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What a weird phone call......

By
Real Estate Agent with Keene Company Realtors

   Last night I was at my parent's house enjoying our family dinner as we do every Sunday, when my phone rings. I didn't recognize the number but thought it may have something to do with real estate so I decided to answer. On the other end was a guy that said he was online and got my info and wanted some advice... Just his tone sounded very weird.  I guess I should be glad that he found me somewhere out there in the Internet but this seemed a little to odd. 

   He said that his mom had put an offer in on a property and that the owner was the listing agent. She was a elderly lady and some things were starting to go awry and he wanted some help. Just trying to be the nice guy I am I decided I would listen to what he had to say.  Apparently his mom had put an offer in on this house and had the inspection done. There were plenty of things that needed to be fixed and they asked for them to be fixed.  In the contract they said they would do so.  (Now comes the strange part)  He said they called his mom to have her come over and cancel the old contract and to sign the new one.  Once this was done they are refusing to do any repairs as promised.  He kept saying it's like the other agent is trying to rip my mom off.  I have no idea who the agent was and from the weird phone call starting putting my foot out the door. I asked him if he had used a Realtor to make the offer and he said no. (And this is why you should :)) He said they were going to keep her original good faith deposit and wanted her to put another one down on the new contract. This whole thing just seemed messed up but it was like he was trying to get me to find out who the agent was and bash them for what they were doing..... 

   I am new to the business and the one thing that kept resounding in my head was "Do NOT give legal advice" I told him I would call an attorney and have them look over the contract to see what they could and couldn't be doing. He thanked me and then hung up..... 

   Anyone else ever get one of these phone calls? And if so any advice for a newbie agent lol??

 

Thanks!

Posted by

Brian Woodring

Keene Company Realtors

Show All Comments Sort:
Sheila Newton Team Anderson & Greenville SC
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices - C. Dan Joyner - Anderson, SC
Selling the Upstate since 1989

you never know when it is  a tester so you did the right thing... we are not attorneys and should never give legal advice.

Mar 15, 2011 04:30 PM
Matt Grohe
RE/MAX Concepts - Des Moines, IA
Serving the metro since 2003

Brian: I get them from time to time. I try to get them off the phone asap.

Mar 15, 2011 04:37 PM
Brian Woodring
Keene Company Realtors - Louisville, KY

Sheila - I never really thought about it. People actually do that?

Matt - Yea definitely a first for me. 

Mar 15, 2011 04:38 PM
Pam Windom
Eugene, Springfield, Lane County, Coburg, Veneta - Eugene, OR
Keller Williams Realty Eugene & Spfld

Brian-

    You absolutely did the right thing here.....and by being polite, you just may have earned a referral from this gentleman in the future. 

Mar 15, 2011 04:46 PM
Christopher Taylor
Corpus Christi, TX

Nice move, you said just the right thing, if you ever hear from him again, write a post, would be interesting to hear the ending of this story.

Mar 15, 2011 04:52 PM
Rose King
David Tracy Real Estate - Friendswood, TX
Friendswood / Pearland / Houston Bay Area

That was a weird call. You were right to recommend they consult an attorney.

Mar 15, 2011 04:57 PM
John Michailidis
Real Property Management of Sarasota & Manatee - Sarasota, FL
Real Property Management of Sarasota & M

I don't understand why you got the call, so I cannot comment on its appropriateness. That said, your advice to speak to an attorney was spot-on.

Mar 15, 2011 05:27 PM
Rob D. Shepherd
RETIRED - Florence, OR
RETIRED

You handled it the right way, could have been a weirdo or could have been a trap.

Mar 15, 2011 06:15 PM
Brian Woodring
Keene Company Realtors - Louisville, KY

Pam - Thank you, good to hear I'm on the write track. 

Chris - I might actually call him back to get some more info and see if I can get more details. (curiosity)

Rose - Thanks!

SaraMana - I should have asked where he saw my name at, but didn't think about it at the time...

Rob - I didn't think about it to much, but I have heard stories on stuff people have done to see how an agent acted..

 

Mar 16, 2011 12:41 AM