Fire my agent?
Inflamatory subject, I know, but I'm hoping to get some feedback.
We are looking at a bank-owned home in Maple Valley that the bank is currently in the process of finishing (It's currently sided and framed only, builder skipped town).
Without going into the numbers, we are considering it to be overpriced, especially when compared to active and sold comps, so I'm trying to put an offer in that is within 10% (barely) of what the bank has it listed for. What I am finding is that I have to argue my reasons with my realtor, who a) believes the price is ok as-is and b) has a fear of offending the bank. She's even hesitent to ask for closing costs to be included...
This is a buyers market, right? Am I supposed to go in and offer asking, without any negotiatios? Is this typical of a Seattle area agent who has years of experience, but basically grew-up during the boom and never had to negotiate down? Should I even have to argue it with her?
Just checking myself...
We are looking at a bank-owned home in Maple Valley that the bank is currently in the process of finishing (It's currently sided and framed only, builder skipped town).
Without going into the numbers, we are considering it to be overpriced, especially when compared to active and sold comps, so I'm trying to put an offer in that is within 10% (barely) of what the bank has it listed for. What I am finding is that I have to argue my reasons with my realtor, who a) believes the price is ok as-is and b) has a fear of offending the bank. She's even hesitent to ask for closing costs to be included...
This is a buyers market, right? Am I supposed to go in and offer asking, without any negotiatios? Is this typical of a Seattle area agent who has years of experience, but basically grew-up during the boom and never had to negotiate down? Should I even have to argue it with her?
Just checking myself...
Comments
1. The agent has experience dealing with this bank and has experienced their inflexibility, so sees the effort to negotiate as futile..
OR
2. The agent is lazy.
It doesn't seem to me that trying to convince the agent to make the offer would be productive, and if you are uncomfortable with this agent or feel you are being manipulated or that she is not doing what she is supposed to do....
But as an agent, I am not supposed to dispense advice on whether or not you should fire the agent, so I'm not.
If Hector went to a different agent, asking them to make the offer on this place, wouldn't that agent turn them down because they have already engaged someone else on that property?
Thanks Ira, I appreciate the feedback.
The realtor has stated that the bank wants to 'unload' these houses, so I'm confused why she is hesitent. I can say that the listing agent and she are both from the same office, which can either a) provide more insight that she is not sharing with me or b) be a conflict of interest.
It could also be that c) she isn't willing to accept that we have not yet reached the bottom, which I believe is the most likely source of this.
If that is the case and you're dealing directly with an agent from that listing office, then even if they are your agent, that broker is going to be looking out for his or her best interest, which is likely making as much as they can for the bank. Your one purchase is small potatoes compared to the 100 listings a year they get from that bank.
That's why dual agency, while legal, is usually not such a great idea.
Jon, the bank is actively working on the house. Electricians are out today in fact.
Absolutely. Clients fire agents, and agents fire clients....
If, however, the original agent is the "procuring cause" for the client finding the property, he/she may legally be entitled to some commission, or, if the client has signed an exclusive buyers agreement with the agent, then that agreement needs to be canceled in writing before another agent's services can be engaged.
Incredible! Buyers are legally bound to pay comission to a realtor who refused to make an offer with the terms they wanted when another realtor is willing to follow the buyer's instructions and actually closes the deal. Just incredible...
The broker of that office is the one who has the listing and the listing agent and your agent, the selling agent are working under his license. You and the bank are the broker's clients. He just has different agents working with each individual client. So there is dual agency here. If you end up actually writing an offer, this will have to be disclosed.
Ira is right. It's not uncommon that the broker will pay his agents a bonus commission if he's able to procure both the buyer and seller commissions on a listing that he has control of.
Can one slave serve two masters?
An agent in my friend's office who owns a top tier office went through procuring cause case all the way to arbitrage panel.
Buyer can choose whomever whenever, however to write contract for a said purchase even if it was written by a different agent and or agency previously. Thats case law. We were laughing at it through lunch this week.
Hector,
Simple as this tell the realtor in one phrase and not another word:
"Put purchase price as "XXX,XXX", that is all I will pay"
If they start gibberish, walk out and get an agent that actually does their job.
Charles Dean, very good point about DA. On the offer sheet it was not cited. She was listed as the buyers agent and the other agent was listed as the sellers. Other than their contact information matching, no mention was made of it. Maybe their is some puppet master in the back wings pulling the strings on this one or maybe I just need to take my tinfoil hat off. It's just easy to expect(suspect?) the worst from people when it comes to money.
If they didn't disclose that in the offer, then that's a pretty big violation. However, if you want the house, no big deal. It does give you an easy out on the contract however, since they failed to disclose a material fact.