I can't complain really but I'm going to anyway! I mean I've had a decent year, not a great year, but decent and I am working with some clients right now that are really nice people. But, to be really honest about the situation, nice, sincere, honest and decent people are getting harder and harder to come by. Most of the phone calls that I get these days, most of the leads that I explore, are dead end, waste of time, alterior motive creeps that really freak me out!
I've had at least 3 buyer "leads" this year who were really doing their own P.I. work on a neighbor, friend or relative and wanted me to help them - it's crazy. I had a call this morning from a guy who just lied to me until 9 minutes into the conversation.
Here's how it went this morning:
Guy leaves me a voice mail asking about a specific property address, says he is anxious to hear from me. I have never talked to this guy before.
I call him. Says he found me on one of the real estate sites that I won't mention. I had already looked up the property address and it was not for sale, not in foreclosure, nothing. I told him that there was another one on the same street thinking he got the address mixed up, which happens often. No, no, he begins telling me that he say on the "Z" website a strange symbol next to the address and what did it mean, blah, blah. I just tell people that I can't try to unravel what all of these various websites symbols and estimates might mean but that the "real deal" information is on the MLS that I am checking for them.
I started qualifying this buyer asking whether he had prequalified with a direct lender. Yes, he was working with Wells Fargo. I told him that I could set up a website for him with real and active listings that met his criteria. He said okay do that. I began to ask him his criteria and it was like he had no idea. Then he immediately says I don't have anything from you yet? The guy hadn't even given me his email address yet - was he waiting for a mind meld or what?
While I'm trying to get serious about helping this "buyer" he keeps mumbling about what he has found out about this property that is NOT for sale. He calls out the owner's name and asks me if I happen to know which bank their mortgage is with? I had the tax record pulled up still and he used the correct owner's name. I told him that the property was not for sale, and that even if it was it is of no use to a buyer to know the name of the mortgage company and I especially would not give out people's personal information particularly when they are not even active on the market.
Then, he gets frustrated that I'm not drinking the koolaid and says, well, the real reason I'm calling is that Mr. X is a relative of mine, and I think something is going on there, and I just want to make sure that I'm not being dragged into something.
I lost it. I hung up. I just hung up. He called back and I rejected the call. He left a voice mail and I deleted it without listening.
We're trying to make a living here people - if you want to be a super secret P.I. on your friends and relatives please leave real estate agents out of it. I have to wonder if these same people would be okay about it if they learned that a real estate agent was helping some stranger or relative find out about their personal information. What happened to the common boundaries of privacy and decency?
Even serious buyers in the market will often ask questions that I just feel are crossing the line - like "how much do they owe"? It makes no difference and has no bearing on fair market value. I would be ashamed to ask that if I were a buyer - call me old fashioned, and I guess I am, but at least I have some ethics, morals and an understanding of decency and boundaries that can be difficult to come by these days.
If you are seriously buying a home all you need to know is: is the price fair and comparable? Does the home meet my needs? Is it a short sale, foreclosure or owner occupied property - get on with it and make an offer. You are buying a home, try not to enjoy the misery of someone else quite so much.
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