Choose a Realtor

E - Agent Tactics: What should you be aware of?

Agents who say they have buyers:

This is a common device agents use to get their foot in your door. 

You can always agree to a “24 hour” listing to see if he or she can sell those buyers (who should be named in this short term agreement).

Make sure the commission is half or less than the normal rate. In most respects, this agent will be representing the buyers, not you.

A good reason to delay signing this limited agreement is that the buyers working with this agent may spot your ad or FSBO sign and approach you directly, potentially eliminating your need to pay a commission.

If the agent has a legitimate buyer, the only reason he or she wants to show your home is because there aren’t any homes in the MLS that meet the buyers’ needs.                            

Agents who try to get by with one interview:

Contact an agent about doing a CMA. During the meeting, the agent will review your property, measure the rooms, take notes, and then go back to the office to work up their recommendations.

Agents hope you’ll accompany them throughout the home so that they can bond with you through shared conversation and flattering comments about your home.

On their second appointment, they will bring information on comparison homes or “comps.” These are homes that are very similar to yours. They will talk about their great marketing plan, their company, themselves and try to persuade you to sign the listing agreement. These two appointments are known as the classic “two–stop” listing approach.

However, when the agent first makes the appointment, he or she may ask if both you and your spouse are going to be there. This is the tip-off that the agent will be doing a one–stop listing appointment. The agent prefers that both of you are there to sign the Listing Agreement. They look the house over, give you their pitch and pull out their pen.

Your agent selection should weigh heavily on the side of an individual who has taken the time to get to know you and evaluate your home. You’re going to pay a hefty commission and deserve someone who has demonstrated that they have researched or observed how the variations in your home versus comparative homes justify differences in the expected selling price.

If you’re selling a condo, a townhouse or a newer subdivision home where the selling prices are easy to predict, a one–stop appointment is common. But with the one-stop approach, you’ll still be short-changed in the amount of face time you’ll have to evaluate this agent.                

Agents who sell in teams: 

Agents will team up, selling as husband and wife ("spouses that sell houses") or promote themselves as “The Miracle Team” or some catchy name. It's really an attempt to get attention and set themselves apart from the other agents.

A two-person presentation can be highly effective. But once they get the listing, you'll be dealing with one agent. If you were to work with both agents, it would turn chaotic. They would each have to know all the details all the time, otherwise the potential for fouling up is greatly increased.

Being marketed and served by two agents offers no advantages and actually creates communication problems as to who said what to who, when. The individual agents from the team may be good but the team concept can cause problems.                  

Agents who get you to agree to a higher commission:

When the experienced agent senses that the commission rate is very important to you and they know their high rate may cause them to lose the listing to another agent, the pro will shift the conversation away from the rate.

“If I understand you correctly Mr. and Mrs. Seller, the agent that gives you the best possibility to net the most money is the person you want to list
with. Is that right?” Of course you’re going to agree with this statement. And in doing so, the agent has shifted the focus from the commission rate to the ways he or she will get you the highest price.

They’ll try to convince you that they will get your home increased exposure and in turn generate more buyers, which will maximize the offers and in turn the offering price.

Any agent can make these promises. At the same time, any listing agent you select will be putting your home on the MLS, getting you the same amount of exposure. This is true whether you’re paying the highest commission rate or the lowest. Be smart. Bring the discussion back to the commission rate.                              

Agents who make it difficult to contact them:

Many agents don’t want to be “bothered” by their clients so they just let calls to their cell phone go to voice mail. You should be able to call your agent from 8 AM to about 10 PM or expect a speedy return call.
           
Why do some agents avoid answering your calls in the first place? Typically it’s because they have so many clients that they just don’t have time for situations they feel will usually resolve themselves anyway. For easier access to your listing agent, don't list with one who has lots of clients.       

Agents who tell you that listed homes sell for more:

Agents will always tell you that the average selling price for listed homes is a lot higher than those sold by-owner.

It’s usually true. Of course we're talking about averages here.

First, listed home sales are typically going to be higher because sales of listed home include a commission amount. More important, the average price of listed homes is loaded with very expensive homes because those owners almost always use agents. The commission means little to them. It’s hard to picture Donald Trump and friends selling by-owner.

On the other hand, many more average priced properties are sold without agents and without commissions. They include homes that are sold and kept within a family, foreclosure homes, those trying to avoid foreclosure and more commonly, because non-wealthy owners attempt to sell by-owner to save the commission.

Your focus is money in your pocket, not selling price.  A listed home may sell for more, but after commissions are paid, you may end up with a lot less than if you’d gone the FSBO route.                       

Agents who do a poor job of keeping you informed:

The biggest complaint sellers have about their listing agent is that they rarely hear from them after they get the listing. Agents think they don’t have much new to tell their sellers. Wrong. 

Each week have your agent e-mail you a list of homes that are for sale in your selling area and in your asking price range. This way you can track new houses coming onto the market, price drops by competitive homes and those that received a contract. The selling price of homes that have sold is also obviously useful.

Listing agents also provide their sellers with buyer comments following a showing. Your listing agent may contact the buyers’ agents requesting "customer reaction" after they've seen your home. Overall, limited information is gained here. The first half dozen showings could give you insight into the fact that your wall colors are too bold or that Fluffy has turned into an attack cat. But after a few showings, the comments are usually repetitious and a waste of time for everybody. 

The real point here is that the buyer's agents are reluctant to share their client's opinion about your property. It could be very positive, but the problem is their buyers may later decide to bid on your house. 

Real estate agents representing the buyers are inviting trouble if they reveal information about their clients that could come back to harm them in a negotiation situation. Smart (and legally astute) agents rarely pass along meaningful information back to listing agents, making this old custom of buyer “feedback” rather meaningless.                    

Agents who insist on accompanying the buyer’s agent:

Some agents insist on being at their seller's home and accompanying the buyers and their agent during all showings. Unless this is the traditional showing arrangement in the area or the home is priced in the seven-figure range, this "dedication" by a listing agent can be very detrimental to the sale.

Sure it sounds good when the agent says he or she wants to be present to explain all the wonderful features of your home to the other agent’s prospective buyers.

In the first place it’s the buyer’s agent who knows what the hot buttons are for his or her clients, not the listing agent. A well thought out brochure that highlights the features of your property–created by the listing agent–will more than suffice.

In addition, buyers do not appreciate the presence of the listing agent when their own agent is there. The listing agent who insists on being present adds another person to the mix of trying to coordinate all the parties for this showing, which potentially can add just enough complication to cause the house to be left out of the list of properties that will be seen by the buyers. Not good.                              

Agents who don’t share their listings:

Prospective buyers see real estate signs and ads and call the agency, where any the agents can field the call. However, some agents don't allow any one else in their office to answer calls on their listings. If the agent is out of the office, the call is forwarded to the agent’s cell phone or to a voice mailbox.

If this results in a lack of an immediate response to an inquisitive prospect, a sale could be lost. In addition, this agent’s selfishness doesn’t encourage the other office agents to want to show that agent’s property to their buyers. This arrangement effectively creates a one-person office and is not a positive attribute.

 

Be sure to send us (see Contact Us below) situations and questionable agent habits you've encountered and feel should appear here.