Professional Setting You're Most Likely To Be Ripped Off In (1 Viewer)

[ghostguy123]

they get you better on the other end....not everyone knows/realizes that RE agents work for the seller. So when you hire them to show you houses, they are really pimping their listings hard bc they don't have to split the commission. 

RE agents and the whole way they work is just disgusting.  As the buyers agent they work for you????  Sure, sure they do.  They want you to buy a house ASAP, any house, and they have zero incentive to get you a better price.  In fact, they have more incentive to make you buy the house for more money.  They try and make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside for getting the house for 8 grand below asking price.  

Wow, thanks Johnny Real Estate Agent.

 

[Zegras11]

RE agents and the whole way they work is just disgusting.  As the buyers agent they work for you????  Sure, sure they do.  They want you to buy a house ASAP, any house, and they have zero incentive to get you a better price.  In fact, they have more incentive to make you buy the house for more money.  They try and make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside for getting the house for 8 grand below asking price.  

Wow, thanks Johnny Real Estate Agent.

To repeat, why are you hiring the wrong buyers agent?  I do 80% buyers and NOTHING you said is true the way I do biz and ANY professional agent I've met that does it full time.

I have WAY more incentive to get you the best price possible every single time because then you're more likely to use me down the road and/or refer me to others where I make a ton more than  a slightly higher price would.  

More incentive to make you buy the house for more money?  That's one of the most ignorant statements ever on this MB.    How can an agent MAKE YOU buy a house for more money?   Are you just a ####### sheep that can't make decisions for yourself?  It's always your final say.  It's not remotely an incentive to have someone pay $5k or $10k more for a home and make an extra $150 or $300. Any agent doing that is not getting any repeat or referral business.

If you're getting a crappy agent, FIRE them and hire another. All you have to do in your contract is email the agent and say you want out and call the designated broker on the contract.  You're legally out of the contract at that moment you email the agent no matter what you signed.

 

[Zegras11]

The problem with RE commissions is that it's the same work for a $200k  sale or a $1m sale. $12k vs $60k comm.

In fact, it's probably easier for the $1m sale because the buyer's finances are more likely to be in order.

the problem with this is it's a very ignorant statement.

First off, the average commission last year I heard was 2.64%, according to the NAR, on all home sales at all prices.  It's also much less on $1m+ sales.  Why everyone thinks that 6% is a standard fee is beyond me. The commission is always negotiable and if you're not negotiating it, then that's your fault.  If the agent can't justify what they want to make or doesn't fall in line with what you want to pay, interview another one. It's really that simple.

It might be pretty easy in No Cal to sell $1m homes because every home is around that price. They aren't getting 3% there.

In my Boise market, we have about 20 homes over $1m that are active.  It's a very hard market because there's just not that many buyers here at that price range, making it much harder to sell those listings and agents that specialize is that market learn strategies and techniques to attract buyers that are way more sophisticated . A lot of those things they do to attract buyers can cost a lot of money, so even if they are getting 3%, their expenses are drastically higher  than than median priced homes.

 

[James Daulton]

the problem with this is it's a very ignorant statement.

First off, the average commission last year I heard was 2.64%, according to the NAR, on all home sales at all prices.  It's also much less on $1m+ sales.  Why everyone thinks that 6% is a standard fee is beyond me. The commission is always negotiable and if you're not negotiating it, then that's your fault.  If the agent can't justify what they want to make or doesn't fall in line with what you want to pay, interview another one. It's really that simple.

It might be pretty easy in No Cal to sell $1m homes because every home is around that price. They aren't getting 3% there.

In my Boise market, we have about 20 homes over $1m that are active.  It's a very hard market because there's just not that many buyers here at that price range, making it much harder to sell those listings and agents that specialize is that market learn strategies and techniques to attract buyers that are way more sophisticated . A lot of those things they do to attract buyers can cost a lot of money, so even if they are getting 3%, their expenses are drastically higher  than than median priced homes.

For our edification, what expenses are drastically higher than 3% on a $200k house?

 

[Zegras11]

For our edification, what expenses are drastically higher than 3% on a $200k house?

I didn't say expenses were greater than 3 percent.  

 

[ghostguy123]

To repeat, why are you hiring the wrong buyers agent?  I do 80% buyers and NOTHING you said is true the way I do biz and ANY professional agent I've met that does it full time.

I have WAY more incentive to get you the best price possible every single time because then you're more likely to use me down the road and/or refer me to others where I make a ton more than  a slightly higher price would.  

