Yes, it's like that around here too (New Zealand), but if the realator hasn't been doing their job to a reasonable standard, as per the law and the contract with the vendor, they can be fired, then a "fresh" approach made by the buyer.

I have had similar experiences with realators as well. Just recently , I looked at a house after work, , I was filthy dirty. This snoooty beatch gave me total attitude, and acted like I did not deserve to be looking at the property. I guess they are all human too. I put them on the same social level as car salesman, and lawyers. Who knows, she may have a family member intersted , or living in the same area. One can never tell

It's amazing that things that would considered unethical (or illegal) in other industries is not only tolerated but encouraged in real estate (mostly by the realtors themselves). Not disclosing other interested parties, representing both sides of a transaction, the broker or realtor taking an interest in the transaction themselves, lying or misleading to boost commission, lying or misleading to discourage competing offers, lying or misleading to encourage competing offers....

Wow. I've got a great long-term relationship with a realtor who I've used to purchase and sell several houses. Even though she will work only with "friends & family", she has made more money already this year than all of last year, by a wide margin.

She does a great job for me, because she knows I buy and sell on a semi-regular basis, and she gets a piece of the action on both transactions. She always sells my houses quickly, and is worth every bit of the commissions I pay her.

A few thoughts:

-As was already stated, it is illegal for a licensed realtor to not submit an offer. Was your $120,000 put onto a signed Purchase & Sale Agreement, or just verbal? You MUST fill out and sign a Purchase and Sale agreement. It will include a time limit for the seller to respond (usually a day or two). The seller must reply with a "yes", "no", or a counter-offer. If you only verbally told the agent to offer $120,000, you haven't actually made an offer.

-If a licensed agent wants to purchase a home themself as: a) an investment, or b) becuase it is listed under true market value, that must be disclosed to the buyer.

You must not work any farther with this realtor- They obviously don't care about you. In spite of all of the realtor bashing here, they are like any other profession- there are both good and bad. There are plenty of good ones out there, hungry for a closed sale. The difficulty is in finding the truely good one that you will enjoy working with. I would ask your friends or family, especially a guy like me who has several sales experiences, for a recommendation.

Your good realtor will always have the proper forms with them, ready to write up an offer. I have snagged a few fixer-uppers within a few hours of being listed. Your good realtor will keep you constantly informed about your offer, and when you can expect the reply. An exceptional realtor will talk you out of buying a home that doesn't fit your needs, and will then work hard to find one that does.

You may have already lost out on this one because the realtor was waiting for somebody else's offer, and may have used yours to encourage someone else to make an offer just a little bit higher.

While you could go directly to the listing agent, in the long term, you may be better served by finding the right realtor, and beginning a long-term relationship.

I hope it works out well for you.

Was your $120,000 put onto a signed Purchase & Sale Agreement, or just verbal?

Just a verbal... I didn't even know I needed to sign anything and she definitely didn't offer me any docs to sign. :rolleyes: I really think she just blew me off. I figured I needed to get the financing end of it done first so I put all the research into that. All the bank really told me was (Key Bank) without fail don't use the realtor's financing options its a high interest trap.

You haven't made an offer yet. Time to get busy!

Right - act fast.

Call the listing agent and tell them you want to submit a signed offer ASAP.

fire the idiot. in writing. explain that they were to submit an offer for you and did not. IN WRITING - fax it to them

if you still don't get this house then at least you are now educated.

State laws vary - realtors have a great lobby!s Dantilla's post covers typical law in most states AFAIK, maybe not Indiana.

You mean the listing agent. The selling agent is the buyers agent.







And like Dantilla said, some agents are hardworking individuals who will go out of their way to make sure everything goes perfect for you, not them.

I would say those agents are definitely not in the majority. Ask friends for referrals and do not use one they say was good- look for one someone raves about.

IIRC, all real estate contracts must be in writing. If she took a verbal from you, she is either totally incompetent, or wrote you off as a nut case, or she has something going on with another deal on the place.

