Pam's Prescott Blog

Last night I got a phone call.  A breathless woman needed me to find her a house "as soon as possible!"  Time was of the essence, she said.  Being a professional, I got right on the search, called her back and told her I'd do some more in-depth work the next day.

Late the next morning, I got a call.  Another agent had found the buyer a home, she told me, "But should it fall through, I'll give you a call."

My response?  "Sorry, but that's not how it's done.  If you've been working with that other agent, you need to stick with her."

"Well, we've used her a lot, but she wasn't producing much, so we thought we'd give you a try," she said, as if that was supposed to make me feel better.

"We try to build loyalty in our business," I said.  "You need to stick with the Realtor you started with."  And that was that.  Hours of work down the tubes, my faith in human beings destroyed.  (Well, not completely destroyed.)

So why should you be loyal to a Realtor?  And when can you "sever the ties" so to speak?  Can a Realtor force loyalty?

As to the first question, you should be loyal to a Realtor because they are working hard for you.  Real Estate is my job and I take it seriously.  When someone tells me they need something, I believe them.  I go to work.  I may miss time with my family to do it, or put other clients on hold.  To find out that a client or potential client hasn't been honest with me is an affront to my professionalism and to our relationship.  If you are shopping for the perfect Buyer's agent, make it clear to them exactly what is going on.  Interview them before you get started, choose one, and stick with them.

Furthermore, Don't imagine that one agent has secret information that another doesn't possess just because they haven't yet found exactly what you want.  As Phil Hoover, a broker in Boise, Idaho points out in his blog on the topic:

"I can understand the logic behind “shopping” buyer agents to find a competent, responsive, experienced agent. But, playing several agents against each other is a sure way to turn off any experienced agent.

All buyer agents have the same listing inventory to show and every home listed in MLS is available with a mouse click. Do those buyers think one agent is going to find a property another one won’t find?"

Realtors search for what you tell them you want.  Sometimes, they have to get to know you to truly understand what kind of home would make you happy.  Often, it is not what you said it was!  When they've spent hours on the computer, in the car, and with you personally, it's a courtesy to let them know if you have a change in plans, aren't interested anymore, or don't feel you should be working together. 

Which brings us to the next question: When can and should you sever the ties?  If you start working with an agent and discover that they are incompetent, ineffective, or unethical, or for whatever reason come to believe you cannot work together, you should tell them.  Don't just drop them without a word.  Send an e-mail or pick up the phone and let them know that you've decided to work with someone else and why. 

Can a Realtor force your loyalty?  Yes, if you agree to let them.  Many agents use "Buyer-Broker Agreements," which are essentially employment contracts.  The Realtor promises to work diligently to find you a home or piece of land, and you promise that they will get paid to do it - by the seller or by you.  If you opt out of the contract, you may still owe them a retainer fee for their time.

Up to now, I haven't felt I needed Buyer-Broker Agreements.  I believed my goodwill, hard work, expertise and people skills would keep my buyers happy.  And I still do.  But I'm getting a little tired of rude behavior on the part of some people who say they will call back and don't, say they will be somewhere and aren't, move from agent to agent the way they switch shampoos, and are generally unreliable and irresponsible.  I'm thinking that if all Realtors used Buyer-Broker agreements, this would cease to be a problem.

Remember, most Realtors are hard-working, honest people with families of their own.  Don't call them on a Sunday and make them leave their children to show you property that you must see "today!" and then go buy a home with Realtor X because his sign was in the yard of a home you liked.  As my cousin used to say, "How tacky!"