More incentive to make you buy the house for more money?  That's one of the most ignorant statements ever on this MB.    How can an agent MAKE YOU buy a house for more money?   Are you just a ####### sheep that can't make decisions for yourself?  It's always your final say.  It's not remotely an incentive to have someone pay $5k or $10k more for a home and make an extra $150 or $300. Any agent doing that is not getting any repeat or referral business.

If you're getting a crappy agent, FIRE them and hire another. All you have to do in your contract is email the agent and say you want out and call the designated broker on the contract.  You're legally out of the contract at that moment you email the agent no matter what you signed.

Pretty sure you misinterpreted some of what I said.

On a side note, it's always nice to see people in a profession defending said profession with vigor.  Lot of scumbags in the RE profession, just like car salesmen.  

Sure, some good ones, just not as easy to find for the 99.9% of people that are NOT professional real estate agents.  It's your profession. I would hope you would know how to figure out who is good or not.

 

[Rodrigo Duterte]

He just worded it awkwardly.  He wants to know what the expenses are that are so much higher on the $1M homes.  Specifically, marketing (I assume).

I think, lol.

 

[Gianni Verscotchie]

the problem with this is it's a very ignorant statement.

First off, the average commission last year I heard was 2.64%, according to the NAR, on all home sales at all prices.  It's also much less on $1m+ sales.  Why everyone thinks that 6% is a standard fee is beyond me. The commission is always negotiable and if you're not negotiating it, then that's your fault.  If the agent can't justify what they want to make or doesn't fall in line with what you want to pay, interview another one. It's really that simple.

It might be pretty easy in No Cal to sell $1m homes because every home is around that price. They aren't getting 3% there.

In my Boise market, we have about 20 homes over $1m that are active.  It's a very hard market because there's just not that many buyers here at that price range, making it much harder to sell those listings and agents that specialize is that market learn strategies and techniques to attract buyers that are way more sophisticated . A lot of those things they do to attract buyers can cost a lot of money, so even if they are getting 3%, their expenses are drastically higher  than than median priced homes.

Naples, FL - $1m houses and rich people buying everywhere.

I just sold a house. 6% everywhere I looked. Probably could have got someone agree to 5%, but I wanted someone with a good reputation - I did not care about the extra 1%.

Realtor set the initial price too high in Jan '18. Said she could sell it fast at that price. 4 months go by and tourist season ends. She tells me my price is way too high. I'm like WTF? YOU, the EXPERT, strongly recommended the asking price. Whatever, we drop the price by 10% until it finally sells in Sept. She wasted several months of my time.

I also recorded her on camera lying to prospective buyers about features of the house that did not exist and other general BS about the neighborhood. She even told one couple that I could be out in two weeks when I really needed 60 days.

I'm sure there are good realtors out there, but let's be honest - The profession requires no education and is generally viewed as a housewife's part time gig or a fallback job. No offense.

 

[mr. furley]

any sort of mechanical repair business is 98% guaranteed to be a ripoff. or they're going to try to add unnecessary repairs to your bill and throw some bull#### monologue at you using words that probably don't mean anything when used in conjunction until you lose interest and just sign the receipt.

 

[NeverEnough]

Naples, FL - $1m houses and rich people buying everywhere.

I just sold a house. 6% everywhere I looked. Probably could have got someone agree to 5%, but I wanted someone with a good reputation - I did not care about the extra 1%.

Realtor set the initial price too high in Jan '18. Said she could sell it fast at that price. 4 months go by and tourist season ends. She tells me my price is way too high. I'm like WTF? YOU, the EXPERT, strongly recommended the asking price. Whatever, we drop the price by 10% until it finally sells in Sept. She wasted several months of my time.

I also recorded her on camera lying to prospective buyers about features of the house that did not exist and other general BS about the neighborhood. She even told one couple that I could be out in two weeks when I really needed 60 days.

I'm sure there are good realtors out there, but let's be honest - The profession requires no education and is generally viewed as a housewife's part time gig or a fallback job. No offense.

I have yet to find a realtor that is truly any good. It's really sad. Most of them are idiots or don't even respond to inquiries...

 

[Zegras11]

Pretty sure you misinterpreted some of what I said.

On a side note, it's always nice to see people in a profession defending said profession with vigor.  Lot of scumbags in the RE profession, just like car salesmen.  

Sure, some good ones, just not as easy to find for the 99.9% of people that are NOT professional real estate agents.  It's your profession. I would hope you would know how to figure out who is good or not.

