I had a real estate agent from another state send me an email today requesting a referral fee. I have NO problem sending referral fees to agents that TRULY offer me a client. I have done several referrals from agents in other states and promptly sent their checks upon closing. The problem with this one is, I have already been working with this client for the past month as a walk-in to my office from floor duty. The client said that he needed to sell his home in Washington, D.C., so I suggested to him to find a local realtor that is familiar with the area to list his home. That way he could market it to the right clients to get it sold. Well my client did just that and that is when the listing agent sent me an email and told my client that EVERYTHING had to go through that agent in order for my client to purchase his new home in Tennessee. Can someone explain to me WHY some agents do this?
Some agents want to be greedy and believe they can cut in on somebody elses commission
Debbie, good evening to you. Sounds like the agent in D.C. is playing scare tactics with your client. If anything I would tell the agent that he should focus on saling the property in D.C. and allow you to focus on finding the right property in Tennessee.
Hi Debbie,
You did set this agent straight, correct? I only had something simliar (want a referral fee with someone I was already working with) a couple of times over the years. I made it very clear that was not the situation.
Next time, you may also consider an out-bound referral, referring your consumer to several different people in their area to list.
I think often times it is the agent's fault for not properly conveying to the prospective client that they mention who referred them. I occasionally have to pay out a fee for a management account long after the acquisition, because the client never mentioned or could not remember what brought them to my door. It is just poor brand marketing from the source.
That is just wrong. I had an agent contact me once to ask for a referral fee. I had already been working with the client and at the time I was using a lead referral service, which is how the client found me. The other agent decided to see if she could skate in on my deal. I politely told her no.
Debbie, When the deal closes with your TN buyer you may send just a bit of the commission to my P.O. Box. Regards,
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