patrick.net

A lot of people assume that realtors have a crystal ball and can predict what's going to happen. We are just like everybody else and have no idea what the future holds. What we can do, is give opinions (just like anyone else) that are based on what we are seeing. As with layman, 100 different realtors will have 100 different opinions about the same thing. As a buyer or seller, your job is to interview as many realtors as possible and find the one who's opinions you trust. Still no guarantee that they will be right but at least you're relying on someone who is following the market daily and seeing first hand what is going on out in the streets. Hey, if realtors all knew what was going to happen next do you think we'd still need to be working for a living?

Unfortunately it's really difficult to get a straight answer out of someone whose earns money on making sales to make a living. There's not going to be a lot of Realtors that turn all there clients away and tell them that your better off waiting until next year or two years from now. What do you expect the Realtor to eat in the mean time? At some point the Realtor has to put there own interests ahead of yours. I'm not saying all Realtor are bad or evil, it's just that you need to keep in mind that Realtors have motives as well, after all they have to eat too. No salesman stays employed very long if he re-directs all his customers down the street where they can get it cheaper.

If you buy into the notion Realtors are even necessary then I agree with TechGromit.
How ever they aren't.

I can see the health of the market on line, I can even see a sales heat map at my local county Tax roll website. I can do all of the leg work the Realtor has done, the seller can list on millions of online websites. There's just no need for a Realtor in 90% of the transactions.

Good or Bad is irrelevant. I bet I am one hell of a Ice deliveryman too, that doesn't mean anybody needs Ice for their Icebox delivered.

E-man says

He recently brought me an REO deal. I told him to cut his asking price buy 25% and we got a deal. Basically I want early 2009 price. Never heard from him again :o)

Do realwhores set the prices of REO's?

Conejo Valley Agent says

Just like any other profession, there are several uninformed, unethical agents out there. I however, would like to make a case for those of us who work our butts off to serve our clients. I am constantly watching the market and updating my community at...

Wow. You're, like, so awesome & stuff. Are you trolling here because you want to help each & every one of us to see that you're a glowing example of a good realwhore - or are you here to siphon some of the patnet readers to your facebook page?

Your $51k reduction example would have been more impressive if...
Conejo Valley Agent says

Just last week I posted an REO in Oak Park, CA which had a price reduction of $51k. Although none of my clients were looking in this area, the house did sell in 5 days after having been sitting on the market for 5 months. Obviously, I am not the only one that thought this was a great deal and had any of my client ended up buying, I think a $51k savings definitely deserves some credit. All I’m saying is that there are some of us out here who do take our jobs seriously and I think deserve some slack.

...it made any sense.

Did it sell because of your post? Did you have anything to do with the price reduction? Did any of your clients buy it? How is it "obvious that you aren't the only one that thought it was a great deal?"

I'm yet to see how you are deserving of some slack...