Buying a home is one of the most important financial transactions most people make. Choosing a real estate agent - the person who will represent you - is one of the most important decisions in that process. Most homes now sell for $100,00 or more. If you had a tax problem of that magnitude, you would want to find a capable, experienced CPA to help you out. If you experienced a legal problem that could cost you such a large sum, you would search for a competent, experienced attorney. Yet many people chose a friend or relative who just happens to be a (often part time) real estate agent to represent them in such an important transaction.

Instead, you should chose an experienced REALTOR^® such as me - someone who has your best interests at heart and knows how to negotiate on your behalf, and can help you find the best property at the best price.

Below I outline how my qualifications as a REALTOR and how I can help ensure you find just the right home that fits your budget and needs, at a price that is fair - and most importantly, that you are properly protected in this complex process.

Not all Real Estate Agents and Brokers are Realtors^®.

As a prerequisite to selling real estate in Oklahoma, a person must be licensed by the Oklahoma Real Estate Commission. Before a license is issued, minimum standard for education, examinations and experience must be met.

I have chosen to go beyond that minimum standard of training and licensing and have joined the National Association of Realtors^® (NAR), the world's largest trade association, which has its own strict code of ethical conduct and licensing. The term "REALTOR^®" is a registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the NAR.

As a licensed Oklahoma real estate agent, I have certain legal obligations to my clients.

• Put my client's interest above anyone elses
• Keep my client's information confidential
• Obey my client's lawful instructions
• Report to my client anything that would be useful
• Account to my client for any money involved

However, as a REALTOR^® I am held to even higher standard of conduct under NAR's Code of Ethics. Below is a summary of these strict codes that I am held to.

• A Realtor's® first duty is to protect the interests of their client, and to treat all parties honestly.
• Realtors® shall avoid concealment or misrepresentation pertinent information in relation to the property or the transaction. Realtors® also may not disclose confidential information.
• Realtors® shall cooperate with other brokers, except when the cooperation is not in the best interest of their client. Cooperation doesn't include compensation.
• Realtors® must disclose any personal share or interest in a property involved in a transaction.  In other words, when interested in buying or selling a property they must make it clear that they are representing themselves not a client.
• Realtors® shall avoid conflicts of interest, and must make their interest known to all parties if they do provide services for a transaction in which they have a personal interest.
• Realtors® shall not accept a commission, rebate, a fee, or other financial benefit without disclosing it to the client.

• Realtors® cannot be compensated by more than one party in a transaction without making it clear to all parties.
• Realtors® must maintain a special account (separate from their own personal account) for escrows, client's monies, trust funds and the like.
• Realtors® must assure that contracts, leases, agreements, etc. are in clear and understandable language in writing, and must be explained at the time of signing or initialing.
• Realtors® cannot deny professional services on the basis of race, religion, sex, family status, handicap or national origin.
• Realtors® cannot provide services outside of their field of competence (such as a residential realtor working in commercial real estate) without disclosing it to the client.
• Realtors® must adhere to truth in advertising and marketing, and must disclose their professional status in advertising.

• Realtors® shall not give legal advice, and shall advise clients to seek legal counsel when applicable.
• Realtors® shall make full disclosure of all pertinent facts if charged with unethical practice.
• Realtors® shall not make false or misleading statements about their competitors or their own businesses.
• Realtors® shall not work outside of the exclusive agreements with their clients.
• Realtors® agree to arbitration in the case of a violation.

Experienced Full Time Realtor^®

In my opinion it is impossible for someone to be a part time real estate agent. Maybe in years past this might have been possible, but in today's high tech world with complex legal and financial requirements, it takes dedication and effort to stay on top of the myriad of details required when buying or selling a home. When purchasing a home you are often faced with a multiple offer deal - meaning someone else is making an offer on the same home that you are interested in. Transactions are time sensitive. Offers and counter-offers have specific deadlines that must be met. Home inspections must be scheduled. Financial documents must be gathered and transmitted.

If your agent has another job, how can they expend the necessary effort in the short time frames needed to effectively service their clients?

