Some Realtors are Aholes

[jscarbor]

So a guy calls me and wants to use me to buy a house. I sent him a commission agreement form but not the TREC "buyer Rep" form because quite frankly I don't like the form when I buy from another realtor, but thats just me. Anyway I was in a meeting and the guy called me about wanting to see this foreclosure, I missed the call. As soon as I got out of meeting I called and he is having the "listing" Realtor open the house on Inker up. I told my client I was right down the street and I would call the listing agent and tell him that I could show. When I called the listing agent the guy was pissed and asked why we were wasting his time. He said he would call the bank and tell them that I was not eligible to get a commission. I told the guy I was sorry but let us please check it out. If he likes it maybe we can work something out. This jackass refused. I told him I would gladly pay for his gas. At that point he told me that he made $350,000 per year and paying for his gas was an insult(So he takes REO listings, this is his only one and he makes that much money?). At that point I pretty much knew we were dealing with an idiot here. I told him that his job was to look at Real Estate. Heaven forbid he checks out his listing. After he said the rest of his BS I told him I would call the Buyer and tell him to go see the house with me and if he could get a good deal then do so without me getting a commission. I told him I didn't want to get in the way of him getting a good deal. After talking with the Realtor my client decided to not see the home, he agreed that the guy was an ahole and figured ther would be more on the market. I really feel like spending time on this and contacting the Bank that owns the property to see if they would want him to open a house as a courtesy or not?

Obviously I am a Realtor but I understand much of the publics disdain for Realtors as much as anyone. Some of these people are egomaniacs who think Real Estate is about THEM and not the clients.

Edited August 18, 2008 by jscarbor

[Pumapayam]

I had a bad experience with a listing agent back in 2002/2003 when purchasing mine. After my agent and I were able to knock $25K off the asking price, the sellers agent decided she was interested in buying the home as such a discount. She started avoiding our phone calls and began pursuing the purchase for herself.

Luckily I had the owners number and decided to contact him directly, her plan was foiled and the rest is happy history.

[Vertigo58]

Imagine a whole business mixer with realtors?

[BryanS]

So a guy calls me and wants to use me to buy a house. I sent him a commission agreement form but not the TREC "buyer Rep" form because quite frankly I don't like the form when I buy from another realtor, but thats just me. Anyway I was in a meeting and the guy called me about wanting to see this foreclosure, I missed the call. As soon as I got out of meeting I called and he is having the "listing" Realtor open the house on Inker up. I told my client I was right down the street and I would call the listing agent and tell him that I could show. When I called the listing agent the guy was pissed and asked why we were wasting his time. He said he would call the bank and tell them that I was not eligible to get a commission. I told the guy I was sorry but let us please check it out. If he likes it maybe we can work something out. This jackass refused. I told him I would gladly pay for his gas. At that point he told me that he made $350,000 per year and paying for his gas was an insult(So he takes REO listings, this is his only one and he makes that much money?). At that point I pretty much knew we were dealing with an idiot here. I told him that his job was to look at Real Estate. Heaven forbid he checks out his listing. After he said the rest of his BS I told him I would call the Buyer and tell him to go see the house with me and if he could get a good deal then do so without me getting a commission. I told him I didn't want to get in the way of him getting a good deal. After talking with the Realtor my client decided to not see the home, he agreed that the guy was an ahole and figured ther would be more on the market. I really feel like spending time on this and contacting the Bank that owns the property to see if they would want him to open a house as a courtesy or not?

Obviously I am a Realtor but I understand much of the publics disdain for Realtors as much as anyone. Some of these people are egomaniacs who think Real Estate is about THEM and not the clients.

You missed the call. Root of the problem...

[TheNiche]

I had a bad experience with a listing agent back in 2002/2003 when purchasing mine. After my agent and I were able to knock $25K off the asking price, the sellers agent decided she was interested in buying the home as such a discount. She started avoiding our phone calls and began pursuing the purchase for herself.

Luckily I had the owners number and decided to contact him directly, her plan was foiled and the rest is happy history.

I once faced a similar problem. Word to the wise--never, never, never use a title company that is affiliated with the seller's rep.

[diggity]

You missed the call. Root of the problem...

what a useful response.

[jscarbor]

You missed the call. Root of the problem...

You missed the point...

[BryanS]

You missed the point...

Did I? Had you checked your caller ID, in your meeting, you could have told your client "I'm in a meeting - call you back in 5 minutes." Instead, your client had no idea when you'd call him back... Was it going to be 5 minutes? 5 Hours? The next day? Not knowing that, and anxious that he might lose the deal (because of your unavailability), your client, who probably didn't know "the rules" - called the other realtor to make arrangements to see the place. Uh oh. We all know what that means: the other realtor then had the right to keep ALL the commission, because they were going to be the ones providing entry to the property - not you.

