Jason, have a great holiday weekend!

Mike, Buyer Agency Agreements do something both for the buyer and for the agent.  For the buyer it provides service, care, loyalty and representation.  For the agent it proides security.  A win-win situation!

Pam, you'd think that they could at least give us notification if they've decided to work with someone else.  Often we don't even get that much.

Ron, those buyers who recognize the value of buyer representation have a far better real estate experience than those who don't.  A properly represented buyer avoids many possible pitfalls, has a smoother transaction, and may save money.

A good Buyer Agent is well worth his or her fee - and the fee generally doesn't even come out of the buyer's pocket!  All the Buyer Agent asks is the loyalty of the buyer to stay with them during the process - and hopefully to take advantage of their good advice.

Cindy, it's interesting that the same thing happens on the commercial side, too!  I've developed a sensitivity to recognize "red flags", too, for when a prospect isn't serious or is shopping agents all over the place.

Bryan, as you note, a lot of the buyers who waste your time have problems that they don't want to reveal, and are hoping against hope that you won't find out.  It's too bad, because these problems always catch up to them eventually, sometimes after we've invested a lot of time trying to help them.

It's always better to be up front with your real estate agent or mortgage broker, because then they can give you a realistic opinion about how good your chances are.  They may also be able to help you with your situation in ways you didn't even know about.  The only way this can happen, though, is if you're up front and honest about your situation in the first place.

Greg, I think it's a matter of degree.  You shop around until you find a source (website, Realtor, mortgage broker, etc.) who is meeting your needs and who you feel compatible with.  Once you get serious and start using up a lot of a service provider's time, loyalty becomes a factor.

It's like people who go to small shops with knowledgeable people, and pump them for their knowledge and experience with appliances, stereos or hardware.  Then they go to Walmart or buy it cheap online from clerks who have no idea what products they're selling.  It's not fair.

Lloyd, it's not funny at the time, and there's not much to laugh at later, either!  The best we can do is to avoid giving loyalty without any in return, and become more skillful at educating our clients and prospects to respect our time, talent and work.

Tim, you have a point there - if it happens to a certain agent too often, that agent may have to take a look at their own presentation and service, to see whether something needs to be improved!

Vickie, five years may be some kind of record - especially for someone who didn't even end up buying through you!  I once worked on helping an older woman who was thinking of selling her home some day.  I lost track of her after four or five years.

Eventually her son ended up handling her affairs, and he had his own priorities and connections regarding what to do with her house.  But that's a topic for another blog...

Jennifer, that's a great way to conduct the first interview!  It gives the prospects the opportunity to show you whether they are serious on not.  I like it.

Alyce, sometimes there's more than one qualified individual that the buyer likes.  Your sister  interviewed two sales people and chose one for a purchase.  Nohing wrong with that.

Judy, I don't understand the mentality of people who call us up because they don't want to bother their own agent.  What do they think their agent is there for?  I always ask if they have interviewed or signed anything with another agent.  And asking whether they are ready to purchase if the right home comes up is a good question.

Linda, I try to get a buyer agency signed before I show property, but I'll show someone once without it, just to establish a relationship.  If they want to continue, I'll require an agency agreement.

Sandra, it does seem that some folks think we are on salary plus commission.  It's important for them to realize that that's not the case.

Michael, thanks for commenting!

Mike, loyalty is indeed important for both client and agent.  I don't assume anything at the beginning.  That's why I try to educate my prospects and find out what their attitudes are.  We can still lose time and money on false leads, but preparation helps minimize the occurrences.

Neal, I prefer to work with clients who are as good as their word.  In general, if someone is out to take advantage of my time and experience without giving me the opportunity to do business with them, I'd just as soon be rid of them as soon as possible.  Chasing after someone for lost fees only causes even more loss of time and the opportunity tt work with more appreciative people.

Bo, I've had experiences also where someone I spent a lot of time with ended up buying a For Sale By Owner without me.  The only way to minimize this is to have a buyer agency agreement that covers representing the buyer with FSBOs.  Buyers often are talked out of being represented by FSBOs who tell them that it will cost the buyer more if the seller has to pay a commission.  This is a false premise, because the FSBO is sellling without an agent in order to save the commission themselves, not to pass the savings on to a buyer.

The "other agent" also has an ethical obligation to make sure that they are not working with a buyer who is already under contract with a buyer agent.  They don't always get a truthful answer, but at least they should ask.

Jason, many buyers just don't care about misusing agents.  That's why we all need to ask the right questions of our prospects!

Marilyn, I think CT has a great rule if you can't show property without a representation agreement.  As you demonstrated, though, even that safeguard for the buyer may not always protect the agent.

Joe, you're right.  If someone is out to mislead you, you can't stop them.  But we do begin to develop a sixth sense with experience, and are able to avoid such situations more often.

Sylvia, don't you just love it when a lender calls you with questions about a contract you didn't even know about!  That's rich, that this "client" even had the nerve to invite you to the house warming party.  I'm glad you didn't go and act like a door mat...

