[newugehome]

HI,
I need an advice on how to handle this problem. We have been searching for a home in Stratord , CT for a while now( moving from NY) Finally I found one on thel net and called this realtor that I was refered to 2yrs ago to be our buyers agent as per CT real estate law. I explained to her that we are first time home buyers and would need to get a mortgage ASAP inorder to begin searching. She said not to worry that her boyfriend is in the morgage industry and would assist me . I submitted all paper work to the boyfriend to begin working on the mortgage, he prqualifed me for about 250000 and my FICO was 745. I told him that we would lik eour payment to be 1500 or under tax and ins. included. To make long story short, I found this half duplex in the south end of Stratford and the realtor took me and my husband to see it we kind of liked it because the price was under 200000 but i was not a big fan of half duplexes but my husband talked me into liking it. He said just think of it as a starter home that we could sell in 2 years. The realtor told us that we should make an offer if we really like the house because it may not be there for long. We told her what we are willing to offer and to my surprise she gets on the phone and called the sellers agent and told him the verbal offer which he refused . Then she asked us if we are willing to go higher but I said no but she talked us into accepting an offer the seller wants for the house. We signed a binder/contract right there. She said we have to put down the entire down payment we were going to put (which I thought was weird as it is always 1% of offer) When I asked she said it was because the seller will know that we are serious. My husband gave in an we gave her the check. The following day the boyfriend called and said that he has the contract and has ran the numbers and i asked him what the closing costs will be and he said 12000 . I told him that I dont agree with that number because the property is under 200000. So I went to another bank and got approved got better rate than he offered and closing cost was way below what this guy offered. The realtor called and said it was an error and all **** and bull story she told which i didn't beleive for a second. Then she began acting some how throghout the rest of the transaction. She was not forthcoming on the processes involved in purchasing this property. I had to ask friends for referrals to an attorney , home inspector insurance etc. When the appraisal came in it was at the purchase price and I was uncomfortable with that. I asked if she knew what the comps in the area were and she said she will find out , never did. I had to find out myself and I felt like we are paying more for this property.I asked if she could speak to the sellers to lower the price because the bank approved me for under what this property is beign sold. She said the seller is not going to reduce the without even making an effort. We did the home inspection ths past weekend and there is a ton of things wrong with the house starting with the plumbing , furnace , water heater and termite. The first thing this realtor said was that the seller is not going to fix nor clean anything without even submiting any request. I was so mad but I held my tongue. I told the inspector to send me the list of all that needs to be done in th house The next morning I received it and forwarded it to my attorney. Today I called my attorney and he said that the seller refused to fix some of the things on the list and is not offering any credit. I said then they need to return my deposit because the house was NEVER LISTED IN AS IS CONDITION. It was listed as renovated and IN move in condition and yet the water in the sceond bathroom addition was not even working. This realtor expects us to just take it like that and I refused. I am so mad right now for even bringing her into this deal I felt like she did not bat for us knowing that we are from out of town and needed to move in a time frame. I told our attorney today to return our deposit so that we can start all over again to look for something else. Sorry this is long but I need to vent. I am thinking of reporting this realtor to real estate board . am i in the right track asking for the deposit back? Should i lodge a complaint against this realtor. WWYD thanks for listening.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

There seems to be a decent inventory of single family homes in the north end for under 250K. If you are considering staying in Stratford for a while, there are a lot of nice properties that you can expand/update as your family/income grows(?,if applicable).

As far as the agent, i don't know what to tell you. Overall, i don't trust them. It takes 2 weeks and probably $500 to complete the course for a broker's license. That's not enough education, imo.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by Stratford, Ct. Resident

There seems to be a decent inventory of single family homes in the north end for under 250K. If you are considering staying in Stratford for a while, there are a lot of nice properties that you can expand/update as your family/income grows(?,if applicable).

As far as the agent, I don't know what to tell you. Overall, I don't trust them. It takes 2 weeks and probably $500 to complete the course for a broker's license. That's not enough education, imo.

Actually, the requirement is 60 hours and an exam with the state to become a licensed real estate agent. To become a broker, it's the above plus Real Estate Appraisal I and 30 hours of related subject in real estate certificates.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by newugehome

Should I lodge a complaint against this REALTOR®? WWYD thanks for listening.[/i]

If the facts are as you stated, then lodging a complaint is definitely your prerogative: Department of Consumer Protection. Since our licenses are issued by the Department of Consumer Protection, the goal is to protect the public from agents who are fulfilling their fiduciary duties.

