realtor code of ethics: Pet Peeve of Listing Agents is Home Buying Sight Unseen
- 04/29/19 11:13 AM
One of the services I offer my Sacramento sellers is, upon receipt of an offer, I always check MLS to find out if the buyer's agent had accessed the lockbox. We can tell if the agent opened the box. If we have 10 offers on a home, and 9 of the agents showed it and one did not, the agent who did not show the home is at a severe disadvantage. Because we will tell the seller that her buyer has not seen the home. A buyer must see the home. Having said that, I did buy a house in Hawaii … (14 comments)
realtor code of ethics: The Duties of Open House Agents in Sacramento
- 09/18/18 06:33 PM
Yes, I'm preaching to the choir here on Active Rain about Sacramento open house etiquette among agents. Most of the agents who participate on this website discussing real estate know enough to not interfere in another agent's transaction. But like with any group of people, there are often exceptions. The other day my client asked me why she hasn't completed her disclosures. The open house agent (who was not my team member) had a discussion with the seller about types of disclosures they should make. I know, right? WTH? She seemed insistent that the disclosures should already be completed, which is in direct opposition to the way … (8 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Should Realtor Ethics Violations Be Public Info?
- 09/14/18 08:14 AM
I put this question out there to the Active Rain community: should Realtor ethics violations be public information? For a closed-knit organization that prevents its members from bad-mouthing each other, no surprise its stance; it's fiercely protective of its membership. Realtors, reluctantly or eagerly (hard to say) pay dues to belong. Some hold a grudge because they are required to pay dues to NAR and local associations due to company policy at their brokerage, like they wouldn't do so otherwise. But let's get back to what separates Realtors from regular real estate agents, and that something is the Realtor Code of Ethics. … (23 comments)
realtor code of ethics: When Agents Violate the Realtor Code of Ethics
- 09/05/17 09:46 AM
It is tempting to blow off an agent as an idiot when you encounter gross negligence. There is that temptation to just not get involved. Or, we get busy with other things and figure people can handle their own messes, you know, the "what comes around goes around" theory. Not my circus, not my monkey. But I am not so certain it's a good idea to just look the other way. For one thing, it's sometimes hard to tell if the agent who is screwing up just doesn't know any better or if the agent does know and simply doesn't give a crap. You … (9 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Buyers Watch How Sacramento Listing Agents Handle Offers
- 03/27/17 07:56 AM
You've always got the bunch who think they are somehow being screwed, but as long as one doesn't leap defensively into their crazy world, they tend to come around when presented with reason. That's because buyer's agents don't always know that their buyers call Sacramento listing agents. I see it as a trust issue. These types of buyers don't trust anybody, not even their own agent. When I explain that I am not allowed to talk to them, they are flabbergasted. Generally the call is made because they are confused and don't understand how Sacramento real estate works because believe you me, … (10 comments)
realtor code of ethics: The Problem With Advising Other Realtor's Buyers
- 01/28/17 09:08 AM
Part of the problem for Sacramento Realtors who answer questions online at various websites is buyers who are in contract will call directly out of the blue. Real estate agents call as well with questions, but mostly it's consumers. While some agents welcome the phone calls, others feel it is in intrusion, and yet, still, others have no idea that they're not supposed to be discussing solutions to buyer's problems when those buyers are not their own buyers. Hello? Code of Ethics? Of course, agents who provide advice off-the-cuff to buyers who are represented by another Realtor, well, those buyers probably cannot … (8 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Are Other Real Estate Agents' Knickers in a Twist Over This?
- 10/31/16 02:34 AM
As Sacramento Realtors (and Realtors everywhere else in the country today), we continually have to fight misconceptions and falsehoods about our profession. We occasionally run into clients who initially harbor a mistrust of agents in this profession, and we certainly don't need a syndicated real estate columnist to further this type of crap. When we see a person of supposed authority making disparagingly untrue remarks about real estate agents and other Realtors, we need to step up and say something. Because otherwise we're part of the problem and not part of the solution. Everybody talks about raising the bar yet not everybody is … (10 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Sacramento Home Sellers Finger Bad Real Estate Agents
- 04/12/16 04:31 AM
Nobody in our profession really wants to hear about the bad real estate agents or the crummy mortgage lenders in the business because it's depressing. It's even more depressing when you look at the high percentages these types of people make up in the industry because there is nothing you can do about it. Not directly. So it's pointless to talk about it when it can't be fixed. It's just a fact of life for many veteran agents. I try not to focus on it at all, but it's my sellers who bring it up to me about the other agents. … (11 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Jail Time Doesn't Stop CA Real Estate License Violations
- 03/04/16 06:28 AM
As I drove out Business 80 yesterday over the American River in Sacramento, I noticed about 20 flares were burning along the edge of the freeway, near a sign about a lane closing ahead. Two cars ahead of me, some doofus in a GMC swerved back and forth onto the side of the road to purposely runover every single burning flare. Not withstanding the damage he was doing to his tires, he was also damaging state property, thwarting highway safety. I wrote down his license plate number and called the police. The police dispatcher asked only for my name and number and … (8 comments)
realtor code of ethics: What Does it Mean to Interfere in Another Agent's Listing?