Its really easy to find a good one.  I e helped several on this board do just that.  Takes me one phone call.  One to the president of a brokerage. I tell them what type of property, area, and price range I'm looking for and to then give me three agents that specialize in that type of home and then I interview those agents.  I did that for someone here that bought a condo on the east coast.   

 

[Zegras11]

Naples, FL - $1m houses and rich people buying everywhere.

I just sold a house. 6% everywhere I looked. Probably could have got someone agree to 5%, but I wanted someone with a good reputation - I did not care about the extra 1%.

Realtor set the initial price too high in Jan '18. Said she could sell it fast at that price. 4 months go by and tourist season ends. She tells me my price is way too high. I'm like WTF? YOU, the EXPERT, strongly recommended the asking price. Whatever, we drop the price by 10% until it finally sells in Sept. She wasted several months of my time.

I also recorded her on camera lying to prospective buyers about features of the house that did not exist and other general BS about the neighborhood. She even told one couple that I could be out in two weeks when I really needed 60 days.

I'm sure there are good realtors out there, but let's be honest - The profession requires no education and is generally viewed as a housewife's part time gig or a fallback job. No offense.

That sucks balls.   Did she show you comps that justified the price she wanted to initially sell at?

It appears to me she was saying whatever you wanted to hear just to get a listing.  Those are the worst agents for sure.  

An agent should show you 5 to 6 comps and ask you how you see your home priced in comparison to those.  

Price is always determined by the buyers. I can only interpret the market data and make recommendations on what to list it for depending on how fast you want it sold.  

Also, any good listing agent is going to drop the price after 14 or 21 days if it's not sold and should tell you that up front. 

Eta.... also the market is constantly shifting at all times.  We've gone from a white hot market in may thru July to a significant slow down.  Ask agents about any recent market changes in your area.  Good ones will give you definitive answers and data.   Bad ones will make #### up.  

 

[ghostguy123]

Its really easy to find a good one.  I e helped several on this board do just that.  Takes me one phone call.  One to the president of a brokerage. I tell them what type of property, area, and price range I'm looking for and to then give me three agents that specialize in that type of home and then I interview those agents.  I did that for someone here that bought a condo on the east coast.   

So what are the interview questions, and where do I quickly learn to interpret the answers?

 

[Zegras11]

So what are the interview questions, and where do I quickly learn to interpret the answers?

Like, I'm looking for xyz type home and I know you specialize in that area.  Please tell me about your experience in this market? And then just let them talk. Take notes.  

Find how many of that type they have done. How many years have they specialized in that area. Looks at their Facebook biz page and Zillow pages for reviews.  

When I got started investing, I found a great realtor in oc that listened to what my goals were.  He was an investor also.  I was able to pick his brain to avoid all the possible pitfalls.   He drove me 90 miles to Apple Valley to buy my first investment property.  

Eta.... again ask them about changing market conditions and listen.  I've have a listing going live tomorrow.  Usually an open house is done on Saturday and sometimes Sunday also.  Boise State is playing BYU here Saturday night.  I know from past experience that open houses on game days are total duds.  The town shuts down on game days.  So I've set it for Sunday at 1 to 4pm fo piggyback the open house tour the number one agent in our area has every Sunday in that area.  I should get an extra 20 to 40 people to see that home now.  Open houses to sell a home are only good the very first weekend.  Good agents always list on Thursday.  After that open houses are just marketing tools to pick up new buyers.  That's why you see a lot of new agents do them.  

 

[Henry Ford]

Civil defense attorney.

"Sure, we can keep you from being liable for this $20,000.00 accident.  We'll only bill you $80,000.00 over the next three years."

 

[James Daulton]

attorney.

We'll only bill you $80,000.00 over the next three years."

FYP

 

[Henry Ford]

FYP

Contingency fees FTW.

 

[comfortably numb]

Like, I'm looking for xyz type home and I know you specialize in that area.  Please tell me about your experience in this market? And then just let them talk. Take notes.  

Find how many of that type they have done. How many years have they specialized in that area. Looks at their Facebook biz page and Zillow pages for reviews.  

When I got started investing, I found a great realtor in oc that listened to what my goals were.  He was an investor also.  I was able to pick his brain to avoid all the possible pitfalls.   He drove me 90 miles to Apple Valley to buy my first investment property.  

