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In NJ, some of them have limited public access, many have no public access whatsoever. The limited ones won't give addresses, so if you just want to find out the basics on a property, what it really looks like from the outside or what neighbourhood it is in, you have to constantly bug a realtor. It is a real pain and very intrusive - customers are forced into having a salesman with them at all times, or at the very least are put into the uncomfortable position of constantly calling someone and wasting their time.
On the topic of this thread -- I think there are in fact many agents, who for whatever reasons, tend to give the quality and top professionals a bad name. However, this is true in many industries. The insurance industry, the legal field, accounting, and so on -- right down the line.
Be that as it may -- as in any industry -- I don't think the industry, or the professionals, should be or can be condemned by the one, the few, or the many "bad apples" so to speak. People tend to collapse an entire industry with the actions of a few or one, or even the many. I deal with that in my primary business, and in my other businesses as well. I often feel that brokers treat me a certain way, based upon their experiences, and their opinions of "buyers" or types of buyers. Or sellers for that matter.
Gbone, you brought up very good points about easy entry and minimal education. It's hard to convince the public they need a professional agent when becoming a licensed professional is perceived to be easy, something anyone can do. Why heck! Doesn't every one have a friend/relative/co-worker 'in the business'? I'm not saying that part-time or new agents are not as professional or as qualified (or more in some instances) as some who've been doing this a long time, just commenting on the public perception that it doesn't take much to be an agent. You just get a license, some signs, go sell some houses, and make tons of easy money, right? No set schedule, work when you want, just hang out and wait for your phone to ring. That is the perception. Those that get into the business thinking that's how it will be generally aren't in it for long. When I became a full time agent, my family started using the term 'now that you're not working'. Ha! It quickly changed to 'now that you're never home....'
Public awareness, in my opinion, is a real issue that I would like to see NAR address. The professional designations we earn through continuing ed are just alphabet soup to the public. I have e-Pro, finishing GRI this month, will have CRS in the spring. So? Doesn't mean anything to the majority of potential clients unless I have the opportunity to speak with them. Perhaps we should spell out those designations on our business cards -we all know what CRS means to most people, and it's not Certified Residential Specialist I doubt NAR will ever take up this task but we as individuals can, without being derogatory to other agents, bring attention to our own credentials and experience.
Of course, bad experiences in any profession reflect badly on the group as a whole. Not fair, but that's life. I don't see any profession that relies soley on commissions ever having a glowing reputation - a sales person makes $0 unless they 'sell' something, so that surely must be their first priority. Those not is sales don't realize the successful sales person is actually selling themselves and their services, not a house or a car or whatever. The exception is with our own clients who've been through a transaction with us, and can appreciate a job well done. They recommend us to their friends and family and that's the greatest compliment we can receive. We will never make everyone happy as that's impossible. I do go to bed every night knowing I've done the best I can possibly do for my clients that day and I look forward to starting in again the next morning. I've tried very hard to build a good reputation, a loyal client base and it must be working. I've had an excellent year in what, according to national media, has been a terrible market. I'm hosting a client appreciation party Sunday - and we're expecting 150 people to attend. Next year I'm hoping for 300! And I won't be 'selling' them a thing, just appreciate their business, and they know it.
Last but not least, and I do apologize for rambling on - you must have thick skin. I had one person, selling their house FSBO, call and read me the riot act for holding my client to the terms of our exclusive buyers agreement stating he would pay the difference between x$ and amount offered by the seller, in this case 0$. It's the only client I ever asked to sign one, because he had taken a huge amount of my time, wanted to see everything under the sun, was not completely honest with me (see below) etc. Anyway, the FSBO actually said among other things, that HE KNEW ME, called me a blood-sucking agent who was just in this for the money, he had never heard of such an agreement, I was an obvious liar and he would make sure everyone knew never to use me or my company. Then he asked what my name was. I was really trying not to laugh. I just told him he sure seemed to know an awful lot about me, where I lived, how I worked, everything except who I was. Truth: my client had signed a contract on a house, turned around and signed another contract with the FSBO the very next day, realized he now had a big problem and was trying to use the buyers agreement as a way out of the FSBO contract without losing his earnest money. Too bad FSBO didn't have an agent.
Now...I must get back to my blood-sucking, scum bag job!
In NJ, some of them have limited public access, many have no public access whatsoever. The limited ones won't give addresses, so if you just want to find out the basics on a property, what it really looks like from the outside or what neighbourhood it is in, you have to constantly bug a realtor. It is a real pain and very intrusive - customers are forced into having a salesman with them at all times, or at the very least are put into the uncomfortable position of constantly calling someone and wasting their time.
