Real Estate Model Is Broken – Property Virgins

[CA renter]

[quote=EconProf]Gotta weigh in on the old argument about using a realtor vs. going it alone.
Have bought & sold many properties, with and without real estate agents. In general, they are worthwhile simply because they insulate the buyer and seller from each other and smooth negotiations. Remember that the buying process is filled with pitfalls for each side and is a zero-sum game, with each side ready to rip the other to shreds. That’s why, ideally, the seller and buyer should never meet. If you are buying, you want the seller’s agent to knock some sense into them if they are delusional or in love with their house. If you are a seller, you want the agent tito market your property effectively to get the highest price and scope out the real buyers from the flakes. In countless other ways, good brokers move the transaction along, anticipate and solve problems, and coordinate all the necessary parties to do their job. These details are often ignored by the uninitiated who concentrate solely on the commission and ignor the time spent on deals that don’t get consumated.
That said, agents and realtors vary widely in knowledge, effort, and ethics and it is your job to select one carefully.[/quote]

But that’s only for certain buyers and sellers. Personally, I’ve bought/sold with and without realtors, and it’s been immeasurably easier to transact a deal without the agents in the middle. I like to tailor deals so that both the buyer and seller get what they want. Unfortunately, with agents, you never know what is motivating the other side, so are powerless to complete the transaction in the best way possible.

Agents are the ones who encourage the adversarial relationship between buyers and sellers. We must always remember that buyers and sellers both want the same thing (to exchange a particular piece of real estate for money).

Personally, I’ve found that agents can be more of a hindrance than help, but there are exceptions. Of course, any time you need to buy or sell from a distance, a GOOD agent is a must. This also applies when you have to sell, but work or other commitments prevent you from showing the house, etc.

IMHO, a buyer’s agent is much less valuable than a listing agent, but ONLY if the listing agent makes himself available for regular showings. One of the more comical things about listing agents is when they think they should receive a 3% commission just for entering the property on the MLS (often with only one bad picture and no description). Some don’t even like to answer questions when you call them because they think your agent should call instead. These people seriously need to go back to their fry cook jobs.

[Ren]

[quote=creechrr]Huh? What? How were you at his mercy? Could you please elaborate?

I don’t see how an agent could hold you hostage like you suggest. I’m sure you had options.[/quote]

Sure, we had the option of walking away. The problem is that the house is one in a thousand. I’ve been watching the market like a hawk for 2 years and haven’t seen one more perfect for our plans and price range (awesome location and condition). We didn’t let on about this, but when you want a house badly enough, the realtor’s lies do more damage. I’m sure they always claim there are other offers, but inventory has been so bad for the last year and a half that we didn’t want to pass this one up, and so had to take his claims at face value. I’m guessing he squeezed an extra $5k out of us, but in retrospect it was worth it. It appraised at the sales amount, at least.

It’s his other behavior (constant obnoxious phone calls to our agent and lender pushing for closing) that is going to get a letter written to his broker, the NAR and CAR. Not that it will do any good.

[Ren]

[quote=creechrr]Huh? What? How were you at his mercy? Could you please elaborate?

I don’t see how an agent could hold you hostage like you suggest. I’m sure you had options.[/quote]

Sure, we had the option of walking away. The problem is that the house is one in a thousand. I’ve been watching the market like a hawk for 2 years and haven’t seen one more perfect for our plans and price range (awesome location and condition). We didn’t let on about this, but when you want a house badly enough, the realtor’s lies do more damage. I’m sure they always claim there are other offers, but inventory has been so bad for the last year and a half that we didn’t want to pass this one up, and so had to take his claims at face value. I’m guessing he squeezed an extra $5k out of us, but in retrospect it was worth it. It appraised at the sales amount, at least.

It’s his other behavior (constant obnoxious phone calls to our agent and lender pushing for closing) that is going to get a letter written to his broker, the NAR and CAR. Not that it will do any good.

[Ren]

[quote=creechrr]Huh? What? How were you at his mercy? Could you please elaborate?