Eta.... again ask them about changing market conditions and listen.  I've have a listing going live tomorrow.  Usually an open house is done on Saturday and sometimes Sunday also.  Boise State is playing BYU here Saturday night.  I know from past experience that open houses on game days are total duds.  The town shuts down on game days.  So I've set it for Sunday at 1 to 4pm fo piggyback the open house tour the number one agent in our area has every Sunday in that area.  I should get an extra 20 to 40 people to see that home now.  Open houses to sell a home are only good the very first weekend.  Good agents always list on Thursday.  After that open houses are just marketing tools to pick up new buyers.  That's why you see a lot of new agents do them.  

I think he was being facetious. Maybe?

Most people who do 1 or 3 home buying/selling transactions in their life don't know what to look for in a good agent or even what to ask. 

You are in the industry so its easy for you to know what to ask and more importantly to know if the answers being given are BS or legitimate.  

It's like when i hear a mechanic tell me how easy it is to do your own brakes or change a timing belt. Sure it's easy when you have the confidence, tools and experience having done 25 brake jobs but the guy trying it for the 1st 3 times not so much.

I think the knocks on agents are legit for the most part. You don't need a lot of schooling or investment. Pretty much anyone can do it and with a pay being dependent upon whether you close a deal it leaves the industry with alot of suspect people with limited experience getting people into deals. 

What i will say is just because getting in is easy doing the work is not. 

My wife recently got her license in the spring and after a few deals is ready to quit...lol

At the very least she is about to fire her latest client.

As in the thought that most agents suck...i would say the same amount of bad agents is equal to bad buyers and sellers. Which is a lot.

Most home sellers think their house is worth 1.3M. They've been happy with their kitchen for the last 22 years...so how dare a buyer suggest it needs to be upgraded!  

What's that? You make 28k a year and are carrying 45k in debt and you've been at your new job 3 months? You want to look at homes in the 400k range? Sorry, but how about the nice trailer i can show you....to rent.

Basically most people selling and buying are too emotionally invested to handle the transaction independently. IMO anyway. Sure many people can have a divorce without a lawyer but those are like unicorns. You hear alot about it but maybe know 1 or 2 people who went in without a lawyer.

 

[James Daulton]

the problem with this is it's a very ignorant statement.

First off, the average commission last year I heard was 2.64%, according to the NAR, on all home sales at all prices.  It's also much less on $1m+ sales.  Why everyone thinks that 6% is a standard fee is beyond me. The commission is always negotiable and if you're not negotiating it, then that's your fault.  If the agent can't justify what they want to make or doesn't fall in line with what you want to pay, interview another one. It's really that simple.

It might be pretty easy in No Cal to sell $1m homes because every home is around that price. They aren't getting 3% there.

In my Boise market, we have about 20 homes over $1m that are active.  It's a very hard market because there's just not that many buyers here at that price range, making it much harder to sell those listings and agents that specialize is that market learn strategies and techniques to attract buyers that are way more sophisticated . A lot of those things they do to attract buyers can cost a lot of money, so even if they are getting 3%, their expenses are drastically higher  than than median priced homes.

This is what I was asking about.  What things to attract buyers can cost more than 3% of the median priced home?

 

[Zegras11]

This is what I was asking about.  What things to attract buyers can cost more than 3% of the median priced home?

Again, I'm not understanding where you are getting the idea that the costs are more than 3%. If even a median priced home.

marketing has to be done on every home to various degrees.  There is a $2mil listing in Boise that I know has taken out ads in national and international publications to sell it. Which is smart because the best bet on a buyer for that is out of state.

I know of a very good agent here that specializes in large acreage, rural, farm properties. He's done a massive amount of marketing to potential buyers all over the world that are interested in that type of property. He wins a great deal of listings because he has a constantly updated pool of buyers for potential sellers. Those properties often can take up to a year to sell, and he sells most of his quickly. 

Staging - Homes in all prices ranges sometimes need to be staged to sell. The numbers say that it pays to do this for the seller. It might cost $2-4K to stage a home, but the average is like a $7k higher selling price ($400k range).  Some agents pay for this out of their commission. Some charge the sellers.
 

 

[Buckna]

As in the thought that most agents suck...i would say the same amount of bad agents is equal to bad buyers and sellers. Which is a lot.

Basically most people selling and buying are too emotionally invested to handle the transaction independently. IMO anyway. Sure many people can have a divorce without a lawyer but those are like unicorns. You hear alot about it but maybe know 1 or 2 people who went in without a lawyer.

