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DH & I are working with a realtor in another state for our relocation in Jan '09. In August we visited this area for the first time & she took us around showing us various subdivisions in a couple of the towns we are interested in.
Since then we have talked once (my call to her) & she has me set up to receive email notifications of any resales that come on the market. Back in August I had asked her advice on a new construction home we are very interested in & got a "gee, haven't been out there yet" answer. We have a strong interest in this community & asked if she could check it out for us when she had some time. That was 2 months ago.
We are making a second trip next month to the area as we feel we haven't seen enough to make a decision yet. This week when I spoke to our realtor to check her availabilty for our next visit I asked if she had checked out this community. She did not & didn't offer to until we get back down there. So OK..I guess I can deal with that. But when I asked about some other new construction homes I found while searching on the internet her response was.."gee..I don't know anything about that". No offer to check into the community(s).
I am not feeling like she is working very hard on our behalf. Because we are quite a distance away from this area we had hope that our realtor would be our eyes & ears for us. Am I expecting too much? What do y'all think?
Fire her, now! One of the primary roles of a Realtor is that we are your agent and we hold fidiciary responsibility to do any legal request our clients might ask us to do. The agent you describe has failed to act responsibly to your obviously legal and in my opinion certainly reasonable request.
You are having your realtor go check out neighborhoods for a relocation in 15 months? Unless you are looking into buying a brand new home that won't be ready until you are moving I kind of understand her not wanting to go out on her own for too much research right now. In that amount of time neighborhoods can change so much and so much can happen with a builder. Realtors definitely should be taking care of you how you want them to, but to ask her to spend her own money and time to check out a neigborhood you might want to buy a house in to move to over a year from now is probably asking a bit much. The way the market is right now agents are having a tough enough time, and gas isn't cheap.
You are having your realtor go check out neighborhoods for a relocation in 15 months? Unless you are looking into buying a brand new home that won't be ready until you are moving I kind of understand her not wanting to go out on her own for too much research right now. In that amount of time neighborhoods can change so much and so much can happen with a builder. Realtors definitely should be taking care of you how you want them to, but to ask her to spend her own money and time to check out a neigborhood you might want to buy a house in to move to over a year from now is probably asking a bit much. The way the market is right now agents are having a tough enough time, and gas isn't cheap.
We are looking for new construction & to start the building process by mid-summer. We only have a certain amount of time to look..The fact that we are making trips to the area and looking at homes for days at a time should demonstrate our need to find a home. ( I would much rather spend this time & money vacationing!! )
We are not familiar with this area & have to find a community that we love by summer. I feel the pressure every day. I wouldn't want to ask my real estate agent to spend her time recklessly but I do not know the area & am relying on her input to guide our home purchase. To me the time between now & summer is not that long.
The point I was saying is they gave the Realtor ample time. It wasn't as though they asked for her to check it out tomorrow, but ample time was given, and as a Realtor, I certainly would want to know about an area that people are already asking me about. This particular Realtor doesn't show me a lot of intelligence, ambition, or responsibility. Sorry if I stepped on toes, but facts are...
DH & I are working with a realtor in another state for our relocation in Jan '09. In August we visited this area for the first time & she took us around showing us various subdivisions in a couple of the towns we are interested in.
Since then we have talked once (my call to her) & she has me set up to receive email notifications of any resales that come on the market. Back in August I had asked her advice on a new construction home we are very interested in & got a "gee, haven't been out there yet" answer. We have a strong interest in this community & asked if she could check it out for us when she had some time. That was 2 months ago.
We are making a second trip next month to the area as we feel we haven't seen enough to make a decision yet. This week when I spoke to our realtor to check her availabilty for our next visit I asked if she had checked out this community. She did not & didn't offer to until we get back down there. So OK..I guess I can deal with that. But when I asked about some other new construction homes I found while searching on the internet her response was.."gee..I don't know anything about that". No offer to check into the community(s).
I am not feeling like she is working very hard on our behalf. Because we are quite a distance away from this area we had hope that our realtor would be our eyes & ears for us. Am I expecting too much? What do y'all think?
By saying this person is your "realtor" do you mean you had a signed buyer representation agreement with her? If so, she is not doing her job. If you don't have this agreement she is not technically your realtor and she probably is not legally responsible for doing anything. I'm not defending what she did or didn't do, just trying to understand the facts. There are many buyers who use a realtor to drive them around to see dozens of houses for days on end, send endless data, do all kinds of research, buy meals and drinks, pick them up at the airport, and in the end they purchase a house and don't use that realtor as their agent. I'm not necessarily putting all of the blame on the buyer in this situation as the realtor had a responsibility to get a signed Buyer Rep agreement before providing real estate services. I don't know what state you were looking in, but in Tennessee a realtor is legally required to have a Buyers Rep agreement before providing real estate services. In this market I seriously doubt that this realtor that you are using is going to be in real estate very long. She obviously doesn't know how to work with customers and doesn't appear to be very responsible.