I live next to 40 acres of canyons and oak trees in SoCal. The 90 y/o sisters who owned the property were trying to sell it for years. For lots of reasons my street fought the developers. Long story short, we're a 25 house HOA with a gate and the 40 acres had an easement through our gate but no obligation to join the HOA or pay for the private road or gate. Anyway, developers wanted to put dozens of houses back there and they would get free use of our road/gate. My neighbor went to the RE agent and offered $50K, the realtor refuse to take the offer to the 90 y/o sisters. Neighbor threatened to report the Agent/broker to the state. The offer was tendered and accepted. At 90 something is better than nothing.

My neighbor is putting in one 12,000 sq. ft. house with a 3,000 sq. ft. garage as the lowest level of a three story with an elevator. I have 18 acres and his house will be around the corner from mine by about 1,000 ft. Won't even see him. Oh, and I live in the middle of surburbia of SoCal.

All of these recommendations to call the listing agent are fine, but just remember that if you go through her/him, it will be a dual representation (the agent would have duties to both you AND the seller).

If I were you, I would find a good buyer's agent, and have him/her do a bit of homework for you regarding the property (recent solds/comps, competing actives, area info, tax records, etc..). Basically, find anything that you can to use as ammo to substantiate a lower offer. It may turn out that even $120k is high if there are extenuating circumstances.

Do your preliminary due-diligence, and then submit your offer ASAP. If you find any material issues after they accept, you can deal with them (or cancel and get your earnest $ back) during the inspection period. Good luck!

sorry - fixed it.

and I agree re some agents - have a good buddy who has been an agent for 20 years - his wife too

he used to be in the 82nd - Luckily, he has never yelled "Death from Above" at a closing...


good pt. re Buyers Agent -- BUT that is liable to take more time.

Wow no wonder it sometimes takes 3 plus years to find a place. Im starting to wonder if this just wasn't meant. I don't think I'll ever want to work with a Realtor after what Ive read. I seriously don't want someone showing me houses they think are best for me. Im going to have to like a house a WHOLE LOT to justify a mortgage otherwise Ill just keep renting. I don't have a house bug just really admire Victorian homes.

ehm what does a realtor do anyway???

over here we the notary does the actual selling(paperwork, making it official)
then we have an "immo agent" who can be used to marketing, showing of houses for the seller
i think that's what yer "listing agent" does

but what does a realtor do ???
he goes out to find the house you wanna buy or what??

I have seen plenty of dual-rep. contracts take quite a while, due to the agent's need to walk on eggshells. You can't tell the seller what the buyer can afford, or tell the buyer what the seller will take. That is just the tip of the iceberg. There is a lot of CYA in a dual-rep situation, and they can get sticky.
A lot of brokers will not even allow it.

Oh, and sorry if the story sounds a bit fishy to me. If I had all my ducks in a row, was pre-qualified, and found a house that I was ready to make a move on, I could find a buyer's agent and submit an offer within an hour.

Realtor is just another term they use.

Buyers agent=selling agent=realtor

Sellers agent=listing agent=realtor

:confused:
So the agent correctly read/identified you as a tire-kicker then?
From what you wrote previously, I would STRONGLY advise that you use an agent when you do finally decide to purchase a home.. ;)

Tony, verbal offer = no offer. You owe the other realtor no explaination or letter, just don't call her anymore. A real offer is a signed legal document.

Calling the listing agent is a bad idea. In fact, most reputable real estate companies won't allow the same agent to represent both the buyer and seller, as it's a blatant conflict of interest. If you're seriously interested, go to a bank and get approved for a loan. Next, ask everyone you know for referrals for a good realtor. After you have your realtor in place, do a detailed inspection of the home. If you make an offer after 20 minutes on a house that's been on the market for 6 mo., you're a fool buying a ticking bomb. If you still like the place, have the realtor write and submit an official written offer.

Absolutely, let her know that she is "fired". If you never signed anything with her, then it's no problem.

Next, find a new realtor. Somebody you meet in person and whom you feel good about doing business with.

Finally, never let a realtor know what your upper $ limit is. They work on commission, and it is in their best interest to get you to spend as much as possible.

Everything you listed is either considered unethical or illegal in real estate, as well. (With the caveat that representing both sides or taking a personal interest in the transaction is always allowed if disclosed in writing to all concerned parties).

If you have an agent working for you as a buyer's broker, this will not be an issue. If it is, you aren't very good at interviewing people to represent you. Buyer brokers have a fiduciary responsibility to the buyers they represent.