Not an agent but work in real estate a lot and have family in it, but I would agree with these sentiments a lot. I think you will definitely start to see more information type programs and review type services on agents in the future and that will help weed out the fly by nighters and bad actors and address some of the comments in here. I don't think it will neccessarily lower %'s of commissions though. Market forces will do that, as someone else posted about high value areas and homes, it's rare to see someone paying 6% these days (at least here in Colorado.) Some premium stud agents still demand the higher commission but there are lots of folks willing to undercut their sale %, especially if they are getting the buy side on their next house too. If you are in middle america or some market where the average home is 150K or less, I highly doubt you'll see those percentages change. I imagine that's gotta be a real grind for agents in those markets to eke out a living.

As for if a million dollar home takes more work than a 200K home, really depends on the market. If a million is a fatcat house in an area, you bet your ### it takes a ton more work to sell. Especially right now, I just talked to a luxury custom home builder a few weeks ago who is getting out and switching to flipping entry level houses because the luxury market is dead, at least in Colorado. Now is the pay difference of $24K for an agent commission commensurate with the more work required than a 200K house, that's probably up for debate... But I have met luxury home agents that spend tens of thousands on marketing every year and way more time than 500 man hours per listing that was thrown out a page or so ago.

Tons of "bad" agents out there, but as you said tons of "bad" people out there as buyers and sellers or bad actors in lots of professions. For examples of stories I have personnally seen or heard from good people I know: I've seen owners bust 3/4's of million dollar deals over haggling on a thousand dollar inspection item. Have seen owners take high end appliances out of homes a day before closing and try to substitute in home depot specials or lie and say the $2K appliance "died" a few days before closing and they will provide a $400 credit towards a new one. People that won't disclose meth houses, or other drugs or gang activity, etc. People that want their agent to somehow figure out how to sell a property back in Ethiopia for them so they have enough funds to cover the downpayment on a house in the US. Just yesterday was talking to an agent where their cousin that they sold the house for a few months ago, failed to disclose that the house was hit with a massive hail storm a week before closing. Now they are wondering what to do and want her to figure it out for them... (answer is higher a good attorney because those buyers are probably gonna sue you.)

 

[Zegras11]

Not an agent but work in real estate a lot and have family in it, but I would agree with these sentiments a lot. I think you will definitely start to see more information type programs and review type services on agents in the future and that will help weed out the fly by nighters and bad actors and address some of the comments in here. I don't think it will neccessarily lower %'s of commissions though. Market forces will do that, as someone else posted about high value areas and homes, it's rare to see someone paying 6% these days (at least here in Colorado.) Some premium stud agents still demand the higher commission but there are lots of folks willing to undercut their sale %, especially if they are getting the buy side on their next house too. If you are in middle america or some market where the average home is 150K or less, I highly doubt you'll see those percentages change. I imagine that's gotta be a real grind for agents in those markets to eke out a living.

As for if a million dollar home takes more work than a 200K home, really depends on the market. If a million is a fatcat house in an area, you bet your ### it takes a ton more work to sell. Especially right now, I just talked to a luxury custom home builder a few weeks ago who is getting out and switching to flipping entry level houses because the luxury market is dead, at least in Colorado. Now is the pay difference of $24K for an agent commission commensurate with the more work required than a 200K house, that's probably up for debate... But I have met luxury home agents that spend tens of thousands on marketing every year and way more time than 500 man hours per listing that was thrown out a page or so ago.

Tons of "bad" agents out there, but as you said tons of "bad" people out there as buyers and sellers or bad actors in lots of professions. For examples of stories I have personnally seen or heard from good people I know: I've seen owners bust 3/4's of million dollar deals over haggling on a thousand dollar inspection item. Have seen owners take high end appliances out of homes a day before closing and try to substitute in home depot specials or lie and say the $2K appliance "died" a few days before closing and they will provide a $400 credit towards a new one. People that won't disclose meth houses, or other drugs or gang activity, etc. People that want their agent to somehow figure out how to sell a property back in Ethiopia for them so they have enough funds to cover the downpayment on a house in the US. Just yesterday was talking to an agent where their cousin that they sold the house for a few months ago, failed to disclose that the house was hit with a massive hail storm a week before closing. Now they are wondering what to do and want her to figure it out for them... (answer is higher a good attorney because those buyers are probably gonna sue you.)

spot on as always on all three paragraphs.

I've had the oven trick pulled a few times on my clients.   I also had a wind storm blow off about 50 shingles and a great agent had the seller put on a new roof before closing (7 days) three years ago.  That family had to move to Indiana a few months ago. The AC went out three days before closing because of what happened before, they paid for the new AC.  So it can go both ways.    This is why I'm stressing the interview process before hand so you work with agents that do the right thing when this crap comes up.   And this crap comes up ALL THE TIME.  It's so rare that a transaction goes smoothly.

