Do I Really Need My Own Realtor, or Can I Save Money by Going Through the Seller's Agent?

By Amy Richardson | Savvy Realty Group | Ahwatukee REALTOR® & Trusted Buyer Advocate

This is one of the most common questions I hear from buyers right now — and I'm hearing it more than ever here in the Ahwatukee and Southeast Valley market. Especially since the real estate industry went through a very public shake-up in 2024 with the NAR settlement, buyers are asking questions they never thought to ask before. And honestly? I think that's a good thing. You should understand how this works. So let me give you the real answer.

The short answer is: you can contact the seller's agent directly. Nobody is stopping you. But "can" and "should" are very different questions. And once you understand what actually happens when you go that route, most buyers realize pretty quickly that skipping their own representation is not the money-saving move they thought it was.

Let me explain why.

What Is the Seller's Agent Actually There to Do?

When a seller hires a listing agent, that agent has one job: get the best possible outcome for the seller. Best price. Best terms. Least risk. That is the fiduciary duty — a legal obligation to act in the seller's best interest above all else.

That agent is not your agent. They are not there to tell you if the home is overpriced. They are not going to volunteer that the roof is nearing the end of its life, or that three comparable homes in Mountain Park Ranch sold for less last month, or that you have more negotiating leverage than you think. Their job is to protect their client — which is the seller.

This isn't a criticism of listing agents. It's just the reality of how agency works. And it's exactly why you need someone in your corner doing the same thing for you.

What Is Dual Agency, and Why Should You Understand It?

When a buyer contacts a listing agent directly and that agent agrees to represent both sides of the transaction, it's called dual agency. Arizona allows it, but it comes with significant limitations — and those limitations matter enormously to you as a buyer.

Here's the problem with dual agency in plain language: the agent can no longer fully advocate for either party. They can't advise the seller to hold firm on price while simultaneously telling you that the home is overpriced. They can't negotiate aggressively on your behalf while protecting the seller's bottom line. They are legally and ethically constrained from doing what a true advocate would do for you.

Think of it this way. Imagine hiring a lawyer to represent you in a legal dispute — and then finding out that the same lawyer also represents the person on the other side of that dispute. You'd fire that lawyer immediately. Dual agency isn't quite that extreme, but the conflict of interest is real and it absolutely affects how your transaction unfolds.

Some agents handle dual agency with complete integrity and full disclosure. Others are more focused on collecting both sides of the commission than making sure you're protected. The problem is you often have no way to know which kind you're dealing with until something goes wrong.

"But Won't the Agent Lower the Commission If They Represent Both of Us?"

This is the assumption most buyers make, and it's worth addressing directly — because this is exactly where the "I'll save money" logic breaks down.

Here's what actually happens in many cases: the listing agent keeps a larger portion of the commission that was already negotiated when the seller hired them. You don't automatically receive that savings. The seller might — but that's a negotiation between the seller and their agent that you have zero visibility into or control over.

And even in the scenario where some savings are passed along to you, you have to weigh that against what you're giving up. A buyer's agent who is fully in your corner — one who knows the Ahwatukee and Southeast Valley market, catches problems before they become disasters, negotiates hard on your behalf, and guides you through every deadline and decision — is not a luxury. In a transaction involving hundreds of thousands of dollars, the value of that representation almost always far exceeds whatever marginal savings you might see by going without it.

I've watched buyers go the unrepresented route to save a few dollars and end up paying over asking price because they didn't know how to read comparable sales data. I've seen buyers miss inspection deadlines because nobody was managing the timeline for them. I've seen buyers waive contingencies they didn't fully understand because they felt pressure and had no one to call. Those mistakes are expensive — far more expensive than any commission.

What Does a Buyer's Agent Actually Do for You?

I want to be specific here, because I think a lot of buyers genuinely don't know what representation includes — especially buyers relocating to the Phoenix area who aren't familiar with how Arizona real estate works.

Before you ever write an offer, a good buyer's agent is researching comparable sales to help you understand true market value, reviewing the property's listing history for red flags, asking the listing agent questions they may not volunteer answers to, and helping you understand what a realistic offer looks like given current local conditions.

