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Another Bad Experience with a Discount Realtor

I am a RE/MAX agent and have been working with a buyer looking for a home in Beverly Hills, Michigan. During the weekend of June 22, 2007, she wanted to see a bank owned home that was listed for sale with a discount realtor. The home is priced about $100,000 less than the homes she has been looking at. So, on Saturday June 23d, at approximately 11:00am, I called the listing agent's office to schedule a showing for Sunday the 24th. The phone rang and rang and never went to voice mail. You would think that the decision maker at the bank that is trying to mitigate its loss would know better. Hello US Bank, you get what you pay for! Except for holidays, our office is open seven days a week to make it easy for buyers to see our listed homes so they can sell.

Posted by Lee Morof, Associate Broker/Attorney on 06/26/2007 04:18 PM

Comments (10)

discount realtor, service, phone answering, full service realtor, get what you pay for, bank owned home

This post has been included in Michigan Information Oakland County, MI Information

10 Comments on Another Bad Experience with a Discount Realtor

Amen Lee -- As a loan officer it is a night mare working with these agents. How can any Realtor survive today without voice mail.

06/26/2007 04:27 PM

by Bruce Bourgault, Vice President, Mpro (Central Pacific Home Loans)

Lee,

Sounds typical in most cases. I have had much worse experiences with some.

On the other side of the coin I have worked with some decent ones as well. It really is a case by case basis as is true with any office

06/26/2007 04:42 PM

by Joe Zapata - Your Burbank Real Estate Expert (Windermere Real Estate / Bill Toth)

Sounds like a problem I have run into with full service agents also... Whenever I plan on weekend showings I start scheduling on Thursday because so many agents are difficult to get in touch with.

06/26/2007 04:49 PM

by Dan Cummings - Connecticut's Running Realtor (Raveis Real Estate)

Sounds familiar. However, what is worse is when they DO answer the phone and you discover the "discount" part comes in when the escrow begins.

06/26/2007 05:04 PM

by Robert Whitelaw, Broker, CEO, Realtor®, ePro (Whitelaw & Sons Real Estate Services)

Lee, I've had the same problem in my area. They never answer the phone. Really banks don't care, that's why they take FOREVER to get back to you when you do have an offer.

06/26/2007 05:45 PM

by Missy Caulk Ann Arbor Realtor Ann Arbor Real Estate (Keller Williams Ann Arbor)

Lee:

In this challenging market and Michigan's statistics on foreclosures etc and the bank's need to get rid of their inventory, you would think they would want to make sure their homes get seen including website exposure. There are always options for everyone - and, like you said, you get what you pay for - or don't pay for.

06/27/2007 05:42 PM

by Cathy Tishhouse Royal Oak Real Estate (RE/MAX Showcase Homes)

always a nightmare to deal with! So did you ever get your buyer out to the property?

06/27/2007 05:46 PM

by Jennifer Walker-Derby, Realtor Extraordinaire (Re/Max Westside)

I finally did get the buyer out to the property and it's a major league dump. It might be one that won't sell at any price. I'm glad I don't list bank owned properties.

06/28/2007 10:07 AM

by Lee Morof

Thanks for your comment Cathy. After finally seeing the "home" I wonder why the bank wouldn't do a few things the make the home show better. The buyer's mother opened the fridge and we had to run out of the house because it smelled so bad.

06/28/2007 04:03 PM

by Lee Morof, Associate Broker/Attorney (RE/MAX Showcase Homes)

Missy, just think how much money we could save the banks by utilizing what we know. Better yet, we should start our own bank.

06/28/2007 04:07 PM

by Lee Morof, Associate Broker/Attorney (RE/MAX Showcase Homes)