That's another question to ask agents.... "How do you react when something bad happens in a transaction unexpectedly?"    They could give you a BS answer, but if something goes down, now you have a conversation to hold against them.

 

[shuke]

Not even slightly true.  If you use your agent, that agent works for you and only you.

In theory.  But really that agent is working to get you to buy a house as soon as possible (so he/she can move on to other clients) at the highest price he/she can convince you to (to maximize their cut).

 

[Zegras11]

In theory.  But really that agent is working to get you to buy a house as soon as possible (so he/she can move on to other clients) at the highest price he/she can convince you to (to maximize their cut).

not really.   It's not worth an extra $100 or $200 to rush a buyer into a home that isn't right for them and they never call you again or refer you out. If an agent is doing this, fire them. Closings will happen when they are meant to happen. Good agents lead generate for an hour or two every day.  We are never waiting to finish working with one client to take on another one. You take them as you get them. From May to Sept when it's crazy, I plan 3-day breaks after my inspections and before final walk thrus to get a break.

 

[shuke]

not really.   It's not worth an extra $100 or $200 to rush a buyer into a home that isn't right for them and they never call you again or refer you out. If an agent is doing this, fire them. Closings will happen when they are meant to happen. Good agents lead generate for an hour or two every day.  We are never waiting to finish working with one client to take on another one. You take them as you get them. From May to Sept when it's crazy, I plan 3-day breaks after my inspections and before final walk thrus to get a break.

No offense meant, I'm just going off of how I felt in my experiences.  You are right, I should have fired them.

 

[Zegras11]

No offense meant, I'm just going off of how I felt in my experiences.  You are right, I should have fired them.

I don't take offense to any of the postings here.  No one here is really wrong. There are too many crappy agents out there. I obviously get frustrated when I see you guys have these. I just ended my 5th year today, and I've had 23 refers/repeats this year. There are a LOT of great agents everywhere and I'm trying to help people find those agents so they don't have crappy experiences.  

 

 

[wlwiles]

Just to chime in with my own real estate agent story.  I'm in the process of selling my house (FSBO, no realtors).  It's in a "hot" neighborhood, best elementary school in the city, been there for 9 years and never seen a house sit for longer than a month on the market in this neighborhood.  

Couple shows up to the house one day, saw the For Sale signs up the street, ask if they can take a look around, we give them a tour. They said "oh we love it, we're definitely interested, let's look at a couple more but we'll probably be back in touch with you." Never once did they mention anything about them having a realtor. 

Next day I get a call from a realtor who is representing this couple and she asks if I'll cut her in 3% commission on my house.  I said no, I wasn't willing to give up any % to a buyer's agent at this time. She says "but they have a contract with me, I have to represent them and this is how I make my money. If you don't give me a commission % then I don't get paid.  So you're also saying that you're not willing to entertain a potential buyer?".  I said "I'm well aware of how commission works.  If you have a contract with the buyer that prevents them from buying from me directly, then you're preventing them from the potential buy, not me.  If you want 3% or whatever amount for your cut, talk to your buyer and tell them to cover it".  

She calls me back later and says "ok they agreed to cover my fees out of their own pocket, and they want to make an offer".  I said ok.  They submit the offer at 10 pm on Thursday, with an offer expiration date of 3 pm Friday.  So I get 17 hours to respond to an offer, huh, that's how we're going to play this?  I call their realtor the next morning (Friday) and tell her "I would like to counter but I simply don't have time to draft a proper counter in this short amount of time so I'm verbally rejecting the offer.  You're free to submit another offer, but it needs to be closer to X price, with X closing date, X closing cost split and you need to give me at least 2 full business days to respond to it".  

That night (still Friday) I get a second offer at 10 pm again, that expires at noon on Monday. ? I honestly wanted to tell this realtor and this couple to go take a hike with their BS, but I didn't.  Ended up drafting a proper counteroffer over that weekend and submitted it to her by noon Monday, and it got accepted the next day.  Home inspection was done, appraisal was done, everything done.  We're on track to meet and do the closing in 5 days.  And their realtor still has not seen the house at all.  It boggles my mind why this couple would agree to buy the house, plus pay whatever their realtor is asking, when they are the ones that found the house, the were shown the house by us (not their realtor), and the realtor herself has not even laid eyes on the house. 

