Here at the Hawkins/Ryerse Real Estate Group, we want to help you find the perfect home for you and your family. Although we encourage everyone looking to buy a home to work with a professional real estate agent, that doesn’t mean we believe you have to leave everything up to them. You can always search your local real estate listings for appealing prospects, just be sure to avoid any listing with these red flags:

• No Photos. In the age of phone cameras, there is no reason for a real estate listing to not include photos of the property. The odds are virtually nonexistent that the owner couldn’t find a single camera with which to document their property, so any property whose listing doesn’t have photos in its description probably has something seriously wrong with it.

• Exaggerated Language. When browsing real estate listings, we at the Hawkins/Ryerse Real Estate Group also recommend avoiding any that use exaggerated language to describe the property. Be suspicious of superlatives like “the best house in the neighbourhood” and focus on listings that describe the actual features of the home without getting flowery about it. In addition, be alert for euphemistic phrases or language intended to make something sound better than it is–for example, unless you’re looking for a tiny cottage, you might want to avoid any property described as “cozy” or “quaint.”
• “As Is.” Another red flag in real estate listings is the phrase “as is.” This means just what it sounds like–you purchase the home in its current condition, with no negotiation about which party fixes what. If you buy a property with this type of listing, you could be inheriting problems that range in severity from some windows needing to be replaced to a foundation that needs major repairs. Because of this, we at the Hawkins/Ryerse Real Estate Group recommend skipping these listings and enlisting our group to help you with the negotiations on your ideal choice.