Once you're under contract, your buyer's agent is managing your full timeline — tracking every inspection deadline, contingency period, and lender milestone. They're coordinating with your lender, reviewing inspection results with you, advising you on what to ask for and what to let go, negotiating repairs or credits, and serving as a calm buffer between you and the seller so the process doesn't become emotional or adversarial.

At closing and beyond, a good agent is reviewing your settlement statement, flagging anything that doesn't add up, and staying available to answer questions after you've moved in.

None of that happens when you go direct to the listing agent. You are managing all of it yourself, in a transaction you've likely done once or twice in your life, while the other side of the table has done it dozens or hundreds of times.

What Changed After the NAR Settlement?

Since August 2024, the way buyer representation works has changed — and buyers in the Phoenix area deserve to understand what's different.

The biggest shift: listing agents can no longer advertise buyer agent compensation through the MLS the way they used to. What that means practically is that buyer compensation is now a negotiated part of the transaction rather than an assumed one. Buyers are now asked to sign a Buyer Representation Agreement before touring homes, which spells out how their agent will be compensated.

This transparency is actually a good thing, even if it feels uncomfortable at first. You know exactly what you're agreeing to. And in many cases, buyers in the Ahwatukee and Southeast Valley market can still negotiate for the seller to cover that compensation as part of the purchase contract — meaning you may pay nothing out of pocket while still having full, dedicated representation.

The landscape shifted. The logic didn't. You still need someone whose job it is to protect you.

What This Means for Buyers in the Ahwatukee and Southeast Valley Market Right Now

The current market in Ahwatukee, Chandler, Gilbert, and the broader Southeast Valley is what I'd describe as a balanced market — and that's actually meaningful for buyers in a way that hasn't been true in several years.

Inventory has expanded. Homes are sitting longer than they were at the peak. Sellers are more negotiable on price, repairs, and terms than they've been in a long time. That means there is real opportunity for buyers who know how to identify and use their leverage — and real risk for buyers who don't.

This is precisely the kind of market where representation pays off most. When a buyer comes in unrepresented or working through the listing agent, they often leave money and concessions on the table simply because they don't have someone who knows the local data, knows how to read seller motivation, and knows how to structure an offer that protects them while staying competitive.

I recently helped buyers navigate multiple-offer situations in Ahwatukee while other buyers — who had gone direct to listing agents — paid more and received fewer protections. Knowing the micro-neighborhoods here, understanding which pockets of the market are soft and which are still competitive, and knowing how to negotiate in this specific environment is the difference between a good outcome and an expensive lesson.

When Does Going Direct to the Listing Agent Ever Make Sense?

I want to be fair, because I said I'd give you the honest answer.

There are limited circumstances where contacting a listing agent directly can be a strategic choice — not as a way to save money, but as a negotiating signal. In a competitive multiple-offer situation, some buyers choose to work directly with the listing agent as a way to simplify the deal for the seller and potentially strengthen their offer. Some sellers respond positively to that simplicity.

But even in that scenario, you're making a calculated trade-off: you're giving up advocacy for a potential competitive edge. That's a decision an informed adult can make consciously. It should never be a default assumption that going without representation saves you money or protects your interests — because in most cases, it does neither.

The Bottom Line

The seller has a professional advocate working exclusively for them. That advocate knows the property, knows the market, and knows exactly how to protect their client's position at every step.

The question isn't whether you can buy a home without your own representation. The question is whether you want to walk into that situation without anyone in your corner.

In a transaction this large — in a market as nuanced as Ahwatukee and the Southeast Valley — representation isn't overhead. It's protection. And in the current market, with real negotiating opportunity available to informed buyers, having the right advocate on your side can be the difference between a smart move and a costly mistake.

If you're buying in Ahwatukee, Phoenix, Chandler, Gilbert, or anywhere in the Southeast Valley and you want to understand your options before you start touring homes, I'm happy to have that conversation. No pressure, no pitch — just a clear explanation of how the process works and how I can help you navigate it well.

Amy Richardson is a REALTOR® with Savvy Realty Group, licensed under HomeSmart, and an 18-year Ahwatukee resident with nearly a decade of experience serving buyers and sellers across the Southeast Valley. She specializes in relocation buyers, luxury properties, and homeowners navigating major life transitions.

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