 

[Buckna]

Just to chime in with my own real estate agent story.  I'm in the process of selling my house (FSBO, no realtors).  It's in a "hot" neighborhood, best elementary school in the city, been there for 9 years and never seen a house sit for longer than a month on the market in this neighborhood.  

Couple shows up to the house one day, saw the For Sale signs up the street, ask if they can take a look around, we give them a tour. They said "oh we love it, we're definitely interested, let's look at a couple more but we'll probably be back in touch with you." Never once did they mention anything about them having a realtor. 

Next day I get a call from a realtor who is representing this couple and she asks if I'll cut her in 3% commission on my house.  I said no, I wasn't willing to give up any % to a buyer's agent at this time. She says "but they have a contract with me, I have to represent them and this is how I make my money. If you don't give me a commission % then I don't get paid.  So you're also saying that you're not willing to entertain a potential buyer?".  I said "I'm well aware of how commission works.  If you have a contract with the buyer that prevents them from buying from me directly, then you're preventing them from the potential buy, not me.  If you want 3% or whatever amount for your cut, talk to your buyer and tell them to cover it".  

She calls me back later and says "ok they agreed to cover my fees out of their own pocket, and they want to make an offer".  I said ok.  They submit the offer at 10 pm on Thursday, with an offer expiration date of 3 pm Friday.  So I get 17 hours to respond to an offer, huh, that's how we're going to play this?  I call their realtor the next morning (Friday) and tell her "I would like to counter but I simply don't have time to draft a proper counter in this short amount of time so I'm verbally rejecting the offer.  You're free to submit another offer, but it needs to be closer to X price, with X closing date, X closing cost split and you need to give me at least 2 full business days to respond to it".  

That night (still Friday) I get a second offer at 10 pm again, that expires at noon on Monday. ? I honestly wanted to tell this realtor and this couple to go take a hike with their BS, but I didn't.  Ended up drafting a proper counteroffer over that weekend and submitted it to her by noon Monday, and it got accepted the next day.  Home inspection was done, appraisal was done, everything done.  We're on track to meet and do the closing in 5 days.  And their realtor still has not seen the house at all.  It boggles my mind why this couple would agree to buy the house, plus pay whatever their realtor is asking, when they are the ones that found the house, the were shown the house by us (not their realtor), and the realtor herself has not even laid eyes on the house. 

So just to play devil's advocate, this is the only house this couple has looked at?

 

[ghostguy123]

not really.   It's not worth an extra $100 or $200 to rush a buyer into a home that isn't right for them and they never call you again or refer you out. If an agent is doing this, fire them. Closings will happen when they are meant to happen. Good agents lead generate for an hour or two every day.  We are never waiting to finish working with one client to take on another one. You take them as you get them. From May to Sept when it's crazy, I plan 3-day breaks after my inspections and before final walk thrus to get a break.

Just an FYI it isn't helpful to tell us how YOU do it.  Every experience I ever had with a realtor has been either terrible or just very "meh". 

There's a way it's supposed to be done, and then there is reality.  I think a very high percentage of the time us normies experience reality.

 

[ghostguy123]

My mom had a similar issue selling her condo FSBO.  Some people came on their own,  made offer, my mom accepted, then they had their realtor swoop in to try and take a commission.   Ultimately the deal fell through because my mom was not able to clear what she was willing to clear.  

 

[wlwiles]

So just to play devil's advocate, this is the only house this couple has looked at?

They told us it was the second one they had made an offer on.  The first ended up having some problems that were not disclosed but found by the home inspection so they backed out.  Don't know how many other houses they looked at though. 

 

[[scooter]]

It boggles my mind why this couple would agree to buy the house, plus pay whatever their realtor is asking, when they are the ones that found the house, the were shown the house by us (not their realtor), and the realtor herself has not even laid eyes on the house. 

They had a contract with the realtor. Maybe the contract promised a commission on any house that they bought.

 

[ghostguy123]

They had a contract with the realtor. Maybe the contract promised a commission on any house that they bought.

Seems like a horrible thing to make someone sign.  Unless it's like 1% to do the paperwork or something.

 

[comfortably numb]

They had a contract with the realtor. Maybe the contract promised a commission on any house that they bought.

I could be wrong but I don't think they can do that.

The agreement you sign typically just means you as a buyer are covered under the ethical codes of a realtor(hahahhaha...ok got that out of the way)....and yea if the relator shows you a house they are entitled to any potential commission but if you find sonething on your own that is not paying a commission i dont think you can be held to anything.

 

[[scooter]]

They had a contract with the realtor. Maybe the contract promised a commission on any house that they bought.