Please, you must remember that one reason, just one, that a seller lists with a REALTOR is the issue of security and safety - if I were an owner, I would not want my address plastered all over the internet for any Tom, Dick or Harry to come knocking on my door. Also, I would want my agent accompany any buyer who expresses interest -
In NJ, some of them have limited public access, many have no public access whatsoever. The limited ones won't give addresses, so if you just want to find out the basics on a property, what it really looks like from the outside or what neighbourhood it is in, you have to constantly bug a realtor. It is a real pain and very intrusive - customers are forced into having a salesman with them at all times, or at the very least are put into the uncomfortable position of constantly calling someone and wasting their time.
This is horrible! Do you have most of the houses for sale at least on Zillow?
The MLS needs to be made public and all referral fees (kickbacks) brought out into the open. What the public does not know it that they are often reeling in as fish on line rather than having agents work in the interests of their clients. Dirty deals and corruption is very prevalent in the real estate business. I see first hand every day, as agents become manipulative, secretive and far less than ethical. The public is at a loss when someone gets in the way of an agent's commission.
On the topic of this thread -- I think there are in fact many agents, who for whatever reasons, tend to give the quality and top professionals a bad name. However, this is true in many industries. The insurance industry, the legal field, accounting, and so on -- right down the line.
Be that as it may -- as in any industry -- I don't think the industry, or the professionals, should be or can be condemned by the one, the few, or the many "bad apples" so to speak. People tend to collapse an entire industry with the actions of a few or one, or even the many. I deal with that in my primary business, and in my other businesses as well. I often feel that brokers treat me a certain way, based upon their experiences, and their opinions of "buyers" or types of buyers. Or sellers for that matter.
Anyway, great thread.
Not necessarily true to compare it to the legal and accounting professions. The barriers to entry for those two professions are huge, and take years of study beyond even an undergrad degree to become a true licensed "professional". There are many points in the study regimen where the "wheat is separated from the chaff". Of course, that doesn't mean that an accountant wouldn't be just as likely to be unethical as a real estate salesperson, but most attorneys and accountants bring a certain level of expertise to the table, many times right out of school.
The barriers to entry for a real estate or insurance license are very minimal. I've taken and passed the real estate and insurance licensing exams in our state, though don't sell either currently, and I would put the aptitude level needed to pass those licensing exams at about a 12th or 14th grade level (associates degree level max). If you can sit through two weeks of classes, and know how to answer story problem multiple choice questions with some algebra thrown in, and pay the fees, you can have a real estate license in no time. But it takes quite a bit more than that to be successful in the business.
I too hope that the downturn has a Darwinian affect on the profession.
I recently came across a post from a realtor on another website who was very upset about some posts that she had read that was very derogatory towards realtors. She believed herself to be very professional, ethical, and caring about her client's best interests. I am directing this post mostly to realtors and I would appreciate any responses you might have. If non-realtors wish to reply please do.
Below was my response to Sherry and I would be interested in feedback and specifics regarding agreement or disagreement:
Sherry,
I agree with you that there are many good to excellent realtors who take their profession seriously, are ethical, and work very hard to satisfy their clients and to always keep their client's best interests as their top priority. However, the reality is that there are many agents who have no business being in the real estate business and bring down the reputation of realtors as a whole. According to data presented by NAR, realtors rank very low on the reputation scale(bottom 20%) and barely above used car salesmen reputations. This is one of the reasons for NAR's national ad campaign focusing on realtors and their Code of Ethics. Additionally, according to the NAR, there is approximately an 80% turnover in real estate agents every two years. To many people get into the business for the wrong reasons. They think they can make a quick buck and only need to take a sixty to ninety hour course in most states to get licensed. They don't realize that being a realtor is hard work and that it is a very complex field. Many people get into real estate on a part time basis while they hold down another job and in most instances, real estate is not their priority. Many don't take their profession seriously and do the minimum as far as education. You state that the "vast majority of realtors do care about our clients and will go out of our way to make our clients happy". I would ask as to where did you get the data for this statement because it doesn't seem to be born out by information I have received in ABR classes and GRI classes.
I am in no way questionning you as a professional and caring realtor. I too feel angry when I read posts on websites that blast realtors. But I have learned that my anger was originally directed at the poster and not where it should have been directed. When I now read an angry post from someone my anger is now directed at the real estate agent who was not professional and competent that worked with them, because that is where their anger comes from in most instances. To not pay any attention to negative comments on these posts is almost like burying our head in the sand in hopes that they will go away. I prefer to go to those websites and read what is being said and respond in a professional manner in hopes of swaying some of the negative opinion out there.