I don’t see how an agent could hold you hostage like you suggest. I’m sure you had options.[/quote]

Sure, we had the option of walking away. The problem is that the house is one in a thousand. I’ve been watching the market like a hawk for 2 years and haven’t seen one more perfect for our plans and price range (awesome location and condition). We didn’t let on about this, but when you want a house badly enough, the realtor’s lies do more damage. I’m sure they always claim there are other offers, but inventory has been so bad for the last year and a half that we didn’t want to pass this one up, and so had to take his claims at face value. I’m guessing he squeezed an extra $5k out of us, but in retrospect it was worth it. It appraised at the sales amount, at least.

It’s his other behavior (constant obnoxious phone calls to our agent and lender pushing for closing) that is going to get a letter written to his broker, the NAR and CAR. Not that it will do any good.

[Ren]

[quote=creechrr]Huh? What? How were you at his mercy? Could you please elaborate?

I don’t see how an agent could hold you hostage like you suggest. I’m sure you had options.[/quote]

Sure, we had the option of walking away. The problem is that the house is one in a thousand. I’ve been watching the market like a hawk for 2 years and haven’t seen one more perfect for our plans and price range (awesome location and condition). We didn’t let on about this, but when you want a house badly enough, the realtor’s lies do more damage. I’m sure they always claim there are other offers, but inventory has been so bad for the last year and a half that we didn’t want to pass this one up, and so had to take his claims at face value. I’m guessing he squeezed an extra $5k out of us, but in retrospect it was worth it. It appraised at the sales amount, at least.

It’s his other behavior (constant obnoxious phone calls to our agent and lender pushing for closing) that is going to get a letter written to his broker, the NAR and CAR. Not that it will do any good.

[Ren]

[quote=creechrr]Huh? What? How were you at his mercy? Could you please elaborate?

I don’t see how an agent could hold you hostage like you suggest. I’m sure you had options.[/quote]

Sure, we had the option of walking away. The problem is that the house is one in a thousand. I’ve been watching the market like a hawk for 2 years and haven’t seen one more perfect for our plans and price range (awesome location and condition). We didn’t let on about this, but when you want a house badly enough, the realtor’s lies do more damage. I’m sure they always claim there are other offers, but inventory has been so bad for the last year and a half that we didn’t want to pass this one up, and so had to take his claims at face value. I’m guessing he squeezed an extra $5k out of us, but in retrospect it was worth it. It appraised at the sales amount, at least.

It’s his other behavior (constant obnoxious phone calls to our agent and lender pushing for closing) that is going to get a letter written to his broker, the NAR and CAR. Not that it will do any good.

[Ren]

I’m with EconProf on whether to use a realtor or not. I found it very useful. We used a newbie, and while he made some mistakes, he worked very hard for us.

As for agents not working for their money, that’s true in some cases, but for the most part, the successful ones work their asses off, 60 hours/week+. It’s the pay structure that’s messed up. I can understand some disparity between realtor salaries in different areas of the country, but it’s currently really, really bad. Too dependent on price and not enough on workload.

And that’s coming from a soon-to-be licensee (warm up the flames, Rt.66! At least I’m doing it the right way, via college, not a 48-hour course). Because I plan to be up front with my opinion of the state of the market, I’ll be working in Temecula rather than the coast, so the honesty won’t adversely affect my sales.

[Ren]

I’m with EconProf on whether to use a realtor or not. I found it very useful. We used a newbie, and while he made some mistakes, he worked very hard for us.

As for agents not working for their money, that’s true in some cases, but for the most part, the successful ones work their asses off, 60 hours/week+. It’s the pay structure that’s messed up. I can understand some disparity between realtor salaries in different areas of the country, but it’s currently really, really bad. Too dependent on price and not enough on workload.

And that’s coming from a soon-to-be licensee (warm up the flames, Rt.66! At least I’m doing it the right way, via college, not a 48-hour course). Because I plan to be up front with my opinion of the state of the market, I’ll be working in Temecula rather than the coast, so the honesty won’t adversely affect my sales.

[Ren]

I’m with EconProf on whether to use a realtor or not. I found it very useful. We used a newbie, and while he made some mistakes, he worked very hard for us.

As for agents not working for their money, that’s true in some cases, but for the most part, the successful ones work their asses off, 60 hours/week+. It’s the pay structure that’s messed up. I can understand some disparity between realtor salaries in different areas of the country, but it’s currently really, really bad. Too dependent on price and not enough on workload.

