I had an opportunity this past week to bring a new agent on underneath my brokerage. This particular new agent used to be a real estate investor that I knew from several years ago. I handled a few of their transactions but I never felt completely comfortable doing business with them. They are the type of person that is fully satisfied walking the fine line of ethics and isn't afraid to spend a lot of time in all of the grey areas of life and business.
They had been in California the past few years flipping houses and working different investments and they decided that Arizona was truly where they wanted to be. They moved back, enrolled in real estate school and decided to begin a different chapter of their lives. Instead of relying solely on investing they had a desire to handle the other side of the real estate spectrum being an agent.
I hadn't heard from this person in years so when I received a phone call asking for a meeting I was surprised. When I called them back they explained they had gotten their real estate license and wanted to speak with me about hanging it with my brokerage. I was hesitant but curious enough to hear them out since a lot of time had passed and perhaps they had grown up a bit or changed the way they do business.
It wasn't any more than five minutes in to the meeting that I knew this person hadn't changed a bit. They were still the reckless, shady, questionable investor that I had known all those years ago. However, they were highly complimentary of me and let me know that in the few transactions I handled for them I was the only agent they truly trusted and I stood out among everyone else they had ever worked with and established myself as someone they wanted to align themselves with as a new agent.
Flattery aside, something in me had warning bells going off left and right. I couldn't help but picture the pending law suits, contract disputes, and disappointed clients that were in my future if I allowed this person to work under my brokerage. At the end of the meeting, I shook their hand, thanked them for their kind words, and let them know that I was not the brokerage for them. I explained that I expect my agents to be above reproach in the way they handle their clients and their business. I let them know that they indeed have been a very successful investor but the way I handle my company doesn't mix well with their business practices.
What did I learn in Real Estate this week? Not every opportunity is a good one. I could have made a lot of profitable commission splits from this new agent. They've been around the industry for years and they know a lot of potential buyers, sellers, and other investors. Money has never been a motivating factor for me. My company is my future and I won't sacrifice that for short term gains. It might not be today, next week, or even next year, but someday that agent is going to cause a huge headache for the broker they hang their license under. That broker will not be me. Sometimes you have to walk away from an opportunity that looks good on the surface but carries more of a burden and a risk than you're willing to bear.
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