So had you been available, you could have been there to provide prompt service to your client, you could have arranged entry to the property, the other realtor would not have gotten abrupt/rude, and you would have been guaranteed 3%. But no

[TheNiche]

You missed the point...

No he didn't. He is the point.

[RedScare]

Did I? Had you checked your caller ID, in your meeting, you could have told your client "I'm in a meeting - call you back in 5 minutes." Instead, your client had no idea when you'd call him back... Was it going to be 5 minutes? 5 Hours? The next day? Not knowing that, and anxious that he might lose the deal (because of your unavailability), your client, who probably didn't know "the rules" - called the other realtor to make arrangements to see the place. Uh oh. We all know what that means: the other realtor then had the right to keep ALL the commission, because they were going to be the ones providing entry to the property - not you.

So had you been available, you could have been there to provide prompt service to your client, you could have arranged entry to the property, the other realtor would not have gotten abrupt/rude, and you would have been guaranteed 3%. But no

[editor]

You missed the call. Root of the problem...

It's real estate. It's not open heart surgery.

If this guy is so self-important that getting a call back 15 minutes later changes the deal, then he's not worth dealing with in the first place. Meetings happen all the time in business, yet somehow business gets done. I think this guy was looking for trouble and that was his excuse.

[jscarbor]

Did I? Had you checked your caller ID, in your meeting, you could have told your client "I'm in a meeting - call you back in 5 minutes." Instead, your client had no idea when you'd call him back... Was it going to be 5 minutes? 5 Hours? The next day? Not knowing that, and anxious that he might lose the deal (because of your unavailability), your client, who probably didn't know "the rules" - called the other realtor to make arrangements to see the place. Uh oh. We all know what that means: the other realtor then had the right to keep ALL the commission, because they were going to be the ones providing entry to the property - not you.

So had you been available, you could have been there to provide prompt service to your client, you could have arranged entry to the property, the other realtor would not have gotten abrupt/rude, and you would have been guaranteed 3%. But no

Edited August 20, 2008 by jscarbor

[diggity]

Did I? Had you checked your caller ID, in your meeting, you could have told your client "I'm in a meeting - call you back in 5 minutes." Instead, your client had no idea when you'd call him back... Was it going to be 5 minutes? 5 Hours? The next day? Not knowing that, and anxious that he might lose the deal (because of your unavailability), your client, who probably didn't know "the rules" - called the other realtor to make arrangements to see the place. Uh oh. We all know what that means: the other realtor then had the right to keep ALL the commission, because they were going to be the ones providing entry to the property - not you.

So had you been available, you could have been there to provide prompt service to your client, you could have arranged entry to the property, the other realtor would not have gotten abrupt/rude, and you would have been guaranteed 3%. But no

[BryanS]

It's real estate. It's not open heart surgery.

If this guy is so self-important that getting a call back 15 minutes later changes the deal, then he's not worth dealing with in the first place. Meetings happen all the time in business, yet somehow business gets done. I think this guy was looking for trouble and that was his excuse.

It is real estate. The self-important guy (the eager client) had no idea when, or even if, his realtor would call him back... because his realtor missed his call. How was he to know? While he's waiting on his realtor (which could have been hours? - who knows)... someone else is out there scoping up a deal that could have been his... Had he known the rules about showing properties, maybe he would have waited longer before contacting the other agent, who knows.

[BryanS]

Yes, I should have got the call but...

1. I don't blame the client. New client eager to see a house.

2. As a person who lists my new construction with another broker... had I found out that I might have potentially lost a sale because my Broker was to much of an ahole to open the house then I would at the very least fire his/her ass. As a broker myself I take the fiduciary responsibility for my clients with the highest degree of importance. The most important part of the deal is the buyer and seller, not the Realtor. Anyone with a Supra key can open a door. Thats the point.

First, I would blame myself, for missing the call.

Next, I would blame my client - and educate him on how showing real estate works and how I, as a realtor, can get screwed by him directly talking to other listing agents that give him access to properties he wants to see. I would also tell him that if he calls me, and I don't answer - I'll call him back within an hour or 30 minutes so that he doesn't panic.

Last, yes, the listing agent was rude. But it's real estate.

[editor]

Last, yes, the listing agent was rude. But it's real estate.

It's not an excuse for uncivilized behavior. The more agents who behave this way, the worse the reputation of the entire industry.

I've never worked in real estate. But I have worked in plenty of offices where if you took a cell phone call in a meeting you'd be shown the door. These were meetings with sales people with $10- $50 million per quarter advertising clients. If they picked up their phone, they'd be in a world of hurt.

Properties were bought and sold for millions of dollars for hundreds of years before the invention of the cell phone. We shouldn't enable rude people to think they can continue a rude pattern of behavior.

Real Estate is not a life-or-death industry.

