A buyer's agent will help you find an apartment. Some apartments you may be able to find by searching various websites and by using the classifieds. However, not only does this require a substantial amount of work on your part, you simply will not have access to everything that is available. Some of the choicest apartments are sold before they officially hit the market and prior to being posted on the web or in the newspaper. This is because there are certain agents have the inside track on what is coming on the market and they are able to gain access for their clients to the newest apartments as soon as the apartments are officially listed. Presuming that you want to have access to all of the apartments on the market, the best way to accomplish this is to let a buyer's agent do this work

A buyer's agent will negotiate on your behalf. Once the perfect property is identified, a buyer's agent will negotiate on your behalf in order to get you the best terms possible. Because your buyer's agent will be an expert in the market that you will be buying into, he or she will be able to give you detailed information concerning current pricing trends and recent transactions in the building or other comparable buildings. Most importantly, as described below, your buyer's agent will be representing you and not the seller.

A buyer's agent will represent you - not the seller. Your buyer's agent will be representing your interests and he or she will be focused on getting you the best possible deal. In this respect, it is important to note the distinction between a listing agent (the agent who is representing the seller) and your buyer's agent: the listing agent has a responsibility to negotiate on the seller's behalf and to obtain for the seller the best deal possible. Therefore, if you contact a listing agent directly (through a classified ad or a listing broker's website), the listing agent will have a responsibility to get the best deal for the seller, not for you. In summary, if you negotiate with the listing broker directly, there is an inherent conflict of interest and that may have a negative implication for you as the buyer.