RedScare Posted June 9, 2009 Share Posted June 9, 2009 Lawyers and Real Estate Agents have been separated and defined since the introduction of TRELA in 1939You receiving that fee is illegal and it is also illegal for the broker to give you the fee.If it were illegal, the title company, agent and agent's broker would not have done it. Sorry, but you are wrong. I have the check to prove it. I also verified it with other attorneys when I did so. I also have a copy of my sales contract with me listed as buyer's agent and the seller's agent signing off on it. I also still have my 1099 for the proceeds.Not that I care what your opinion is. I already spent the money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diggity Posted June 9, 2009 Share Posted June 9, 2009 If there was a house I wanted to look at, and the listing broker/agent said no, I would knock on the door and tell the seller that his agent refused to show me the house, but I'm interested. Then let the seller give the agent a hard time.That's a good idea.I am a real estate agent and I will be the first to tell you there are a lot of lazy, greedy, stupid and unethical agents in our business.If an agent is refusing to show you a home they are not delivering on their fiduciary duties to their client. It may be a pain in the butt to deal with attorneys, but my primary goal is to sell the damn house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 9, 2009 Author Share Posted June 9, 2009 It may be a pain in the butt to deal with attorneys, but my primary goal is to sell the damn house.Why, what are you implying? :-PBTW, the company you suggested had nice homes and was easy to work with, we just decided the home was just too small. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diggity Posted June 9, 2009 Share Posted June 9, 2009 Why, what are you implying? me??? nothing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 11, 2009 Author Share Posted June 11, 2009 I hope all is well. ______ and I have an offer that we should be ready to submit to you for your client's review tomorrow. After speaking with -our mortgage agent- and several Houston Realtors it sounds like the best situation for everyone is that the broker renegotiates his commission with the seller to lower it 3% and we offer a 3% lower purchase price (to avoid tax issues). Otherwise we will put me in the contract pursuant to Rule 535.147 and RELA 1101/ TOC 1101.005 and deal with a 1099 as needed. Please speak with your broker and let us know which method he prefers. Thanks for your help,Here's what I sent. (BTW, I hope neither the broker or the agent are on here, lol). I guess we wait and see now.And in case they are, they need to read the whole thread (that I self-derailed); they're not the Realtors being referenced as 'snoody.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted June 11, 2009 Share Posted June 11, 2009 Here's what I sent. (BTW, I hope neither the broker or the agent are on here, lol). I guess we wait and see now.And in case they are, they need to read the whole thread (that I self-derailed); they're not the Realtors being referenced as 'snoody.' I can't stand it anymore! The word is 'snooty', or in the alternative, 'snotty'. Oh, and hope it works out for ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 11, 2009 Author Share Posted June 11, 2009 I can't stand it anymore! The word is 'snooty', or in the alternative, 'snotty'. LMAO!!!! I wish this board had a rep system. Better to let it out than to keep it bottled up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yonkers Posted June 11, 2009 Share Posted June 11, 2009 I can't stand it anymore! The word is 'snooty', or in the alternative, 'snotty'. Oh, and hope it works out for ya. Hahah. I wanted to say something too but I wanted to keep it on topic. I'm vicariously venting through you now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 11, 2009 Author Share Posted June 11, 2009 Hahah. I wanted to say something too but I wanted to keep it on topic. I'm vicariously venting through you now Their first offer: lower their side to 4% and agent will cut me .5%. We're ALMOST there. That gets us 2% off our offer/purchase price (i.e. no taxes) and only taxed on .5% (still lose .5%). Will have to do thinking tonight with the wife. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 15, 2009 Author Share Posted June 15, 2009 Our offer is awaiting the seller's response.Any inspector recommendations? I want someone thorough, licensed, and insured.Still debating on the Home Warranty - the numerous horror stories are scaring me away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Chenevert Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 Our offer is awaiting the seller's response.Any inspector recommendations? I want someone thorough, licensed, and insured.Still debating on the Home Warranty - the numerous horror stories are scaring me away.Ed Shepard http://www.shepardengineering.com/contact.htmHe is great... highly recommended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diggity Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 Still debating on the Home Warranty - the numerous horror stories are scaring me away.The seller typically pays for the first year of the home warranty. Did you not request one?If not, I wouldn't bother purchasing one. I only recommend them when someone else is paying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 15, 2009 Author Share Posted June 15, 2009 So, let's play the hypothetical game: Let's not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Chenevert Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 Seller Sam may not be very good with percentages.Seller Sam may have no idea what he has to pay the selling agent... yet...Seller Sam may be stupid, not crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diggity Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 You have to realize that not all seller's are very sophisticated and they may be confused about the arrangement.If I were you, I would put together a spreadsheet showing the seller's what they would net with your offer.Also, I know these numbers are hypothetical, but it you did low ball the seller's to the tune of ~85%, they may not think you're serious and aren't giving you a serious counter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yonkers Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 