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I didn't ask my realtor the specifics of whether the other realtor will follow us around inside or just wait outside or what. He just said that if I wanted to drive up (7 hours) to see it that I couldn't do it while the other realtor was out of town because the other realtor had to be on site
Anyone run into this? Its not a big deal to me or anything, other than I tend to run my mouth and have zero poker face. I suspect its probably not good to let the other side know if you are super enamored about a place. Of course I can also be super critical but I don't see me trying to play games like that either.
I didn't ask my realtor the specifics of whether the other realtor will follow us around inside or just wait outside or what. He just said that if I wanted to drive up (7 hours) to see it that I couldn't do it while the other realtor was out of town because the other realtor had to be on site
Anyone run into this? Its not a big deal to me or anything, other than I tend to run my mouth and have zero poker face. I suspect its probably not good to let the other side know if you are super enamored about a place. Of course I can also be super critical but I don't see me trying to play games like that either.
Agents all handle it differently. Some give you a quick tour, tell you the things they need to tell you and then wait outside so you can have privacy. Some follow you around. It just depends, but I find most will give you some privacy. Either they stay in the living room or go outside while you look around.
If we had done that with our last house the agent would have had to be there from 8:30 in the morning to 6:30pm the first day and 6 hours the next with the number of showings that were scheduled.
Hopefully he/she is professional enough to let you tour on your own and not follow you like a lost puppy. The worst is when they do follow you (open houses included) and offer nothing about what you're looking at, features, benefits, upgrades. Give yourself a damned reason to be a velcro shadow and do your job at the very least.
At any rate, if listing agent is there, and I were interested in the house, I'd say nothing/not much about my opinions other than making it known that you know the market in the area well. Otherwise if you are not interested, it doesn't matter what you say.
It's usually just overly-controlling sellers. Unless they have an expensive art collection or something (which if you do, you should put it in storage anyway when you're trying to sell) it's just people being a pain in the neck and a big red flag that I don't want to deal with them.
The worst is when the sellers don't leave for the showing though. I've refused to go into showings if the sellers are there. Nope.
It's the sellers that are requiring that of their listing agent. It's understandable for a property that has horses or livestock, so you limit liability (you'd be amazed how many parents send their little ones into a horse's stall or pasture to pat the horse, and some even will sit the kid on a loose horse in a pasture...idiots. I'm sure they'd sue when little Susie gets kicked or bitten.) Plus, ranch properties often have features that non ranch realtors aren't familiar with...like hot/cold water wash stalls, hay barns, tack rooms, jumps, arena footing type, fly mist systems, etc).
High dollar homes with a lot of technology, features not immediately visible (electronic shades, tv's that slide into a hidden area, etc, or high dollar furnishings will often require listing agent to show.
Your normal home doesn't need a listing agent present. That's just an overly controlling seller.
With that said, your buyers agent should accompany the buyers into each room to make sure personal possessions aren't youched, windows or doors aren't left unlocked, kids don't climb on furniture or touch stuff.
We occasionally have owners who either want to be present or want their realtor present. If it's just a house, it's likely an over-controlling owner who is requiring it. The realtor isn't likely interested in eavesdropping, just making sure the place is secure during and after your showing. And don't be so worried about looking interested. Most sellers WANT the buyer to love their place as much as they do. Love is the why, not the how much.
Just as an aside, because we usually deal with rural properties... if it's a farm, the owners can be a valuable source of information, let them tour you around. Don't be upset if farmers want to stay while you're looking. They want to sell, they just don't want people from town getting hurt by farm animals or leaving gates open so animals escape. Talk to them... learn from them about the place. They can tell you where everything is buried, and why.
Around here we have lots of gated ranchette communities. The average town realtor who sells existing homes, doesn't know much about selling 35 acre parcels in private communities where you may have to dig wells, know how private roads are plowed, grazing leases for free range cattle, etc. It would be a benefit to both to have a land/rural/mountain property realtor on site. I even had a house realtor refuse to go out to one (only about 12 miles off a main highway) b/c she was diabetic.
You don't need to make small talk with the other realtor. If it's a special property as people are mentioning, you can ask them questions about the area & rural/ranch/farm living. If it's just a house, all you have to do is say hello, answer thank you when they give you info & that's it. If they ask what you think, just say "it's a nice house" or "we'll take all the properties we see under consideration" or "if I have any specific questions or comments, I'll ask my realtor to get in touch with you" or something else non committal. I kinda like #3, then "thank you for your time". Don't feel obligated to make small talk, answer questions & don't be afraid of silence.
Posters have noted that this might make sense in a few special cases. Absent a special case, I would expect the sellers to be hard to deal with. Could be over-paranoid sellers, could be sellers who are not really serious.
I didn't ask my realtor the specifics of whether the other realtor will follow us around inside or just wait outside or what. He just said that if I wanted to drive up (7 hours) to see it that I couldn't do it while the other realtor was out of town because the other realtor had to be on site
Anyone run into this? Its not a big deal to me or anything, other than I tend to run my mouth and have zero poker face. I suspect its probably not good to let the other side know if you are super enamored about a place. Of course I can also be super critical but I don't see me trying to play games like that either.
I had a few realtor must be on site sellers condition.
One lost a sale because the agent was late. In fact I got tired of waiting so I just left.
I would never say anything about the house. And especially dont get excited. It would drive me crazy when my wife would say it's a beautiful house I love it.
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