In what will likely be the biggest investment you make in your life, buying a home needs the attention and assistance a professional real estate agent can provide. But not just any real estate agent, it’s important to find the “right” one. You want to make sure you’re hiring an agent who has the experience and drive to ensure you’re provided the tools and skills to walk away from a closing knowing your needs were met. Let’s jump into issues you can face if you don’t have the right agent on your team.

Avoid the wrong agent

1. THE “WRONG” AGENT WON’T LISTEN.

It’s important to find a real estate agent that sits down with you and actually listens to your needs. What type of home do you want? Where do you want to live? Does the commute to school or work have to be a certain distance? Etc. Working with an agent that doesn’t take the time to listen to your real estate needs will end up wasting your time and sending you homes to look at that don’t match your needs. Sit down with an agent that wants to get to know your needs and wants to help you achieve your goal of buying your dream house.

2. YOU’LL GET TERRIBLE ADVICE.

Choosing the wrong agent means you’ll find yourself in situations with terrible advice. Make sure you choose an agent that is able to give you the proper direction when it comes to the whole sales process. From negotiations, to repairs, you want to ensure you choose a trusted adviser that can guide you on the right path.

3. THEY WON’T NEGOTIATE THE BEST DEAL FOR YOU

A great agent will negotiate for you to get an amazing deal. Now this isn’t to equate to unrealistic negotiation expectations of what the market will sell a home for – because that can mean losing your dream house. But the “wrong” agent won’t bother to negotiate on any part of the sales process. You want to find an agent that not only negotiates for you, but does it in an effective way and advises you on the best steps to take, to ensure you still get the right home.

4. DIFFICULT TO GET IN TOUCH WITH

A great agent has a set and active schedule that allows you to get in touch with them, or a member of their team, on a reasonable time frame. The “wrong” agent will be difficult to get a hold of, even not getting back to you during the sales process for days (sometimes even weeks.) To find a great agent, you want to find one that has dedicated business hours that allow you to get in touch with them at anytime during those hours, and is available to call you back if they miss your call, in a timely manner. This is incredibly important during the sales process, if something needs immediate attention, and your agent is nowhere to be found, you can lose the deal.

5. CAN LEAD TO A LEGAL MESS

The “wrong” agent can be unethical, or simply not have the proper knowledge about the legalities within the industry that is standard for agents to follow through on. As a professional, in an industry with a lot of accompanying laws, it’s a great agent’s job to know how to protect you throughout the sales process. While providing the necessary contracts and guidance to ensure you’re protected by the decisions you make as well.

6. AN UNHAPPY BUYING EXPERIENCE

Buying a home is an important and big process in a person’s life. If you’re buying your first home, or you’re purchasing your dream home, you don’t want the experience to be traumatizing. A great agent will be able to navigate the bumps that come up within the sales process in an experienced and professional manner. The “wrong” agent will create a mess of the sales process, not find you the right home, and you can end up with a home you don’t actually love – or one with too many issues. Find a great agent that knows the process and can ensure it goes as smoothly as possible, giving you the time to prepare for common situations that may cause delays. Although some things can occur that neither party is aware of, having an experienced agent will help you through general hurdles that could arise through the sale.

You need the right agent to find you the right home.

When you think of North Carolina what comes to mind? Beyond classic James Taylor songs and the greatest rivalry in college basketball, North Carolina has long been known for great BBQ.

I recently had the great pleasure to meet with one of the owners of Durham’s Picnic, one of Zach and I’s favorite restaurants in the area. Picnic is a local BBQ restaurant started by a few dreamers who desired to disrupt the BBQ industry by doing things differently. Ben, Wyatt, and Ryan came together with a vision to make the sell the best dang BBQ in Durham.

Wyatt’s zeal for this business is unparalleled. Before starting the interview, he filled the conversation with such passion for his company. He was thrilled to tell me about Picnic and what sets it apart from any other BBQ restaurant. “What sets us apart is our pigs”, explained Wyatt. “Natural, whole hog pigs just make better BBQ. Our hogs live 10 miles from our restaurant in Bahama. They live outside. They run amok in the woods and live happy hog lives.” All of the meat is farmed at Green Button Farm, just 10 miles away from the restaurant in Bahama, NC. So, you may be wondering what makes whole hog meet better? He explained that “many hog distributors hogs have never had the sunshine on their back. They taste miserable because their lives were miserable.”