My only job is as a Realtor. I am available to my clients 24/7 via email, phone, my web site, Facebook, and Twitter. Clients have expressed their amazement when I call them back within one minute of them signing up for information on my web site! I have a staff of people to help me manage the mountains of paperwork required (we convert everything to digital but unfortunately in the real estate world there is still LOTS of paper being printed).

Extensive Network of Resources

When you chose me as your buyer agent, you get an entire team of people and resources to help with your home purchase. Not only do you get my internal staff, but you also get access to our trusted list of contractors, mortgage companies and title companies to help smooth your purchase. I have built solid relationships with these resources over many years of working in the marketplace. I don't receive a penny for referring to them. Instead I get the satisfaction of knowing that my valuable clients are well cared for. This helps ensure a smooth transactions for my clients with no surprises - which in turn means referral business for me.

Best Real Estate Web Site in Oklahoma

KayPratt.com was the very first (and still one of the few) real estate web sites in Oklahoma to have the MLS fully integrated directly into the web site. In the past buyers were forced to go to portal sites to search MLS listings. With my site you can easily search the entire central Oklahoma MSL system without ever leaving my site. We offer not only text searching, but map searching as well. We integrate with Google Maps so you can get a visual representation of the various properties that meet your criteria. Just click on a property to see full details, pictures and in many cases, 3D virtual tours. Want to send the listing to friends and family for them to peruse? Just one click send a personalized email so they cna see the same properties that you do.

You can also create search criteria on my site and save it for future reference. My web site will then email you new properties that meat your search criteria the instant they are posted to the MLS.

And most important of all, we NEVER sell share our customer's email addresses with third party companies. No unwanted spam. I hate spam just like you do.

Technology Savvy Realtor^®

In today's world it is not enough for a Realtor^® to just have a web site and email. I use a wide range of high tech tools including my iPhone, on-line secure storage of all transaction documents, a state of the art web site that is integrated with my client tracking system, and a high tech office where we have over 5 terabytes of storage and 30 megabit speeds.

Transaction Desk

Unfortunately in the real estate world there is still a tremendous amount of paper that is generated and that has to be stored. We use a product called Transaction Desk that allows us to scan in all documents related a customer transaction and store them securely on-line. We can then provide access to these documents to not only our clients, but also to other authorized users such as your mortgage company and the title company. I can easily log in from any computer on the Internet and have a critical document faxed to the appropriate party, saving time during critical steps of the home buying process. Third party organizations can fax inboud documents right to your account, where we categorize them and you can have access to them immediately. This way we never lose documents or have to track down a missing copy.

Top Producer

We use the award-winning Top Producer real estate management program to track the myriad of details necessary when working with clients. This allows me to stay on top of the deadlines and tasks necessary for each client, and allows my team to quickly see where each transaction is in the process. The result is fewer missed deadlines and surprises for everyone involved.

The Difference Between a Buyer's and Seller's Agent

Suppose you sign an offer to buy a home for $150,000. You really want the property and there's a chance other offers are coming in, so you tell the broker that "We'll go up to $160,000 if we have to. But of course don't tell that to the seller." If you're dealing with a seller's agent, he or she may be duty-bound to tell the seller that important fact. The seller's agent doesn't have any duty of confidentiality toward you. Honest treatment might require that the agent warn you that "I must convey to the seller anything that would be useful so don't tell me anything you wouldn't tell the seller."

As your agent, my legal and ethical duty is to you. I keep your information confidential and negotiate on you behalf.

What Does it Cost

NOTHING!

Even though I work for you, it does not cost you a penny. When a homeowner sells their home they pay a set commission fee that is split between the seller's agent and the buyer's agent. So my fee is already built into the transaction and is paid for by the seller. If you decide to not have an agent work on your behalf, then the selling agent, who is working for the seller, gets the full commission. You don't save any money and you have nobody representing your best interests, which is not a good situation.

So as you can see, it is important to have a buyer's agent represent your interests, and it costs you nothing.