And that’s coming from a soon-to-be licensee (warm up the flames, Rt.66! At least I’m doing it the right way, via college, not a 48-hour course). Because I plan to be up front with my opinion of the state of the market, I’ll be working in Temecula rather than the coast, so the honesty won’t adversely affect my sales.

[Ren]

I’m with EconProf on whether to use a realtor or not. I found it very useful. We used a newbie, and while he made some mistakes, he worked very hard for us.

As for agents not working for their money, that’s true in some cases, but for the most part, the successful ones work their asses off, 60 hours/week+. It’s the pay structure that’s messed up. I can understand some disparity between realtor salaries in different areas of the country, but it’s currently really, really bad. Too dependent on price and not enough on workload.

And that’s coming from a soon-to-be licensee (warm up the flames, Rt.66! At least I’m doing it the right way, via college, not a 48-hour course). Because I plan to be up front with my opinion of the state of the market, I’ll be working in Temecula rather than the coast, so the honesty won’t adversely affect my sales.

[Ren]

I’m with EconProf on whether to use a realtor or not. I found it very useful. We used a newbie, and while he made some mistakes, he worked very hard for us.

As for agents not working for their money, that’s true in some cases, but for the most part, the successful ones work their asses off, 60 hours/week+. It’s the pay structure that’s messed up. I can understand some disparity between realtor salaries in different areas of the country, but it’s currently really, really bad. Too dependent on price and not enough on workload.

And that’s coming from a soon-to-be licensee (warm up the flames, Rt.66! At least I’m doing it the right way, via college, not a 48-hour course). Because I plan to be up front with my opinion of the state of the market, I’ll be working in Temecula rather than the coast, so the honesty won’t adversely affect my sales.

[svelte]

We used to really like this show…Sandra would help them get a low price.

But now, it seems like it is a mouthpiece for realtors…first bids over list (???) and the show makes it look like people tour 3 properties then buy (that would minimize the work of realtors, wouldn’t it?).

Remember back when these shows would have a label on the screen showing the total number of houses toured? I haven’t seen that in a few seasons…now it looks like everyone tours three and buys (shoot, we look at triple digits before we buy!).

Even Sandra’s wardrobe isn’t as appealing as it used to be…she used to dress very provocatively.

Maybe she should do a show about people like us who’ve bought a lot of homes. They can call it Property Sluts.

[svelte]

We used to really like this show…Sandra would help them get a low price.

But now, it seems like it is a mouthpiece for realtors…first bids over list (???) and the show makes it look like people tour 3 properties then buy (that would minimize the work of realtors, wouldn’t it?).

Remember back when these shows would have a label on the screen showing the total number of houses toured? I haven’t seen that in a few seasons…now it looks like everyone tours three and buys (shoot, we look at triple digits before we buy!).

Even Sandra’s wardrobe isn’t as appealing as it used to be…she used to dress very provocatively.

Maybe she should do a show about people like us who’ve bought a lot of homes. They can call it Property Sluts.

[svelte]

We used to really like this show…Sandra would help them get a low price.

But now, it seems like it is a mouthpiece for realtors…first bids over list (???) and the show makes it look like people tour 3 properties then buy (that would minimize the work of realtors, wouldn’t it?).

Remember back when these shows would have a label on the screen showing the total number of houses toured? I haven’t seen that in a few seasons…now it looks like everyone tours three and buys (shoot, we look at triple digits before we buy!).

Even Sandra’s wardrobe isn’t as appealing as it used to be…she used to dress very provocatively.

Maybe she should do a show about people like us who’ve bought a lot of homes. They can call it Property Sluts.

[svelte]

We used to really like this show…Sandra would help them get a low price.

But now, it seems like it is a mouthpiece for realtors…first bids over list (???) and the show makes it look like people tour 3 properties then buy (that would minimize the work of realtors, wouldn’t it?).

Remember back when these shows would have a label on the screen showing the total number of houses toured? I haven’t seen that in a few seasons…now it looks like everyone tours three and buys (shoot, we look at triple digits before we buy!).

Even Sandra’s wardrobe isn’t as appealing as it used to be…she used to dress very provocatively.

Maybe she should do a show about people like us who’ve bought a lot of homes. They can call it Property Sluts.

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