Steve, win-win is my policy.  I'm not one of those who feels they have to vanquish someon else in order to feel they are winning.

Christine, it's an issue of loyalty, and also of fairness to both parties.

Lane, I developed the "one free ride" policy after being burned a few times.

Ruthmarie, wow, 700 miles!  I had a client last year who caused me to put about 400 miles on my car over a period of a couple of months.  I was unusually patient with her because she was a referral from an associate.  I eventually insisted on a buyer agency agreement, which she reluctantly signed.  In the end she stopped answering my calls, just like any other deadbeat client with a secret agenda.  It just made me that much more convinced that I shouldn't make exceptions in my policy.

Bob & Carolin, exactly, we have to decide whether it makes sense to chase bad clients.

Christine, educating prospects in advance and getting their understanding and cooperation is the key.

Lisa, qualifying prospects early is paramount.  If they're not qualified, all else will come to nought.

Frank & Jodi, each of has to do what seems to work best for us.

Diane, it's frustrating when clients disappear after we have invested time with them.  Hopefully we get more efficient in weeding them out after a while.

Elaine, if more real estate agents were as rigorous as attorneys in demanding compensation for their labor, we wouldn't have this problem of being treatd like disposable handkerchiefs.

Debbie, I think that the buyer agency agreement is one of the better tools developed, both for buyer protection and for loyalty to one agent.

Terry, that's the secret; being willing to walk away if you can't get a commitment from a buyer to stay loyal to you.

Hi Jennifer,

Only a couple of clients in my entire career have ever asked to be released, and I honored their requests.  There's nothing to be gained by holding on to someone who's unhappy.  It's just looking for trouble.

Andy, thanks for stopping by!

Pat, it's interesting that in your area buyer agency agreements are not popular.  Real estate really is local.  As far as buyer clients who breach their agency agreements, you have to decide whether you want to spend a lot of time with legal procedings or whether you you just want to get back to doing your job.

Ruthmarie, you make an interesting point about the "hidden inventory" mentality.  Some buyers seem to think that we're all sitting on secret real estate stashes, even though we all go to the same local MLSs.  A few unscrupulous agents will "sit" on property listings so they can sell their own listings, but this is a violation of both the REALTOR Code of Ethics and the MLS rules.  It's not in the best interests of their seller clients.  It's also not very common.  Switching agents won't generally get you better or different properties to look at.

Chuck, I send information to dozens or hundreds of prospects without asking anything in return.  I don't "pressure" anyone to work with me.  But at a time when we finally meet and you expect me to spend a great deal of time with you setting up showings, providing you with advice and taking you around, I expect you to be considerate enough to use my services if and when you do purchase a house.

If you're not going to be serious, and you're not going to be loyal, then I'm perfectly happy to have you take advantage of one of the many other hungry agents around.  That's how I've been able to stay in this business for 30 years without looking for another way to "feed my family".

If you read the many comments on this post, you will realize that many agents feel exactly the same way about giving away their time, money and talents for free to prospects who don't appreciate it. 

Christopher & Stephanie, I don't particularly like dual agency.  The few times I used it was when I was already working with a buyer client, and I had a listing come up that would have been appropriate for them to see.  If I get a call from a new prospect to see one of my listings, I will disclose that I am an agent for the seller, and have them sign the Broker-Buyer Business Relationship correspondingly.  I have had few if any buyers refuse to work with me because of this disclosure.

Gene, thanks for commenting.

Tony & Darcy, I was quite sure I wasn't the only one that this sort of thing had happened to!  The Buyer Broker Agreement unfortunately is not a guarantee of a transaction.

Keith, sometimes people who don't recognize great service and knowledgeable advice, deserve what they get.  You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink.  Those folks you described will lose a lot more than the small fee they would have paid you.

Randall, we'll get paid up front when a majority of Realtors insist on getting paid up front for their services.  Don't hold your breath.

Anne, if the public doesn't respect the value of our services, we have to at least respect ourselves.  That may mean, among other things, advising prospects who already have an agent to call their own agent when they have questions.

Randall, you're right.  Our challenge is to try to establish a human connection, and stand out as more than merely a commodity.

LaNita, I confronted the other Realtor.  She maintains that she asked the couple whether they were already working with any other agent, and that they said "no".  I don't know whether that was true or not - I have no way of proving it either way.

Jim. first of all, the letter was written by my broker, on his and my behalf.

Second, we were certainly not acting as lawyers, but as service providers requesting payment for our contracted services.

Third, in Lancaster County PA, proving that you had a signed Buyer Agency agreement does not guarantee you a commission.  The Keystone MLS's position is that the agent/company writing the offer gets the commission, barring extenuating circumstances.  I don't particularly care for this interpertation, but it is what it is.

Todd, obviously it doesn't hurt to tactfully tell everyone how we get compensated (or NOT compensated).  It may not be foolproof, but at least it minimizes our chances of using up our limited time on folks who don't really intend to eventually purchase a home through our services.