Robert

Robert,
“What's the name of the realtor who harmed you financially? Of the approximately 1 million agents in the country, there have to be a few bad apples; just wondering which one of them made such a bad impression on you?”

None, financially. I was cautious and simply asked a few straight forward questions.

With approximately 1 million agents in the country, you’d think that a few would try to root out the “bad apples” and not leave it up to bloggers and us “regular folk” to point them out them? - Tue May 20 2008, 17:43

Remash, what you have described is the typical builders’ response from circa 2005. Those manning the office had to answer very few questions and in no way needed to be bothered with room sizes or other dimensions. The extent of their knowledge stopped around “yes we have granite counter tops”. With lenders giving away money to anyone with a pulse, and the ensuing frenzy, “these places were selling themselves”.

Now that the market has cooled, they can probably expect more folks really asking questions. I’ve heard some strange stories similar to yours. Buyer thought he was getting X, instead got Y. Representation or no, mattered not. The builder’s response: “Don’t like it, move on, I’ve got 20 other buyers lined up behind you to buy”. No amount of finagling from a realtor could compete with those 20 others willing to buy.

Judging by the dialogue you posted, I see very little value added from your “representation”. Sounds like you used something that has been lacking in the housing industry in the last few years……

Common Sense. - Tue May 20 2008, 11:04

“ We found out things during the meeting that we probably would not have thought of without her. In particular, the builder represented a rise of a model on their brochures and website that we wanted. That was the only reason we were going to purchase from them. During the meeting between them and our agent we found out that they are not building that model and have 2 other models that they do not even show or list on the brochures.”

Remash. Please elaborate further. I don’t think I’m getting the big picture here. I can’t imagine the conversation going something like this:

Builder: Yes, Mr. Remash, what I can I do for you today?

Remash: I’d like you to build for me the home pictured on the brochure.

Builder: I’m sorry Mr. Remash, we are not building particular model, but we do offer these additional models.

Remash: Huh??

Realtor: What he’s saying Mr. Remash, is that he’s not building that model, but is building two other models that differ from the one pictured.

Remash: Thanks realtor type person for clearing that up for me (it’s a good thing I brought representation)

If that’s indeed the case, I recant everything I said earlier and suggest you double your agent’s commission. - Mon May 19 2008, 18:40

“The builder does pay the buyer's agent, its built in to the cost. If they don't have a buyer's agent to pay the standard advertised co-op fee to, they keep it.”

And anyone that does not bring a buyers agent can negotiate the fee to 0. No agent, no fee.

“My friend can get out of the contract, but he will lose his $5000 deposit.”

Should have had a real estate attorney. Moreover, should have realized that negotiations are part of buying a house.

“People who like to point out that real estate agents are always biased towards higher prices and more money, don't understand the business. Buyer's agency binds me as an agent to a feduciary relationship with my buyer client.”

Not many agents I know work for flat fee. As long as there’s a commission involved, there will be bias towards a higher price. If that were not the case, we’d see quite a few more flat fee services.

“I am bound by laws and ethics to represent his best interests, which include the best price, best terms and his protection”

And there are constant examples of these ethics and laws. One only has to look at the blatant DOM re-sets and dropping the asking price to the sale price at the time of sale. Both practices skew MRIS data which is reported to the public as fact - Sat May 17 2008, 20:52

Few of things I’d like to point out:

The seller pays the buyers agent? Seems to me the buyer is the only one writing checks at closing. The commission is simply passed through to the buyer.

If you’re worried about “builder contracts are unilateral and provide very little protection for the buyer”. Obtain the services of a real estate attorney. May cost you a few hundred dollars, but that’s a few hundred dollars for someone that represents you, not someone who’s incentive it is for you to pay as much as possible for a home.

Noticed anything in the news lately about home builders? They are feeling the crunch. They are ready to deal. Maybe more so than homeowners that are still trying to get 2005 prices. Just a year ago, these homebuilders were not using selling agents. No need, they were selling themselves. Now, to try to move inventory, they have even started to list on the MLS. Chances are, you can get “free” upgrades that your soon to be neighbors had to pay through the nose for just a few months ago. But beware of using “preferred lenders” and any other “incentives” that seem too good to be true. That’s where the aforementioned attorney comes in again.

I noticed a comment “why are you buying a house that is not built yet when there may be so many on the market already”. That’s the only one I can somewhat agree with. But with inventory at record highs, these realtors want to get that number down and hence the motivation for you to buy off the rack. There are many free online research tools out there on real estate. It should be quite simple to pit the builder and existing sellers against one another at get a good deal. - Fri May 16 2008, 19:50

Average days on market for Zip 20650 in April '08 was 209 - Fri May 16 2008, 20:10

Slow in St. Mary’s. Inventory is at record highs. June saw 928 homes on the market. The last time we saw that many, was back in July ’88 with 865 on the market. Days on the market for homes sold is 97. Notice, that is for sold homes, not overall DOM. Seven month trends show prices flat year over year (YOY) with average price at $367K, and median at $345K.

As for Leonardtown (20650):
March showed no change in YOY Median price at $495K. April showed median down -16.8% at $395K. May showed median down -23.3% at $313K. June shows median up 16% at $479K. Using MRIS numbers for individual zip codes can generate a lot of noise, but keep in mind, March-July is peak selling season. - Sun Jul 29 2007, 08:30

Very aggressive. Check out mdlandrec.net to see what type of mortgage the seller has. Has their ARM re-set to a higher rate and the home on the market for a few months? They may now be feeling the pinch.

Find several homes you like on the MLS and run them through the mdlandrec site, and the tax records site (you'll need the current owners name from the tax site to place in the mdlandrec search). Compare qualities of each home and if you have a few neck and neck, use the information you've gathered to help make a decision. Two comp homes, but one seller is in "distress"? Go for the distressed home with a lowball. Seller declines the offer? No worries, make an offer on the other home. That seller declined? No worries, there are hundreds of other homes on the market to choose from. In a normal market, 10% off asking for you first offer is normal and should start some negotiations (assuming the home is priced correctly). In a stagnate market? Well, just posted below was an example at 33% off asking.

MRIS shows Anne Arundel November unit sales down 41%, dollar volume down 39%, with 4243 homes on the market. Take your time, lots of homes to choose from. - Thu Dec 13 2007, 20:28

The reason for the price declines recently (2005 on) was NOT affordability. Housing has not been affordable for quite some time now. Salaries have not/did not keep up with the 100%+ increase in prices. The declines you are seeing now (2005 on) are due to inventory, ARM re-sets, and the end of loose lending standards. As inventory continues to grow (or at least remains fairly steady during the “off” season), lending standards continue to tighten, ARM’s continue to re-set, and lenders continue to fold, showing that these homes are not affordable now, nor were they a few years ago.

For instance: Say someone purchased a $300K home in 2005 with and ARM. It re-sets in 2007 and the borrowers now can not afford the new rate. The price of the home never changed ($300K). The home was not affordable in 2005, and it is certainly not affordable in 2007. Furthermore, the talk of government bail outs are not for new buyers, they are for people that bought years ago.

As for the question at hand, Yes. It is a good time to sell a home. You just have to price it competitively, that is, DROP THE PRICE. - Sun Aug 26 2007, 11:03