The tree advise is great!
We just took a tree down from the front yard of our home. It was just a baby when we moved in 33 years ago, had a double trunk and towered over our house. The county agent came out and inspected it at our request. Her first reaction was that it looked healthy. A closer look showed her that there was a split in one of the trunks, which meant a stiff wind (hurricane force) could bring it down. Final verdict was that it had to go!
It cost us $2000 to take it down, but it was money well spent. The trunk that wasn't splitting was rotted more than halfway through - a disaster waiting to happen! As the upper limbs of the tree (about 18" circumference) were removed and dropped to the ground, our house literally shook.
I do miss that tree, though.
REGARDING the real estate agent: He or she works for the seller, not the buyer, so it is the seller who pays the agent. The RE agent has a fiduciary responsibility to the seller, not to the buyer, and can be sued by the seller if the RE agent strikes a side deal with you.
You may be able to find a "buyers agent" who can negotiate price for you with the seller and sellers RE agent. But the seller still pays his/her RE agent a commission, unless the home is a "for sale by owner", with no RE agent involved. If the house is listed through a realtor, though, the RE agent is still required to work in the sellers best interest, not the buyers.
Last edited by cathyvv; 06-25-2016 at 06:59 PM.