Shy Real Estate Agents

[spider]

My daughter is looking to purchase a home in the west central part of Toronto which has led here to cruise the area looking for "for sale" signs on interesting looking homes. She has seen 5 that she thought she might like and called the agents, sometimes twice, and has received no replies from 4 of them. The 5th agent refused to show the home that my daughter was interested in insisting on showing her other properties.

What the hell is going on here? Are these properties really for sale or are the agents so fat that they can't be bothered to follow up on a possible sale?

 

[nandito]

agents don't want to do the legwork for anyone who is not their client. your daughter's best bet is to get her real estate agent to contact the office and set an appointment for a viewing. in today's market the selling agent has guaranteed money on the table which turns them into lard buckets, so they will avoid any situation which involves extra work.

 

[spider]

If my daughter doesn't have an agent, which is the case here, wouldn't the selling agent make more money by earning a commission on both sides of the sale?
How would the selling agent know that the incoming call was not from another agent
Wouldn't every time the phone rings be an opportunity, if not, why would you advertise your name and number?

Still mystified.

 

[whatever]

If my daughter doesn't have an agent, which is the case here, wouldn't the selling agent make more money by earning a commission on both sides of the sale?

This was the great scam my agent pulled on me, when every day they'd send me a list of properties that they thought were right for me, which coincendentally were also properites being sold by their office. Of course it didn't matter that the properties they insisted on showing me were in the wrong area, were in the wrong price range, and didn't match my basic requirements (2 beds, 2 baths, with a balcony and parking). I ended up finding my condo on my own on MLS, and then had to fight for a week to arrange a showing

 

[Ric]

Spider,

It's best that your daughter use her agent when she finds suitable property she is interested in. It baffles me why people would call the listing agent directly thinking they will get a better deal. The listing agent always have to act in his/her client (the seller) best interest, so you as a buyer will not be well represented by the sellers agent (unless in a dual representation; which I don't recommend). I also think that the hot market has caused some agents to become complacent. Why bother with showing a buyer 20 houses when you can list, hold-off offers for a week then sell with multiple offers above listing. But the time will come when these same agents will be begging for your daughter's business. Hang in there....

 

[CN Tower]

If my daughter doesn't have an agent, which is the case here, wouldn't the selling agent make more money by earning a commission on both sides of the sale?

Correct. So the simple answer is call again. Sounds to me like the house in question will be under contract shortly and the agent doesn't think it's worth the trouble to show it.

Still mystified.

Incompetence knows no boundaries spider. Some agents are overworked, some agents are lazy, some agents are just plain stupid. And of course there are many exemplary ones as well to be sure.

No offence to Ric, but his comments about acting in the 'best interest' of the client are a joke. The only party really representing your interests is your lawyer. Trust him or her and no one else. Just a bit of free advice for you friend. Good luck!

 

[kalvinone]

No offence to Ric, but his comments about acting in the 'best interest' of the client are a joke. The only party really representing your interests is your lawyer. Trust him or her and no one else. Just a bit of free advice for you friend. Good luck!

While not necessarily true.... those who want your business and aren't in just for the cash will look out for your interest. I know some P/T real estate agents who will work quite hard. They have another job and are just doing real estate as a side job and hobby, so they often work hard to earn that extra change. They aren't going to pressure sell you either because they have a steady income from somewhere else. So, it's important to understanding your agent motives aswell.

 

[spider]

It's best that your daughter use her agent when she finds suitable property she is interested in.

AGAIN, my daughter doesn't have an agent and doesn't need one unless and until she finds an interesting house at which time a lawyer would be more important.

It baffles me why people would call the listing agent directly thinking they will get a better deal.

You must baffle easily, people call the listing agent because the agent placed a sign with their name and telephone number on the property. I'd call that an invitation to arrange a showing. If I were looking for "a deal" I would contact the owner not the agent.

The listing agent always have to act in his/her client (the seller) best interest, so you as a buyer will not be well represented by the sellers agent (unless in a dual representation; which I don't recommend).

This happens all the time, see post above.

 

[TrickyRicky]

"It baffles me why people would call the listing agent directly"

In a competitive bid environment you are better off being represented by the listing agent because she has direct incentive to prejudice your offer over those presented by other buyers. The listing agent works on behalf of the seller; however her motive is not really to optimize the sale price, rather to make sure a sale occurs. She would rather sell, then sell for a high price. She will only really be motivated to optimize the sale price if her client is likely to be a repeat or frequent client

 

[Monaco]

Some agents will get another agent from their brokerage to work with you, including offer submission, and will insist on this. You do not end up talking directly to the listing agent.

 

[Catapult]

Ric - isn't it in the interest of the seller if the seller's agent calls a potential buyer back? if the agent or seller isn't confortable with acting for both parties, the agent could at least tell the buyer to get an agent. Not caling back is just lazy even if the ppty is sold (which warrants a courtesy call).

 

[EXgeMMy]

I remember e-mailing a few agents based on their listings to get more info about the property. I would say only 10% of the time did they reply. This was back in October.

 

[FutureBuilder]

Correct. So the simple answer is call again. Sounds to me like the house in question will be under contract shortly and the agent doesn't think it's worth the trouble to show it.



Incompetence knows no boundaries spider. Some agents are overworked, some agents are lazy, some agents are just plain stupid. And of course there are many exemplary ones as well to be sure.

No offence to Ric, but his comments about acting in the 'best interest' of the client are a joke. The only party really representing your interests is your lawyer. Trust him or her and no one else. Just a bit of free advice for you friend. Good luck!

Oh please, that's a load of B.S., unless of course you're a real estate lawyer and then it makes sense. I have seen lawyers make huge mistakes on real estate transactions. I've seen people get screwed pretty bad by lawyers that were simply horrible or simply didn't care. A good real estate agent (and there are some very good agents out there) will take care of their clients.

9 out of 10 times when someone calls of a sign nothing materializes. So if an agent is very busy they simply won't waste their time. I personally would always follow up with someone, but I can understand why a lot of people don't.

 

[spider]

I started this thread and will end it with this update.

My daughter saw another house she thought she would like to see more of, called the listing agent, arranged a showing with her and bought the house.

Isn't this how it is supposed to work?

 

[PinkLucy]

Sounds reasonable to me spider. I've got a for sale sign on my lawn. People have knocked on my door looking for info. I give them some and then tell them if they're interested, call the agent; her number is on the sign.