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Going on public forums to conspire to destruct the property of competing agents could be viewed as a violation of article 15. Let's be careful out there.
Going on public forums to conspire to destruct the property of competing agents could be viewed as a violation of article 15. Let's be careful out there.
Throwing "clumps" at Redfin signs might well be defensible as improving the presentation. Throwing at agents as improving the breed.
My opinion is that you should hire a professional licensed, bonded inspector (or inspectors for special items like chimneys, roofs, electrical, septic. etc.) to inspect the property AND you and your agent should be at the inspection.
That way you get to see what you want to see, but someone else is taking on all of the liability and you will get a professional report that you can then use for negotiations, if the market will allow.
If you know what you're doing I don't see why you can't do the inspection yourself. If you run into something you're not sure about, you can always get an expert and come back later. I've done several inspections myself, both solo and with an assistant.
Where I live it is unusual (at least in my experience) for the buyer's agent to be present.
Going on public forums to conspire to destruct the property of competing agents could be viewed as a violation of article 15. Let's be careful out there.
I don't think I'm confused about what conflict of interest means (but maybe)... Nor do I think disagreement has any goal or affect of "shutting down" discussion on this forum. Really?
OK j_b... Explain the "conflicts of interest" in the two examples... First: Realtor who is also Inspector. Second: Realtor recommending inspector.
I think one is easier to find potential for ~conflict of interest~ in, than the other (though I will argue the conflict isn't necessarily there) And just saying there is no conflict of interest doesn't mean there isn't another potential ethical or legal issue with the relationship... it just means it doesn't have ~that~ one. I explained why I thought it might be a bad idea to use an inspector who is also my realtor in a transaction... I just don't think the issue is a ~conflict~ per se.
I certainly didn't think that YOU are confused about what conflict of interest means. Unfortunately I have to state this to remind the less literate here that I'm not implying anything about anyone's behavior as the existence of a conflict of interest does not suggest anything about anyone's behavior. I also did not mean that you were trying to shut down a discussion on this forum, just making the point that denying a conflict of interest prevents a healthy discussion of how to minimize the risks posed by conflicts.
Agents recommending inspectors and the inherent conflicts of interest are hot topics in the RE industry. Actions such as those taken by the state of Mass to crack down on these practices are also well publicized. I assume that you are aware of all of the sides of this argument so there is not much more that I can add here. In summary, agent recommendations have value to an inspector and can create a feeling of quid pro quo. Killing a deal can bite the hand that feeds the inspector. Again, not my own crazy idea, it's a commonly held view, well debated in the industry and underpins actions such as the state of Mass suggesting to consumers (in a required disclosure) that they get recs from family or friends rather than agents and preventing any agent other than the buyer's exclusive agent from giving recs. It also underpins the reason why there is an organization of inspectors that agree not to be involved in this racket as they feel agents create inappropriate influence on them via recommendation practices. All well publicized so nothing new here.
As for a realtor also being an inspector, I said that this gave me the shivers and was too cozy. As a consumer, I don't want my inspector oriented as a sales person or having any feeling, even remotely, that they are part of the sales team. I want them to be completely independent of the sales side. I want them to create a healthy tension in the sale. I want them to uncover all the reasons why I should not buy the house. I want them to create fear, uncertainty and doubt - all those things that sales people want to avoid. Specifically whether this is a conflict of interest in a realtor/inspector depends on the specific transaction. I assume that you don't mean that the inspector is acting as both an inspector and an agent in the SAME transaction. That's nonsense and not even worth discussing as the conflicts of interest should be clear - inspecting where you have a financial interest in the transaction is nonsense. But even outside of this, you can get conflicts of interest if they are involved in inspecting the homes being transacted by colleagues in their office, etc. At the high level, I also generally believe that the aims and interests of sales as a profession are very different from the aims and interests of the profession of inspectors -- and in many ways they conflict or at least are meant to have a 'healthy tension' between them.
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