Get A License... Or Get Lost
Had a freind in Portland who wanted me to write offers with him. I told him I don't know Portland that well. He indicated "well you have a license in Oregon right?" Yes I do. It's my duty as your friend to find you a Realtor there who knows the area very well, and can get you that "great deal". So I referred it out. He got a screamin' deal, and I got a referral, and a new friend to refer transactions in Portland to.
We have submitted an offer on a condo-hotel unit in Plaza Resort & Spa in Daytona Beach on behalf of our anxious Buyer.
The listing agent is out of the area. The price shows that they do not really know the market, as they greatly undervalued their listing.
But this is an opportunity for my buyer.
We knew that there could be more offers than one, we explained it to the Buyer and suggested that our buyer goes just a little bit over the asking price to win it. We hoped that if we move fast enough, we can get the Seller sign the contract, and then just wait the whole short sale process.
This is a relatively rare case when the Buyer listens. So, the paperwork is completed and e-mailed.
No response next day. No response another day. We have 2 days for acceptance, so I call. The agent is a lady. A man answers. I am asking to put me through to the agent
- I am her husband.
- Great, hi. Can I talk to the agent
- What is it about?
- It is about real estate. Can I talk to the agent.
- I am her husband.
- I already know that. Congratulations. But I still need to talk to the agent. If you need to tell her who is calling, my name is Jon Zolsky, I am with FunCoast Realty and this is in regard to an offer that we have submitted.
- Yeah, it was sent to the Lender.
- Sent to the Lender? I really need to talk to the agent.
The husband is mildly upset that I am not discussing it with him. He takes my phone number and promises that his wife would call me.
The agent called in 15-20 minutes, and happily confirmed that he was her husband. I was a bit puzzled as I never questioned their relationship. I needed to talk to a licensed agent, and her familial status was not my primary concern.
Oh, he is not just a husband, he is an assistant. Great.
- Is he licensed, though?
- No, but he knows everything.
And then I am asking the agent whether she understands that her husband is practicing Real Estate without a license. Which in Florida, if I remember correctly, is a third degree felony, and for which DBPR may issue fines up to $5,000 per count. And I never heard that spouses are exempt...
- Oh, do not worry. you should not be concerned, he knows....
Wow. The agent still does not understand that it is not me who should worry.
But he is her husband...
I imagine laying on the table waiting for a surgery and a lady walking in with a kitchen apron on, and the doctor giving her the scalpel.
- Doctor, why is she taking the scalpel? Who is this lady?
- Don't worry. She is my wife.. She is not a doctor but she knows how to do it.
- Hey (and I am screaming here as loud as anesthesia allows me), she is YOUR wife. She can cut YOU as much as she (and you) wants, but why me? You, guys, are a nice family, but that's not what I am here for...
They smile, and I do not know how to persuade them...
- It is not fair to my wife... if a woman is to kill me, why not MY wife, she deserves it more than anyone else, give the scalpel to her... - but the anesthesia takes its course, and I am falling asleep ... and I do not know whether I would ever get off that table alive...
Dear husbands and wives whether in Daytona Beach or anywhere else...
please, please, please...
get a license... or get lost.
* Images courtesy of Flickr.com under Creative Commons license
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