- 07/09/13 05:11 AM
Not every Sacramento agent in the real estate business is cognizant of what it means to interfere in another agent's listings. For example, an agent might spot a listing and think if the agent just bides time, eventually the listing will expire and then the seller will list with him or her. So, sometimes, under the guise of pretending to help the seller, which is not their business to do, an agent might try to butter up the seller. Agents might offer unsolicited tips and suggestions to the seller about selling when the seller has already hired an agent and is … (7 comments)
realtor code of ethics: How To Change Short Sale Agents
- 10/30/12 12:41 AM
The public doesn't understand that they can't just call up a Sacramento short sale agent and start asking her questions when they are represented by another short sale agent. Well, they can ask questions all they want but they aren't going to get any answers from this short sale agent. I answer questions for my own clients. I am even reluctant to answer questions on other websites and in other forums because I don't represent those people. Not only that, but it's against the REALTOR® Code of Ethics to interefere in another agent's transaction. These people are desperate. They start to … (6 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Should Tenants Know if Their Home is a Short Sale?
- 10/17/10 04:31 AM
Uh, oh, now I've gone and done it. I think I have managed to make a client mad at me. Well, I suppose she's not technically a client yet since we haven't yet signed the listing paperwork, but still. Perhaps she won't sign, and then it won't matter anyway. Just a few days ago I was lamenting to my husband that I haven't taken a listing for about a week and didn't have any listing appointments for this weekend. In fact, I have been quite busy putting a number of short sales into escrow. It seems that either homes sell very … (35 comments)
realtor code of ethics: 10 Things Your Agent Should Never Say
- 08/16/10 03:03 AM
A Lyon agent called me over the weekend to ask about writing an offer on one of my Sacramento short sales. I explained that the sellers had a counter offer out but the agent who wrote the offer didn't seem all that trustworthy. Because when I asked him if he had actually showed the home to his buyers, I was looking at my online account at Supra. This account shows me my lockbox activity, the names and contact information of every agent who has accessed any particular listing. This agent's name was not on that list. The agent had assured me … (10 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Are Short Sales Ruining the Comparable Sales in Sacramento?
- 07/14/10 02:37 AM
I've had more than one occasion in which a neighbor has called me to complain about the list price of my short sale. In most situations, the neighbor is concerned that I'm bringing down the value of other homes in the neighborhood. Ultimately, my job is to sell those Sacramento short sales and it's not to protect neighborhood values. Besides, half the time that neighbor is a seller of an overpriced listing. The list price of the short sale and the sales price can be two different things. The list price might be low, and the final sales price might be … (12 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Where Do Real Estate Agents Draw the Line Before Crossing It?
- 06/26/10 03:32 AM
I have noticed something peculiar happening in the Sacramento real estate market. Now, ordinarily, I do not pay much attention to what other agents are doing because, quite frankly, it's none of my business. My business is to write weekly articles for my homebuying website at About.com, sell my listings -- short sale or otherwise -- put my buyers into contract and write a daily Elizabeth Weintraub blog. That's enough stuff to keep me busy. You know what they say about busy people? If you want something done right, ask a busy person to do it. Lately, though, I've noticed that … (63 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Should Short Sale Sellers Sue a Buyer Whose Breach of Good Faith Leads to Foreclosure?
- 11/06/09 12:37 AM
Sometime around mid-October, I received an offer on one of my Sacramento short sales. The buyer's agent swore that the buyers loved the home. On top of that, the agent promised in writing not to write any more offers for those buyers as everyone waited for short sale approval. We received approval from one lender and were working on gaining cooperation from the second lender when a cancellation of purchase agreement appeared in my email inbox. The explanation was the buyers decided they could not afford the improvements they wanted to make. They had not gone back to the home since … (18 comments)
realtor code of ethics: Sacramento Short Sale Agents: If Your Buyer Walks, You Need to Tell the Listing Agent
- 10/29/09 02:11 AM
This doesn't happen very often, thank goodness, but yesterday a short sale buyer flaked out. I had called a Sacramento agent to let him know that Chase Bank was about to approve a short sale for his buyer. The agent blurted, "Oh, that buyer bought a home last month." Bear in mind that we've sent communication to this agent since the offer was presented in early August. At first, the agent could not recall the buyer at all. Well, no problem, we have a back-up offer. I called that agent. Her buyer had withdrawn her offer as well but she did … (9 comments)
realtor code of ethics: A Sacramento Short Sale Buyer Might Be Headed For Trouble
- 10/09/09 01:57 AM
My husband went to Chicago a few days ago to visit family, leaving me to fend for myself around the house. Oh, he prepared a plethora of meals for me in advance. I have in the refrigerator a huge Greek salad, cucumber yogurt, a dish made from green beans and potatoes, pasta sauce, a Filet Mignon and a delicious chicken stew, so I'm not gonna starve to death. Last night I decided to grill the steak. I stood in front of the new gas / convection range we installed last year and realized that I did not know how to turn … (13 comments)
Broker-Associate at RE/MAX Gold, Midtown and Sierra Oaks Sacramento office. Co-partner Weintraub & Wallace Realtors. Selling since 1974. Homebuying expert at The Balance. Weintraub & Wallace sells homes from Galt to Lincoln. <
Author Bio: Elizabeth Weintraub is a Sacramento real estate broker, author, home buying expert for The Balance, a Land Park resident, who specializes not only in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento but sells extensively from Elk Grove to Lincoln. Weintraub is prominently known as the #1 Sacramento Short Sale agent throughout the Sacramento four-county area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 40+ years of real estate experience to work for you.
One of the services I offer my Sacramento sellers is, upon receipt of an offer, I always check MLS to find out if the buyer's agent had accessed the lockbox. We can tell if the agent opened the box. If we have 10 offers on a home, and 9 of the agents showed it and one did not, the agent who did not show the home is at a severe disadvantage. Because we will tell the seller that her buyer has not seen the home. A buyer must see the home. 
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