So, let's play the hypothetical game:Buyer Bob negotiates Seller's Broker to lower his fee to 4% from 6%.List price of the home is $100,000. Assume for this that 2% of $100,000 is $5,000 (becaise I said so).Buyer Bob offers $85,000 (which he feels is equivalent to a $90,000 offer) and asks for $5,000 closing costs.Sam Seller counters $98,000 and no closing costs.Buyer Bob feels that this offer, in light of the brokerage reduction is actually HIGHER than the list price. Is Buyer Bob crazy in thinking Seller Sam is crazy?Using your basic numbers:1) If no negotiation had been done on your part then the owner would have gotten $100k for the house but paid out 3% to the Listing Broker and 3% to the Buyer's Agent with a net of $94k. 2) With the broker fee lowered to 4% then the counter offer would have gotten the owner $98k but he has to pay 4% to the Listing Broker with a net of $94,080. As you can see, the owner only gets an additional $80 whereas the Listing Broker gets an extra $920. 3) Your offer would have gotten the owner $85k but he would have paid 4% to the Listing Broker and $5k of closing costs with a net of $76,600.So, with the counter offer they gave you you'd still come out ahead compared to the original list price... the big winner is not you or the owner but the Listing Broker.On the other hand, your offer is way lower than the original list price. The owner would be giving up $17,400.And I don't quite understand why you said 2% is equal to $5k and why you think your $85k offer is equal to $90k. You lost me there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 15, 2009 Author Share Posted June 15, 2009 Thanks for all the help and advice! Maybe the third time will be a charm? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted June 16, 2009 Author Share Posted June 16, 2009 We have a contract, despite attorney buyer, attorney seller, and attorney tenant. We had threaten to walk away twice to get to a deal.Inspections are Wednesday, fingers crossed. Thanks for everyone's help!So what part of town is 25th W of Durham? Still Shady Acres? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
insidehouston Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 One reason an agent my not show the house is because they are lazy. But it could also be due to liabilty and the broker. With two agents you have one agent legally working for the buyer and one for the seller. When there is one agent involved they are a dual agent and have to be unbiased. Deals with only one agent are more likely to end up in lawsuits. Insurance companies will have higher fees to companies that engage more frequently in dual agency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted July 7, 2009 Author Share Posted July 7, 2009 Ok so one reason an agent my not show the house is because they are lazy. But it could also be due to liabilty and the broker. With two agents you have one agent legally working for the buyer and one for the seller. When there is one agent involved they are a dual agent and have to be unbiased. Deals with only one agent are more likely to end up in lawsuits. Insurance companies will have higher fees to companies that engage more frequently in dual agency.We found agents were REALLY willing to be intermediaries - because then they grab the full 6%.I was referring to telling them we are representing ourselves and that we want to see property X. The response, several times, was pretty much, too bad, hire an agent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yonkers Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 We found agents were REALLY willing to be intermediaries - because then they grab the full 6%.I was referring to telling them we are representing ourselves and that we want to see property X. The response, several times, was pretty much, too bad, hire an agent.Yes. This is what I found too. They had no problem representing me. But would refuse to show me if I was not represented by anyone. Which to me is being lazy because that's no different than holding an Open House. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 We found agents were REALLY willing to be intermediaries - because then they grab the full 6%.I was referring to telling them we are representing ourselves and that we want to see property X. The response, several times, was pretty much, too bad, hire an agent.At which point I tell them that I am going to knock on the door of the house and tell the owner his agent is refusing to show the property to a qualified buyer, in breach of the agent's duty to the seller. At that point, you don't have anything to lose by being aggressive with the agent. Hard to believe agents can be that stupid, but it happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee_in_TX Posted August 25, 2009 Author Share Posted August 25, 2009 So - to not create another thread.... We survived the power being turned off days before closing.Day of closing, set for 10, my wife gets a call at 9:30 (mind you she was at home because she had discovered a flat tire when trying to head to work). The call, from the mortgage broker, started 'you're not planning on closing today, are you?'Loooooooooooooooooooong story short, I think the broker was lazy and did not tell the lender that I changed jobs on August 1 (we had sent a letter from the new employer, a letter from me, and other documents 45 days prior to closing at their request). Lender called my old job to verify employment.We went at 10 and signed paperwork. Finally, thanks to the Title Company woman getting on the phone with the lender, our loan was funded at 5:05 PM.The mortgage broker's comission is being with held by the lender until I present a second pay stub to the lender (I haven't been paid twice yet). Hrrrmmmmm.....But I will find a place to post my accolade for the title company and the seller's real estate agent who were great during this VERY arguous process (I'm telling you, would have made a greatproperty virgins episode!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diggity Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 glad to hear you finally closed Yankee! Things are getting more and more difficult with the new lender regulations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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