As someone who bought my first house without a realtor involved at all. I don't know what value they could have added. Thanks to Zillow, Redfin and the like it was a piece of cake to locate a house. I found one that was for sale by owner that I liked, we negotiated on a price and came to an agreement. There was a lot of paperwork, but I'm literate and can read. Most of the complex stuff was with the loan and the title company, both of which were more than happy to walk me through the steps of each.
I really have no idea what tens of thousands of dollars extra would have bought me. I don't need someone to hold my hand and look at cars with me either.
> I found one that was for sale by owner that I liked, we negotiated on a price and came to an agreement.
Sounds like you don't live in a very competitive market. Here in the Bay Area, you don't even talk to the owner of the house, as they will have a seller's agent. Generally if a house is desirable, there will be anywhere from 5 to 20 offers on a house. The only way to get your foot in the door is to have your buyer's agent go to bat for you. Ideally they will have a prior relationship with the seller's agent, and have insight as to what kind of offer to make to make you competitive with other offers. I can't imagine buying a house around here without having the expertise that an agent can offer.
> I really have no idea what tens of thousands of dollars extra would have bought me.
As a buyer, you are not paying anything extra. The commission comes out of the seller's fees.
> I don't need someone to hold my hand and look at cars with me either.
Buying a house is an order of magnitude more complex and expensive than buying a car. Not really a fair comparison.
If i didnt have my realtor I would not have landed my house because of how competitive my market is. My realtor called me at 6 am on a Saturday morning before the listing was even up on zillow or redfin. I was there to see the house that afternoon and had a P&S agreement accepted before Monday morning before anyone else even had a chance to see the house.
Also the realtor had contacts of contractors and inspectors that she trusted so that the inspection and repair stages all went way more smoothly than if I was calling random contractors for quotes.
Again this doesnt apply depending on the market and price range that you are in.
I really have no idea what tens of thousands of dollars extra would have bought me. I don't need someone to hold my hand and look at cars with me either.