Is Your Realtor® a PROFESSIONAL

8 Weeks Of Online Study and passing a dumbed down exam DOES NOT MAKE YOU A PROFESSIONAL

For those of you who are reading this and are not in the Real Estate business I want to emphasize that it really doenst take much to become a Realtor®.  Sadly, this is one of the few businesses that allows a person with very little education to do a little online study, pass an exam, and then call themselves PROFESSIONALS.

I am often cynIcal of the people I have to work with in this business but I want to assure those reading who are consumers that there are MANY fine, upstanding people in this business that I am proud to associate with.  Unfortunatley I believe that because it takes so little to enter this business, we have MORE THAN OUR FAIR SHARE OF FLAKES.

MY LATEST TALE OF WOE

I recently wrote and offer on an REO and delivered it to the Listing Agent.

The Listing Agent calls me and tells me the offer has been signed by the bank and he is forwarding it to me.  He tells me he hasnt had time to review it so he asks me if I would look it over to make sure nothing has been changed.  I say "sure"

Its a pdf file sent via email so I print it out and find that the original documents that were on legal sized paper have been reduced to 3/4 of the size of regular paper.  Translation: I CANT READ IT.  This was on July 1st

I email the agent and fax him (because I already get the sense this guy isn't on top of his game) requesting that he provide me with a legible copy.  I follow this up with phone calls.  He tells me that this is the best he can do and this is the way the banks do business, blah, blah, blah....

When the title company calls asking for the deposit check I tell them that I would be happy to send a deposit check but I would first like a legible copy of the contract signed by the seller.  She tells me that I have a copy signed by the seller.  I ask her if she has the same copy and she says yes.  I ask her to read the first paragraph.  She says she cant.  I ask her if she needs a legible copy to proceed and she says yes.  I tell her that I and the the lender also need the same.

She calls the Listing Agent and tells him I need a legible copy and he has the balls to write me an email and tell me that the copy he gave me is readable and resends it!

(he also said he would get me another copy - heard that story before)

WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE?

HERE'S A TYPICAL PAGE FROM THE CONTRACT.  I HAVE ACROBAT PROFESSIONAL AND IT ALLOWS ME TO EXPORT THE PDF TO A JPEG.

UPDATE: THE REQUEST FOR A LEGIBLE COPY WAS TRANSMITTED TO THE LISTING AGENT ON JULY 1st.  TODAY - JULY 21 - I RECEIVED A LEGIBLE COPY ONLY AFTER THE TITLE COMPANY MEDIATED THE SITUATION.