New construction, realtor vanished

[SunBeachFun]

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Since it won't cost me anything (plus it sounds like I'm legally bound to the broker via the contract), I might as well have a new agent assigned. In the long run, I don't think it matters, other than I won't ever recommend this agency to anyone. It isn't the way I would run a business!

I figure the "who gets the commission" argument can be between the broker and my original agent. They can fight it out. It would be great if some of it came to me, as suggested above, but I don't think I have strong enough negotiation skills to pull this one off!

[oldtrader]

Once you had signed the paperwork to buy the property, and had selected the building contractor that was building the home, the agent had no control of what was going on. The agent had done their job, from finding the lot, placing it under contract, arranging for you to meet builders that were doing the building, and helping arrange financing for the final closing for you to take possession of the home. The builder would have arranged the construction financing. From the agent's/real estate office's side their work was done, until after the building was completed.

The next time the agent would be involved was at the time the closing is to happen. When the real estate office is notified the home is completed and an occupancy permit has been issued, they will be back in the picture to set the closing up. Often in this kind of transaction, the lenders who will be putting out the money for the loan to convert from construction loan to permanent financing, will be controlling the final closing working with the real estate agency.

Once the lot had been placed under contract, with financing in place, and a builder under contract, there is very little your original agent could do till you got to setting up the closing. This is why you had not heard from the brokerage office, as they were waiting for things to lead up to the closing when they would next have been involved.

[Anne C M]

Originally Posted by SunBeachFun

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Since it won't cost me anything (plus it sounds like I'm legally bound to the broker via the contract), I might as well have a new agent assigned. In the long run, I don't think it matters, other than I won't ever recommend this agency to anyone. It isn't the way I would run a business!

I figure the "who gets the commission" argument can be between the broker and my original agent. They can fight it out. It would be great if some of it came to me, as suggested above, but I don't think I have strong enough negotiation skills to pull this one off!

You have every right to be frustrated with your agent and the company for how this happened. The agent should have told you they were leaving and given you the contact information of someone who would take over in their place. However, as a real estate broker who just switched companies myself, I can tell you this may not have been possible. I reached out to my clients with pending contracts before telling my managing broker I was leaving so that I had the opportunity to explain to them what was happening and why I wasn't able to continue to work with them (contract is property of company, not agent). Once I informed my managing broker I was leaving, I was locked out of my company email pretty quickly.

If your agent told their managing broker first, they may not have been allowed to contact you. Many agencies have extremely strict non-compete clauses and rules about leaving the brokerage- it is very common that the agent is banned from communicating with anyone who was a client/contact of theirs at the company. Your agent may have been threatened with legal action if they contacted you in any way, even if it was just to say they would no longer be working with you. There's no excuse for why someone wasn't immediately assigned to your contract, though. You shouldn't have had to hunt down someone at the company.