[diggity]

I would also tell him that if he calls me, and I don't answer - I'll call him back within an hour or 30 minutes so that he doesn't panic.

In other words, you would tell him to be a rational human being?

People are often in situations where they can't answer a call. That doesn't make them bad at their job. One would hope the client wouldn't be so anxious as to call the listing agent directly, but it happens sometimes.

If I have a listing and I am called directly by a buyer, the first thing I ask is if they're working with an agent. This is an easy way to clear things up early.

In this case, the other agent was being a scumbag...which isn't surprising considering it was a foreclosure listing. Those agents aren't generally the most ethical or easy to deal with.

[editor]

In this case, the other agent was being a scumbag...which isn't surprising considering it was a foreclosure listing. Those agents aren't generally the most ethical or easy to deal with.

Why is that? Because there's not much money involved?

[RedScare]

First, I would blame myself, for missing the call.

Next, I would blame my client - and educate him on how showing real estate works and how I, as a realtor, can get screwed by him directly talking to other listing agents that give him access to properties he wants to see. I would also tell him that if he calls me, and I don't answer - I'll call him back within an hour or 30 minutes so that he doesn't panic.

Last, yes, the listing agent was rude. But it's real estate.

You know, as recently as 10 years ago, if you called someone and they did not answer, you left a message. With the ubiquitous use of cell phones, people now demand to be answered on the 2nd ring and dealt with immediately. It is not a pleasant development. I am not going to blame jscarbor for not answering his phone while in a meeting. Carbor is not to be blamed for his client's impatience. At the same time, BryanS is correct in pointing out that today's clients are impatient. Carbor should not be blamed for the client's impatience, merely aware that impatient clients do what they do.

In my 15 years of self-employment, I noticed that when clients looked through the yellow pages and called my office, if I did not take the call immediately, they called the next lawyer. Never mind that the only lawyer that is in his office all day is the lazy or incompetent one. Impatient people demand answers NOW, and will sacrifice good service to be waited on immediately. It is part of the reason I am no longer self-employed. And we are ALL guilty of it. Technology has enabled our impatience to the point of absurdity. In the 70s, there was no voice mail. In the 80s, we got voice mail and pagers. In the 90s, we added email. Now, we have cell phones, voice mail, email, text and IM. And, we are expected to answer all of it immediately.

[Dan the Man]

I consider it extremely rude to interrupt a conversation, much less a meeting, to take a phone call.

Cell phones and email give people a false sense of urgency.

[editor]

I consider it extremely rude to interrupt a conversation, much less a meeting, to take a phone call.

Cell phones and email give people a false sense of urgency.

And importance.

[BryanS]

I consider it extremely rude to interrupt a conversation, much less a meeting, to take a phone call.

Cell phones and email give people a false sense of urgency.

I agree. In all industries - except real estate. And I say that because, how many times have you seen listings that indicate: "Hurry - Won't last! MUST See!" ... and buyer's agents that say: "Call me ANYTIME!" ... That's the environment that realtors have setup for themselves. Time is of the essence.

When I've worked with my agent before... we would be out looking at properties, she would answer phone calls, from other clients, setting up appointments/times to show them listings. Likewise, I could call her - she would answer, indicating she was out showing, could then meet up with me in X hours at meet at where ever place. I was never offended at her answering phone - because that's her job.

[diggity]

Why is that? Because there's not much money involved?

in my opinion, there's a few reasons for this

1.) The larger REO agents deal with a huge volume of listings, so angering an agent on one deal is not big deal to them.

2.) They also are only obligated to the banks that give them the listing, and banks don't really care how good their attitude is

3.) They make b/w 1.5-2.5% for each listing, so getting both sides of the deal is a very attractive proposition

4.) You deal with a lot of screwballs when listing foreclosures, so they probably think the worst of people.

5.) They are dealing with so many listings that they don't feel like the have time to follow up quickly.

Anyway, I'm sure there are some good REO agents out there, I just haven't had great experiences with a lot of them

I agree. In all industries - except real estate. And I say that because, how many times have you seen listings that indicate: "Hurry - Won't last! MUST See!" ... and buyer's agents that say: "Call me ANYTIME!" ... That's the environment that realtors have setup for themselves. Time is of the essence.

This is just silly.

99.9% of the time, calling someone back in five minutes (or when you get free) is not going to make the difference in a deal.

I get back to my clients very quickly, but I'm not going to interrupt a listing appointment or the middle of a conversation with another client to answer the phone. If you make it a habit to get back to your clients quickly, most of them will not panic if they get your voice mail occasionally. It sounds to me like you (or your agent) created these false expectations.

We all have high maintenance clients like the OP referenced and in my experience the more you let them walk all over you, the worse they get. Both parties should respect each others time.

Both agent and client should have realistic goals and expectations from the beginning.

