Local agents are those that work in the way that I consider to be most similar to the way that UK estate agents work. Focusing on their own local area (or areas if they have multiple branches) they will maintain a portfolio of properties within that area. Working on the philosophy that properties lead buyers to agents they will strive to obtain exclusive sales contracts and to make sure that their properties are well presented and realistically valued. They will have excellent local knowledge and are likely to deal with other agents in the same area to be able to offer a wider portfolio through commission sharing. They will also likely offer their portfolio, as a vendor's agent to other agencies to extend their reach and as a result you may come across their listings marketed on other agent’s websites. 

When dealing with this type of agent it is important to remember that their primary focus is towards the homeowners who instruct them to sell property, not only is their contract with the vendor and therefore their payment coming from them, but they need to maintain a reputation in their local community for being effective agents who achieve good sales prices for their vendors in a reasonable time. This doesn’t mean that properties will be over priced, if anything they should be priced as close to their market value as possible so that they don’t languish on the market for months or even years. But what it does mean is that you should not be depending on the agent to negotiate with the vendor for you, when it comes to negotiation you should treat your conversations with them as if they themselves are the vendor. 

In today’s market, local agents are not so likely to have a comprehensive portfolio of new builds, however are likely to have contracts with promotores in their local area.