One of the things I have always loved about Real Estate is it's a people business. Helping families and wonderful people with housing needs. But the want-a-be "Mega REO Agents" are turning our business into a joke! Lets keep in-line with professional ethics and serve the public well.
They insult most of us with the non-personal way of doing business. You can only talk to a voice-mail and email or fax any questions or offers to them. They only call you back a week later, should your offer get review by some Assistant working with them. But on Saturday I called an agent to check on availability and her voice message was " Due to the large number of calls received on this number I can not answer your call, go to our website for information...". My message to her was, "Last time I checked this is a people business". Thankfully she did call me back with-in 5 minutes. Her property was available and I thanked her. We talked about her message and she agreed it needed to be changed!
My other problem is the "The Forcing of your client to use their Lender"(Wells Fargo is the main one). This can not be done! I understand nobody wants to work with unqualified buyers, and all agents should make sure the Buyers are qualified with a excellent lender. RESPA and "Banking and Finance" governmental agencies should be notified about these tactics. Buyers can choose their own lenders.
Then we have the "Multiple Offers". Out of the blue you find out now their are multiple offers on the property, funny the property has been on the market over 6 months! I tell my agents do not allow the Asset Managers for these banks put your license in jeopardy, with fraud.
Oh, and one more, NET Commissions, Net listings are not LEGAL in GEORGIA!!! If they net your commission then that is a Net Listing (i.e. Agent gets paid on net of sell). How do you know what the banks net is! These banks work in all states, some states allow net sells, but NOT GEORGIA. Take a stand I have many times for my agents, we work very hard. I promise they will pay you the full amount or they can lose their license.
I am a Broker/Agent that has over 40 REO Listings, and we don't do business this way. We are working on a Task Force Team to make sure these agents remember you have a Georgia Real Estate License and the Rules of your license must be followed or you can lose it! Also we have a Code Of Ethics that should be held to the highest, during these tough times.
So, I am calling ALL Professional Agents to not allow deterioration of our business, speak up to these "Mega Agents", Report them to the Real Estate Commission, call MLS and FMLS and make them take this kind of wording out of the listing verbiage.
I will keep you posted on the task force. Happy Selling!!
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