Edited August 21, 2008 by diggity

[musicman]

Last, yes, the listing agent was rude. But it's real estate.

don't open the floodgate or the realtors will appear.

Edited August 21, 2008 by musicman

[BryanS]

This is just silly.

Is it really? You haven't seen ANY listings out there that indicate as such? "Hurry - won't last!" Not one?

99.9% of the time, calling someone back in five minutes (or when you get free) is not going to make the difference in a deal.

You're right. But what if you client doesn't know that? If you say from the outset that you'll get back with your client ASAP, even when they miss you, then expectations are known. But if you haven't established that... as far as they know... you may never call them back in a timely manner.

I get back to my clients very quickly, but I'm not going to interrupt a listing appointment or the middle of a conversation with another client to answer the phone. If you make it a habit to get back to your clients quickly, most of them will not panic if they get your voice mail occasionally. It sounds to me like you (or your agent) created these false expectations.

I've been with three different agents over the past several years (based on the areas of the city I was looking at). They've all done it. I've gone on showings with other friends of mine; I've seen it done there too. So are you saying that when you are showing a house to a client - you actually turn off your cell phone as a matter of courtesy? Or maybe you leave it on... but whatever you do - you don't look at the call ID log until you get back in the car. Or maybe you just leave your cell phone in your car. I would find that hard to believe. After all, in your industry - it's money calling.

We all have high maintenance clients like the OP referenced and in my experience they more you let them walk all over you, the worse they get. Both parties should respect each others time.

No argument there.

Both agent and client should have realistic goals and expectations from the beginning.

...and obviously that didn't happen in this case.

[musicman]

Is it really? You haven't seen ANY listings out there that indicate as such? "Hurry - won't last!" Not one?

my personal favorite is stunning.

[diggity]

So are you saying that when you are showing a house to a client - you actually turn off your cell phone as a matter of courtesy? Or maybe you leave it on... but whatever you do - you don't look at the call ID log until you get back in the car. Or maybe you just leave your cell phone in your car. I would find that hard to believe.

When did i say that? i wait until I can get away and return the call. Is this really that difficult to comprehend?

After all, in your industry - it's money calling

well i guess money better leave a message.

Edited August 21, 2008 by diggity

[editor]

Is it really? You haven't seen ANY listings out there that indicate as such? "Hurry - won't last!" Not one?

Since when is "Hurry - won't last!" the truth? Doesn't every listing contain similar hyperbole? It's like eBay listings -- you have to filter out the crap to figure out what's real. Because someone writes "Hurry!" does that make you obligated to drop everything you're doing and chase their deal?

[jscarbor]

The thread isn't about the client, its about some ahole not willing to open his own damn listing regardless of whether or not he was represented by me. Yes my client should have been coached better by me, yes I should have picked up the phone while I was in a meeting with bankers who were willing to loan me millons of dollars, in fact I felt so bad I told the buyer to go look at it anyway and I would help him and not take a commission. I did my part. The listing agent is the one who decided to turn down a potential client because he was an arrogant, selfriteous bastard who was so busy that he could not open the only listing he had for someone who was eager to see the property. The funny thing about this is that the property isn't that great of a deal. Its a good price but not off fair market for that type home from what I gather in very limited research.

[BryanS]

Since when is "Hurry - won't last!" the truth? Doesn't every listing contain similar hyperbole? It's like eBay listings -- you have to filter out the crap to figure out what's real. Because someone writes "Hurry!" does that make you obligated to drop everything you're doing and chase their deal?

If the real estate industry is going to put out a sense of urgency on properties with hyperbole... then they should be prepared to live up to that urgency (coordinating with their client, returning calls) - otherwise - why get people spun up?

That's their goal - to get people excited to go see property now.

Every real estate agent I've seen is glued to their cell phone and understands that if they don't return calls - for whatever reason - they're at risk of losing the deal. And if you're in a meeting, and don't answer your phone - that's fine. But guess what? You might have just turned down your half of the deal. Sometimes, you have to do that. But that's a choice you make; a choice you have to live with the consquences of your decision. That's clearly what happened here.

Regardless of the listing description, the fact is some property goes fast. Like in a day. Others, not so fast - but you never know. So if you're out looking for a place... and as a buyer - you have everything lined up, financing, your buyer's rep, etc... when you see what could be your ideal home, after months and months, of shifting through crappy listings - you - and your real estate agent - better be prepared to move quick. That is the nature of the industry. It is also the nature of the industry, beyond anything I have seen in other industry, for real estate agents to back-bite each other, trash talk each other, change the terms of the sale/commission - after the deal is made, snip at each other, call each other "aholes," and whole long list of behaviors that place them just ahead of shady used car salesman in mores and values in my book (as illustrated by the OP - two realtors fighting). That does not mean that all real estate agents are bad, evil, slimy people (I love my agent!)... but a lot of them are.