I hope my comments are taken in the manner in which they were intended. There are many good and professional realtors out there. There are also many that are not. I believe real estate is a good and honourable profession. I understand that the public perception of realtors is very low. I also believe that the good and professional realtors must take an active role in helping weed out the unprofessional ones. This active role can be in many forms. I think we should push for stricter requirements before a person can become licensed. I believe that our continuing education requirements should be stricter and more focused. I believe that we should report incompetent, negligent, and unprofessional real estate agents to the state board responsible for taking corrective action. In my opinion, until the good and professional realtors take a more active role in this not much will change, except for the worse. And I say worse because the Department of Justice is now involved with making changes to the real estate industry. I believe one of the main reasons for their involvement is because of the unprofessional realtors/agents.
Also, I would want my agent accompany any buyer who expresses interest -
I had never seen such a thing until this year when we bought our most recent house. Our agent, and previous agents in earlier transactions, had always accompanied us during any showings. The seller's agent had never been there. I always figured that a buyer's Realtor accompained ther clients, not only to help with questions and show features, but also to ensure the safety of the property. It's part of their job.
However, we went to view one house a few months back and the seller's agent was there. He insisted on remaining. We found this not only inppropriate, but also sneeky. It felt like a car saleman hovering around the corner within earshot when you're trying to discuss things in confidence with your spouse.
Confidential communications can occur between the client and their agent. With the seller's agent there, it makes such communications impossible to happen. It also makes it seem that they're trying to gather information, both verbal and non-verbal, to which they would otherwise not be privy. It would give them an avantage in negotiations.
In the case of the house with the seller's agent, I refused to be subjected to such treatment. It looked okay from the outside, not particularly spectacular but nice, and it might have been a fine house for us had we went inside. However, I made our decision from the outside to reject the property.
It was no big deal to us because there's sooooo many houses on the market we had out pick. However, it was that practice that led to the possible loss of a sale for the homeowner. We told the agent of our decision, but he said he had no choice. It was the instructions fro his seller.
I'm sure that most people would have just dealt with it and viewed the property, but I'm not most people. I'm not going to be subjected to, and ultimately reward, someone's irrational and questionable acts. However, especially in this market, I also don't understand why anyone would want to subject buyers to any negative environment. They should want to make it as easy and pleasant as possible to view the property.
If they had some concerns over a Picasso on the wall, stacks of gold bars in the living room, or some other item of value, simply put it away or lock it up. That's the real answer. Any other option just makes a poor buying experience for the people who are going to make a sale happen - the people with the money.
BTW, it hppened in July and the house is still for sale. Since then, we've bought somethng else.
Not necessarily true to compare it to the legal and accounting professions. The barriers to entry for those two professions are huge, and take years of study beyond even an undergrad degree to become a true licensed "professional". There are many points in the study regimen where the "wheat is separated from the chaff". Of course, that doesn't mean that an accountant wouldn't be just as likely to be unethical as a real estate salesperson, but most attorneys and accountants bring a certain level of expertise to the table, many times right out of school.
The barriers to entry for a real estate or insurance license are very minimal. I've taken and passed the real estate and insurance licensing exams in our state, though don't sell either currently, and I would put the aptitude level needed to pass those licensing exams at about a 12th or 14th grade level (associates degree level max). If you can sit through two weeks of classes, and know how to answer story problem multiple choice questions with some algebra thrown in, and pay the fees, you can have a real estate license in no time. But it takes quite a bit more than that to be successful in the business.
I too hope that the downturn has a Darwinian affect on the profession.
The barriers to entry are much more -- of everything -- in the legal and accounting professions; very true. My point was more vocationally speaking (not advocationally for lack of a better word).
We agree on the industry aspect here. I just find it rather ironic that the professionals, the real pro's, tend to here about the "negatives" and all the nonsense as they are the ones who are in the industry, long term.
My partners and I have often thought about having someone related to our group get their real estate license, exclusively for the purpose of being able to list our properties. Price tends to sell our properties, as opposed to marketing, but regardless, in being an active buyer in multiple states, I come into more contact with the "pretenders" or the incompetants, crooked, shady, etc. -- than the "contenders" and the pro's. I stick with quality -- both in property and people. Good thread.
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Low-life scumbag real estate agents
I doubt NAR will ever take up this task but we as individuals can, without being derogatory to other agents, bring attention to our own credentials and experience. 
Do you have most of the houses for sale at least on Zillow?