There are steps you can take to improve your chances of getting a good, responsive, and responsible realtor. Do some research and focus on realtors that take their profession very seriously. Some keys to this are to look for realtors who have earned various designations such as ABR(Accredited Buyer Representitive), GRI(Graduate Realtor Institute), CRS(Certified Residential Specialist). These and other certifications take time, money and a certain degree of success to obtain. In general(always exceptions though), realtors that do this show a commitment to their profession and a commitment to customer/client services. Also, interview a couple of realtors over the phone and let them know what your expectations are. At the same time, find out what their expectations of their clients are. When you find someone you want to work with tell them you want them to represent you and that you want to sign a buyer's rep agreement. This agreement should spell out the responsibilities of both parties.
I'm sorry this is so wordy but I hope it helps you find a good realtor that you want to work with and have them legally represent you and your interests. If you would like any other suggestions or ideas on choosing a good realtor just email me or send a private message. I'd be happy to respond.
I think you may want to just talk to her and tell her your concerns. I've found that the biggest problems in an agent/client relationship is that neither party has set any expectations of the other.
In the last several months, I have actually begun to ask clients what they expect of me as their Realtor. I have even gone as far as to tell them what I expect of them as my client. If expectations can't be agreed upon, then the relationship just won't work out, find a different agent.
Talk with her first, you can't expect her to read your mind, just like in a marriage....if you haven't told your significant other, how canyou expect them to know?
Best of luck to you in your search for a new home!
By saying this person is your "realtor" do you mean you had a signed buyer representation agreement with her? If so, she is not doing her job. If you don't have this agreement she is not technically your realtor and she probably is not legally responsible for doing anything. I'm not defending what she did or didn't do, just trying to understand the facts. There are many buyers who use a realtor to drive them around to see dozens of houses for days on end, send endless data, do all kinds of research, buy meals and drinks, pick them up at the airport, and in the end they purchase a house and don't use that realtor as their agent. I'm not necessarily putting all of the blame on the buyer in this situation as the realtor had a responsibility to get a signed Buyer Rep agreement before providing real estate services. I don't know what state you were looking in, but in Tennessee a realtor is legally required to have a Buyers Rep agreement before providing real estate services. In this market I seriously doubt that this realtor that you are using is going to be in real estate very long. She obviously doesn't know how to work with customers and doesn't appear to be very responsible.
There are steps you can take to improve your chances of getting a good, responsive, and responsible realtor. Do some research and focus on realtors that take their profession very seriously. Some keys to this are to look for realtors who have earned various designations such as ABR(Accredited Buyer Representitive), GRI(Graduate Realtor Institute), CRS(Certified Residential Specialist). These and other certifications take time, money and a certain degree of success to obtain. In general(always exceptions though), realtors that do this show a commitment to their profession and a commitment to customer/client services. Also, interview a couple of realtors over the phone and let them know what your expectations are. At the same time, find out what their expectations of their clients are. When you find someone you want to work with tell them you want them to represent you and that you want to sign a buyer's rep agreement. This agreement should spell out the responsibilities of both parties.
I'm sorry this is so wordy but I hope it helps you find a good realtor that you want to work with and have them legally represent you and your interests. If you would like any other suggestions or ideas on choosing a good realtor just email me or send a private message. I'd be happy to respond.
Thank you, and everyone for your sound advice . No we do not have a buyer's agreement. No one mentioned this to us. As far as "using" this person& going with someone else..we don't operate like that. This person is giving us her time & we value what that means. I have not bought a house is a very long time so I guess I assumed that one's word was good enough. This agency was recommended by a friend who lives in the area & heard good things about them. We were "assigned" our realtor on the basis that she was one of the "best" on staff. Maybe she is feeling that we are too far out for the commitment level we are expecting. Although I will say that we have been very clear with here about out intentions with this purchase. Interesting to me is that a buyers agreement has not been discussed with us..?
I think you may want to just talk to her and tell her your concerns. I've found that the biggest problems in an agent/client relationship is that neither party has set any expectations of the other.
In the last several months, I have actually begun to ask clients what they expect of me as their Realtor. I have even gone as far as to tell them what I expect of them as my client. If expectations can't be agreed upon, then the relationship just won't work out, find a different agent.
Talk with her first, you can't expect her to read your mind, just like in a marriage....if you haven't told your significant other, how canyou expect them to know?
Best of luck to you in your search for a new home!
~Joey
We are going to see her next month and I think this is exactly what needs to be done! Thanks!!
We are going to see her next month and I think this is exactly what needs to be done! Thanks!!
No problem...Good luck and let us know how it goes!
~Joey
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. No we do not have a buyer's agreement. No one mentioned this to us. As far as "using" this person& going with someone else..we don't operate like that. This person is giving us her time & we value what that means. I have not bought a house is a very long time so I guess I assumed that one's word was good enough. This agency was recommended by a friend who lives in the area & heard good things about them. We were "assigned" our realtor on the basis that she was one of the "best" on staff. Maybe she is feeling that we are too far out for the commitment level we are expecting. Although I will say that we have been very clear with here about out intentions with this purchase. Interesting to me is that a buyers agreement has not been discussed with us..?
