nothing and it keeps the option open.
Call Us About Any Listing
Resale homes work differently. Buyers are welcome to call us about any listing, and we will show it, and anything else worth seeing. If it is one of our own listings and you come to us directly, a teammate writes your offer, so each side has their own agent. On every other home, Tara writes the offer herself.
Why Would A REALTOR® Tell You That You Don’t Need One?
Telling you that you can sell privately, or buy from a builder alone, is not obviously in our interest. We publish it anyway, because a straight answer before it matters is worth more to you than a sales pitch.
The rest of this site runs the same way. Every home we have sold since 2017 is published, including the one that took 351 days and the one that did not sell on the market and sold off market later. Our clients say the rest on platforms we do not control.
Buying In Calgary Or Airdrie? Start Here Next.
The guides people read after this one.
How To Choose A REALTOR®
The questions worth asking before you sign with anyone, including us.
Read The Guide →Buying A Home
How we help people buy in Calgary, Airdrie and all surrounding communities.
Read The Guide →Buying Your First Home
A plain language guide to the money, the steps and the vocabulary to know.
Read The Guide →Mortgage Pre Approval
What a pre approval is, what to gather, and how to apply before you look.
Read The Guide →Ask Us Anything, Including This.
No obligation and no follow up sequence. If the answer is that you do not need an agent for what you are doing, that is what you will hear. Let’s make your next move a Positive one!
Tara Molina Real Estate Group | Royal LePage Benchmark