I could be wrong but I don't think they can do that.

They can in some states.

 

[comfortably numb]

Just to chime in with my own real estate agent story.  I'm in the process of selling my house (FSBO, no realtors).  It's in a "hot" neighborhood, best elementary school in the city, been there for 9 years and never seen a house sit for longer than a month on the market in this neighborhood.  

Couple shows up to the house one day, saw the For Sale signs up the street, ask if they can take a look around, we give them a tour. They said "oh we love it, we're definitely interested, let's look at a couple more but we'll probably be back in touch with you." Never once did they mention anything about them having a realtor. 

Next day I get a call from a realtor who is representing this couple and she asks if I'll cut her in 3% commission on my house.  I said no, I wasn't willing to give up any % to a buyer's agent at this time. She says "but they have a contract with me, I have to represent them and this is how I make my money. If you don't give me a commission % then I don't get paid.  So you're also saying that you're not willing to entertain a potential buyer?".  I said "I'm well aware of how commission works.  If you have a contract with the buyer that prevents them from buying from me directly, then you're preventing them from the potential buy, not me.  If you want 3% or whatever amount for your cut, talk to your buyer and tell them to cover it".  

She calls me back later and says "ok they agreed to cover my fees out of their own pocket, and they want to make an offer".  I said ok.  They submit the offer at 10 pm on Thursday, with an offer expiration date of 3 pm Friday.  So I get 17 hours to respond to an offer, huh, that's how we're going to play this?  I call their realtor the next morning (Friday) and tell her "I would like to counter but I simply don't have time to draft a proper counter in this short amount of time so I'm verbally rejecting the offer.  You're free to submit another offer, but it needs to be closer to X price, with X closing date, X closing cost split and you need to give me at least 2 full business days to respond to it".  

That night (still Friday) I get a second offer at 10 pm again, that expires at noon on Monday. ? I honestly wanted to tell this realtor and this couple to go take a hike with their BS, but I didn't.  Ended up drafting a proper counteroffer over that weekend and submitted it to her by noon Monday, and it got accepted the next day.  Home inspection was done, appraisal was done, everything done.  We're on track to meet and do the closing in 5 days.  And their realtor still has not seen the house at all.  It boggles my mind why this couple would agree to buy the house, plus pay whatever their realtor is asking, when they are the ones that found the house, the were shown the house by us (not their realtor), and the realtor herself has not even laid eyes on the house. 

To be fair

We don't know the circumstances.  

The agent could have been family/friend and the buyers felt bad to cut the agent out.

The buyers could have wanted the agent to represent them the rest of the way and the agent said i cant....for free. Ill try to see if the seller will pay. You rightfully declined and maybe they agreed to a very small fee or %. Kinda like how the buyer typically pays the commission on rental property?

 

[comfortably numb]

They can in some states.

Yea, i guess it varies but seems like it would have to be agreed upon upfront.

 

[comfortably numb]

Back to the OP and being in the RE field.

I'll throw in termite inspectors 

When one of them told me "Every house either has termites or is gonna to get them, so i need to treat" 

Hmmm

 

[Zegras11]

I could be wrong but I don't think they can do that.

The agreement you sign typically just means you as a buyer are covered under the ethical codes of a realtor(hahahhaha...ok got that out of the way)....and yea if the relator shows you a house they are entitled to any potential commission but if you find sonething on your own that is not paying a commission i dont think you can be held to anything.

This is correct in my state.   I discuss all of this before we see homes.   The buyer does not have to pay anything on a fsbo unless they want to.  The code of ethics says we have to do it for free if the seller says no and the buyer doesn't want to pay. I know I'm one of the few that would actually do it for free as they would wind up giving me a ton of referrals . 

 

[Buckna]

They told us it was the second one they had made an offer on.  The first ended up having some problems that were not disclosed but found by the home inspection so they backed out.  Don't know how many other houses they looked at though. 

This was kind of what I was getting at, but we have no way of knowing. In some states and depending on the contract they signed, as already discussed the buyers may not owe their agent anything. It could be they barely saw anything and the agent guilt tripped them into paying them a commission. Or the agent may not have been truthful about them having to pay them a commission.

It could be they've seen 30+ houses but only put an offer on one other one they actually liked. When I bought my last primary residence, we made our agent earn that commission big time just on the huge number of houses we looked at and the number of offers we put in. Had we found a FSBO we would have probably paid her something for all the time she spent working for us. I doubt it would have been 3%, but I am in a pretty expensive market.