Wyatt started the idea of Picnic with a fraternity brother from UNC, Ben. The two of them ironically worked in the Wall Street scene in New York after graduating from Carolina. After realizing the things they were working for just weren’t their passions, they moved toward doing things they loved. After moving back to the triangle to pursue law school,  He  explains that “ I realized I could make a greater impact on people’s lives making BBQ than I ever could as an attorney. BBQ is a NC staple. Getting to make people happy by serving them good food…That’s why I do this.”

Wyatt came to realize that whole hog BBQ was a better product by doing pig pickins on weekends. He started purchasing local hogs from a financial analyst who farmed hogs on the side, now co-owner, Ryan. After tasting the difference, he couldn’t go back.  

Picnic was born by 3 men’s passions for making BBQ better and bringing it back to it’s roots. “The biggest compliment I can receive is when older folks come in and tell me, ‘this is how BBQ tasted when I was a kid’. There aren’t many careers that can transport people back 50 years and reconnect with their childhood memories, it’s just the best compliment.” Ben, Wyatt, and Ryan are committed to being ambassadors for NC BBQ as they can.

As a non meat eater myself, it can often be hard to eat out. However, at Picnic, there are plenty of great fresh options for me! Zach’s favorite is the burger. I asked Wyatt the recipe, but it is indeed a secret blend of spices and bacon. Bacon makes everything better, right?

Love Picnic and want to see it grow? Well ,they aren’t interested in making Picnic a chain, according to Wyatt, it just isn’t what they want to do. However, stay tuned as other growth opportunities could come our way! What could those be? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see- or taste.

When you think of North Carolina what comes to mind? Beyond classic James Taylor songs and the greatest rivalry in college basketball, North Carolina has long been known for great BBQ.

I recently had the great pleasure to meet with one of the owners of Durham’s Picnic, one of Zach and I’s favorite restaurants in the area. Picnic is a local BBQ restaurant started by a few dreamers who desired to disrupt the BBQ industry by doing things differently. Ben, Wyatt, and Ryan came together with a vision to make the sell the best dang BBQ in Durham.

Wyatt’s zeal for this business is unparalleled. Before starting the interview, he filled the conversation with such passion for his company. He was thrilled to tell me about Picnic and what sets it apart from any other BBQ restaurant. “What sets us apart is our pigs”, explained Wyatt. “Natural, whole hog pigs just make better BBQ. Our hogs live 10 miles from our restaurant in Bahama. They live outside. They run amok in the woods and live happy hog lives.” All of the meat is farmed at Green Button Farm, just 10 miles away from the restaurant in Bahama, NC. So, you may be wondering what makes whole hog meet better? He explained that “many hog distributors hogs have never had the sunshine on their back. They taste miserable because their lives were miserable.”

Wyatt started the idea of Picnic with a fraternity brother from UNC, Ben. The two of them ironically worked in the Wall Street scene in New York after graduating from Carolina. After realizing the things they were working for just weren’t their passions, they moved toward doing things they loved. After moving back to the triangle to pursue law school,  He  explains that “ I realized I could make a greater impact on people’s lives making BBQ than I ever could as an attorney. BBQ is a NC staple. Getting to make people happy by serving them good food…That’s why I do this.”

Wyatt came to realize that whole hog BBQ was a better product by doing pig pickins on weekends. He started purchasing local hogs from a financial analyst who farmed hogs on the side, now co-owner, Ryan. After tasting the difference, he couldn’t go back.  

Picnic was born by 3 men’s passions for making BBQ better and bringing it back to it’s roots. “The biggest compliment I can receive is when older folks come in and tell me, ‘this is how BBQ tasted when I was a kid’. There aren’t many careers that can transport people back 50 years and reconnect with their childhood memories, it’s just the best compliment.” Ben, Wyatt, and Ryan are committed to being ambassadors for NC BBQ as they can.

As a non meat eater myself, it can often be hard to eat out. However, at Picnic, there are plenty of great fresh options for me! Zach’s favorite is the burger. I asked Wyatt the recipe, but it is indeed a secret blend of spices and bacon. Bacon makes everything better, right?

Love Picnic and want to see it grow? Well ,they aren’t interested in making Picnic a chain, according to Wyatt, it just isn’t what they want to do. However, stay tuned as other growth opportunities could come our way! What could those be? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see- or taste.