[uctalum01]

Originally Posted by Rich Lee

Actually, the requirement is 60 hours and an exam with the state to become a licensed real estate agent. To become a broker, it's the above plus Real Estate Appraisal I and 30 hours of related subject in real estate certificates.

in addition to what Rich Lee said, you have to have your salespersons license for 2 yrs before you can get your brokers license.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by Rich Lee

If the facts are as you stated, then lodging a complaint is definitely your prerogative: Department of Consumer Protection. Since our licenses are issued by the Department of Consumer Protection, the goal is to protect the public from agents who are fulfilling their fiduciary duties.

I should've put "the goal is to protect the public from agents who are NOT fulfilling their fiduciary duties."

[toddb]

I would definitely report them to whatever agency (or agencies) will listen. I went through some shady things last year when my wife and I bought our first home, and that was even with my mother (who is a real estate agent in a different state) giving me advice throughout! There are too many real estate industry-related people out there who are either hurting for income or just don't care about their client, and pressuring a new and learning client is 1 way about it. Just remember -- the faster they can get you to close, the faster they get their check. If they have to keep taking you around, their per-hour income goes down. It's easy to have your real estate agent just give you all the different people involved, but that can be bad for you too -- sometimes these people just aren't as qualified, but they kick back some $$ to the agent.

The most important thing to remember is: if you ever feel nervous just walk away. There is very rarely going to be that "incredible deal" or a "perfect" home, and in this market you have the flexibility to dictate the pace a little bit more on your own terms. We were pressured into putting a binder on a home by our agent, and after a couple of sleepless nights we pulled out. I felt really bad for the seller as they have to disclose this information to future interested parties, but the house wasn't right for us. A couple more months of looking, and we found the home that I'm sitting in now.

From what I remember, I think we put 1% down with the binder and then another 9% (total 10%) with the contract.

As far as mortgage brokers go, you have to be very careful. Make sure they give you a Good Faith Estimate detailing ALL of their costs. There are a lot of them who will dump a ton of charges on you at the last minute. The one we used last year was a HUGE help to us -- she spent countless hours on the phone with me coaching me through the process. Separate from the mortgage we got through her, we are now getting a home-equity line of credit direct from a bank, and her response was "if you can get a better deal from them, please go to them...but bring me the paperwork, we'll go over it to make sure there's nothing hidden, then proceed with the bank." To this day she continues to be a great help, and I recommend her to everyone that asks (and some that don't). Let me know if you're interested in her name/number, and I can send it along.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by toddb

I would definitely report them to whatever agency (or agencies) will listen. I went through some shady things last year when my wife and I bought our first home, and that was even with my mother (who is a real estate agent in a different state) giving me advice throughout! There are too many real estate industry-related people out there who are either hurting for income or just don't care about their client, and pressuring a new and learning client is 1 way about it. Just remember -- the faster they can get you to close, the faster they get their check. If they have to keep taking you around, their per-hour income goes down. It's easy to have your real estate agent just give you all the different people involved, but that can be bad for you too -- sometimes these people just aren't as qualified, but they kick back some $$ to the agent.

The most important thing to remember is: if you ever feel nervous just walk away. There is very rarely going to be that "incredible deal" or a "perfect" home, and in this market you have the flexibility to dictate the pace a little bit more on your own terms. We were pressured into putting a binder on a home by our agent, and after a couple of sleepless nights we pulled out. I felt really bad for the seller as they have to disclose this information to future interested parties, but the house wasn't right for us. A couple more months of looking, and we found the home that I'm sitting in now.

From what I remember, I think we put 1% down with the binder and then another 9% (total 10%) with the contract.

As far as mortgage brokers go, you have to be very careful. Make sure they give you a Good Faith Estimate detailing ALL of their costs. There are a lot of them who will dump a ton of charges on you at the last minute. The one we used last year was a HUGE help to us -- she spent countless hours on the phone with me coaching me through the process. Separate from the mortgage we got through her, we are now getting a home-equity line of credit direct from a bank, and her response was "if you can get a better deal from them, please go to them...but bring me the paperwork, we'll go over it to make sure there's nothing hidden, then proceed with the bank." To this day she continues to be a great help, and I recommend her to everyone that asks (and some that don't). Let me know if you're interested in her name/number, and I can send it along.

Very insightful, and, unfortunately, very true.

[neo08]

In my opinion, one should totally avoid mortgage brokers, if their credit is ok to excellent.

If you are going for a general loan (without too many complications), just go to a few (4-5) banks directly, they will try to give you the best possible package, if you know how to shop.

In my own recent experience, a local or regional bank is the best option, honest and up-front.

Besides, lets all just make a statement against the brokers (who in general) got big commissions from doing many things they shouldn't have been doing. Read the newspapers, you;ll know how many they have screwed.

There is nothing intimidating about dealing with a bank directly, really. Just get a good lawyer and you'll be fine.