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Norbecker
2012 Feb 16, 2:08am
it seems from my point of view, that the slick talker will always win...
Absolutely. This is why the whole way RE is sold needs to be changed. The agents who really do have their clients best interest in mind lose to the one's who will do/say what it takes to close the sale. Just like politics....say/do whatever it takes to get elected and then do what is in their own best interest.
leo707
2012 Feb 16, 2:25am
I can afford to be honest, I don't care anymore, I make plenty of money from my rentals, and as a professor. But basically, it seems from my point of view, that the slick talker will always win...
Yes, someone who does not need, or care about it for that matter, the income is the only way to overcome the corruption of the current pay structure.
However, I do still see a conflict of interest in that you invest in rentals. Would you let a "good deal" pass through your hands to a client that you know would love to buy the house?
gregpfielding
2012 Feb 16, 6:07am
robertoaribas says
I can afford to be honest, I don't care anymore
May be you are the needle in the haystack that realtor Greg is talking about. :)
House worth 650 and falling? Tell them the truth and they will hire the agent who tells them it's worth 700 and rising.
Today's buyers appreciate honesty, integrity, and an understanding of how and why prices are changing. But today's sellers more often hire whoever gives them the most optimistic expectations. Liars get rewarded.
These may not be the real estate professionals we want, but they are the real estate professionals that get hired time and time again.
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I have a very dim view of realtors, mostly due to experience with them. I've often thought that, if I wanted to, I could be a different kind of realtor... an honest one... a straightforward one... one that actually had his client's best interests in mind versus my own pocketbook. But then I thought, could I actually be successful this way? Is the profession innately corrupt, with only the dishonest and lazy being able to make the most money? I guess I think "yes".
But, anyway, if I ever wanted to be a realtor, here's how I'd be. Would I make more money/be more successful, though, than the stereotypical lazy, greedy realtor?
I would...
... put a preference towards finding homes for buyers, versus just wanting to sit back on listings, waiting for someone else to bring the buyer.
...assume buyers use the internet for general searching, and thus I'd actually ask them what they really want, and only present them with homes that match that using criteria not usually available on internet searches.
...if asked, tell them my honest thoughts about home buying, which are, only buy to live there. Assume zero to very little appreciation in the future.
...tell buyers to only buy what they know they can afford, and not what the bank tells them they can afford.
...for my listings, take good pictures, write descriptions and spell-check them, and even do minor touch-up work myself to make the home more attractive.
...advise sellers on prices they're likely to get... price it to sell, versus pricing it to get my maximum commission. If the house is not in contract within three weeks, then I'm not doing my job.
Anyway, I could continue rambling. With the above said, would I just be wasting my time doing all that, or do you think it might actually make a difference?
#housing