Just another newbie question...

Due to the laws in the USVI, being a true "buyer's agent" is pretty much impossible for a Realtor to do. The real estate law does not allow for "transactional brokerage". A few companies advertise that they are buyers' agents, yet at least one such does list properties and therefore represents sellers. Most agencies work with both buyers and sellers with some agents focusing on pursuing listings and other agents working mostly with buyers.

The seller pays the commission to all agents involved in a transaction and technically contracts are written to say that agents are working on behalf of the seller. In practical reality, the listing agent knows the seller and works exclusively for the seller's interests. The agent working with a buyer knows the buyer and rarely knows or interacts with the seller. It's in everyone's best interest for Realtors to treat everyone fairly and honestly and not to do anything to take advantage of either party in a purchase. That makes deals fall apart, and how could that be in anyone's best interest?

It is generally best for a buyer to select one agent to use when exploring properties and ultimately to have that agent draw up their contract when they are ready to submit an offer. If you approach a variety of listing agents about their specific listings, then they will definitely be pushing for the seller's interests as they have that one property they want to sell you. They may try to convince you not to look at other properties. An agent showing you lots of properties usually isn't going to have an agenda to try and push you to buy one property versus another and instead should be helping you to evaluate multiple properties and how they fit in with your needs and plans so you can make your selection with as much information on hand as you need.

If you are buying from long distance, you will find that some agents will make an effort to get info and photos of properties for you via email in advance of you visiting and others will do nothing until you are physically on-island. It is possible to do a lot of advance work before arriving so you can make the most of your days here. Many properties of initial interest can easily be ruled out once you have some photos so that you can have a manageable list of properties to explore in person.

Both times we have bought, we used Alexandra, and if the occasion arises again, we would use her.
As you can see from her post, she will answer your questions.
Some Realtors only want to talk to you if you are on island. Alexandra will answer all of you questions by email or phone.
This past March, she even took me by a house that I was always curious about, even though she knew we were NOT in the position to buy, and I knew that I wouldn't want the area. It was just a house that I had seen for a couple of years on the listings. I just had tp get it out of my system. I would have hated myself if someday I saw it and regretted that I didn't buy when I had the chance.
I told her to just get me driving instructions, as I didn't want to waste her time, but she insisted that we drive by anyway. A GREAT PERSON TO DEAL WITH!

Hi Jim,

I just bought a lot on STX about a year ago. I randomly selected a real estate agent from a web search. She provided perfectly adequate assistance. And, we worked for many months before selecting a lot.

But, I must tell you that:
- I did not know about this forum when I was looking
- after reading through this forum for a few weeks now I can tell that Alexandra is a person of great intelligence, fairness and caring.
- if I had discovered her prior to selecting my agent I would have asked her to help me.
- I think she has the communication skills to understand your interests and requirements; and understands the island real estate (and living conditions); and can therefore help you make the right choice.

Some other tidbits of info:
- I did most of my research from stateside
- this forum has great info
- I would get GPS coordinates from my real estate agent and look on Google Earth (GE)
- some real estate sites have plot maps that you can overlay on GE if you're a bit computer savvy
- beware that GE's representation of the terrain (elevation above sea level) can be very misleading because they only sample elevation every 30 meters. In my case it made my lot look very flat (my lot really has a 1:2 slope), and the house to my SW appeared lower than my lot (in reality it is 60 ft above me),
- topozone.com has topographic maps that you can also overlay on GE to get a truer feel for terrain.
- you might want to ask your real estate agent about (these are questions that I didn't think to ask):
- advantages/disadvantages of N,S,E,W sides of the island
- which communities have home owners associations
- what is the plan for the future for each area that you're interested in (development, water, electric, zoning, roads, taxes, etc)
- are there existing homes on lots similar to the lot you're looking at

good luck...
rmp

This forum is awesome!! Thanks to everyone who has replied....I really appreciate it. What great information. rmp, thanks for the technical information, I am going to check all of that out as soon as I finish writing this. It sure sounds to me that Alexandria is very popular and would be a great contact. Alexandria, I will be in touch.... Jim