Pocket Listings

[sandpiperapp]

Yep, I know that is not unusual in NYC, but it is certainly highly unusual in most areas of the country and it is also highly unethical in my opinion...real estate brokers should be trying to expose the listing to the broadest audience possible in order to obtain the best deal for seller and should not be keeping the listing in house which does nothing to serve the seller's interest but instead serves the broker's interest in trying to retain both sides of the transaction.

For those of you that think it is unethical, or that there is something "wrong" with not putting a listing on the MLS, you are showing your real estate inexperience. I am not saying anything about your appraisal experience, but if you think that having an office exclusive is somehow wrong or unethical, then you truly do not understand the sales or brokerage side of the real estate business.

 

[sandpiperapp]

Recently there is another phenomena that raised its ugly head. Under-pricing to produce a bidding war between multiple buyers. The result has been sale price 5-15% over List price. Many areas like the Charlotte MSA have this going on. Inventory is tight, Realtors chasing the ever rising prices(literally monthly). I encountered this recently and decided to call a few Realtor to find out what's going on. Unbelievably they were quite open about it. Not sure if this is some type of ethical issue, I suppose it is not as long as the Agent informed the Seller and they agreed. Tough explaining this situation in the report especially since its skewing the Statistics. eyeroll

This is not new. Brokers have been doing this for a while. The first time I ran into this was the mid 80's when I was first licensed

 

[Don Clark]

This is not new. Brokers have been doing this for a while. The first time I ran into this was the mid 80's when I was first licensed

Nothing wrong with it at all. it is very common on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, So are "open listings". i have seen up to 6 or more signs in 1 yard because they all have an "Open Listing. I also have seen signs that do not say "Sold" but instead say "Bought". Ah for the simple life.

 

[timd354]

For those of you that think it is unethical, or that there is something "wrong" with not putting a listing on the MLS, you are showing your real estate inexperience. I am not saying anything about your appraisal experience, but if you think that having an office exclusive is somehow wrong or unethical, then you truly do not understand the sales or brokerage side of the real estate business.

It is not unethical if that is what a seller truly wants and it somehow benefits the seller (i.e., the seller does not want the property listed in the MLS due to privacy concerns, etc.). However, it is highly unethical when it is pushed onto the seller by their agent and is done for the purpose of the brokerage trying to capture both sides of the transaction. I perfectly well understand the brokerage side of the business as my wife was an agent for 5 years and one of my good friends runs a brokerage. I have been involved in the real estate business in one way or another for almost 3 decades and I very well understand all of the shady things that go on with real estate listings and sales. Of course, greed and shady sales practices are justified all the time by shady sales people, including shady real estate brokers and agents.

 

[sandpiperapp]

It is not unethical if that is what a seller truly wants and it somehow benefits the seller (i.e., the seller does not want the property listed in the MLS due to privacy concerns, etc.). However, it is highly unethical when it is pushed onto the seller by their agent and is done for the purpose of the brokerage trying to capture both sides of the transaction. I perfectly well understand the brokerage side of the business as my wife was an agent for 5 years and one of my good friends runs a brokerage. I have been involved in the real estate business in one way or another for almost 3 decades and I very well understand all of the shady things that go on with real estate listings and sales. Of course, greed and shady sales practices are justified all the time by shady sales people, including shady real estate brokers and agents.

It is sad that you just keep bringing up "shady" when it is not. Can it be? Yes it can be, but it is not in and of itself, "shady? It is a business decision for the broker and the homeowner to consider.

People hire brokers to market and sell their properties. Brokers were first, and they developed the multiple listing services to share information. Non real estate people think that the MLS is the be all end all of real estate, when it is just a tool. Useful, but not always necessary.

The funny thing is back in the mid 80's and 90's when I was selling and managing real estate offices, I had to "sell" homeowners on putting their homes on the MLS, as most preferred to keep it local. Now times have changed since I actively listed and sold, but the premise is the same. It is a business decision for the broker and homeowner.

Now timmy, you are always saying what bad business people, appraisers are. Well now when a broker tries to be a good businessman and use a little discretion to decide what marketing tools to use and expenses to pay, you go and say it is "shady" .

 

[timd354]

It is sad that you just keep bringing up "shady" when it is not. Can it be? Yes it can be, but it is not in and of itself, "shady? It is a business decision for the broker and the homeowner to consider.

People hire brokers to market and sell their properties. Brokers were first, and they developed the multiple listing services to share information. Non real estate people think that the MLS is the be all end all of real estate, when it is just a tool. Useful, but not always necessary.

The funny thing is back in the mid 80's and 90's when I was selling and managing real estate offices, I had to "sell" homeowners on putting their homes on the MLS, as most preferred to keep it local. Now times have changed since I actively listed and sold, but the premise is the same. It is a business decision for the broker and homeowner.
Thanks for proving my point. It should never be a business decision for anyone but the homeowner. If brokers are making a business decision not to use the MLS so that they get both ends of the transaction and make more money for themselves, then that is highly unethical and breaches their duty to act in the best interests of the homeowner that they represent
Now timmy, you are always saying what bad business people, appraisers are. Well now when a broker tries to be a good businessman and use a little discretion to decide what marketing tools to use and expenses to pay, you go and say it is "shady" .

I will agree that office listings are not always shady, but they often are. Real estate brokers are supposed to work in the seller's best interests and trying to keep a listing to one's self so that you can get both ends of the transaction is both shady and unethical. You know when the NAR felt obligated to publish a recent bulletin because of concerns about the increase in this type of thing, it is becoming a real problem.

 

[Meandering]

Don't be silly.

When you go to sell your home, don't you want your agent to already have buyers who are looking to purchase a home similar to yours? Or are you happy with the agent who isn't working with any buyers that could buy your house, so you'll just wait on someone to find it in the MLS and want to come and see it.

.As the agent as soon as you know you might get the listing, you start calling everyone you know to get a heads up on who's got a highly qualified buyer that might be interested. Then when you do the actual listing paperwork with the seller, you tell them you have a highly qualified buyer in pocket and will be showing the home as soon as the ink is dry on the listing or as soon as the house is clean and ready to show.

That's how sales are done.

Not, oh, I'll just throw your house in to the MLS, with all the rest of the properties that are for sale and sit back and wait for some one to show up to see it. Then we'll make sure they are qualified to buy cash or mortgage, and we make sure everything is online then we'll be around to show the house in a week or two..

 

[timd354]

Don't be silly.

When you go to sell your home, don't you want your agent to already have buyers who are looking to purchase a home similar to yours? Or are you happy with the agent who isn't working with any buyers that could buy your house, so you'll just wait on someone to find it in the MLS and want to come and see it.

.As the agent as soon as you know you might get the listing, you start calling everyone you know to get a heads up on who's got a highly qualified buyer that might be interested. Then when you do the actual listing paperwork with the seller, you tell them you have a highly qualified buyer in pocket and will be showing the home as soon as the ink is dry on the listing or as soon as the house is clean and ready to show.The listing agent can do that and they can also put the house into the MLS at the same time because the best, most qualified buyer may be out there working with a different agent who they don't know, especially when the property is in a very highly populated area
That's how sales are done.

Not, oh, I'll just throw your house in to the MLS, with all the rest of the properties that are for sale and sit back and wait for some one to show up to see it. Then we'll make sure they are qualified to buy cash or mortgage, and we make sure everything is online then we'll be around to show the house in a week or two..

Nope, no agent is going to earn my listing by simply throwing the listing in to the MLS, they are going to have to do a whole lot more and enter the listing into the MLS.

BTW, I don't live in the real estate wasteland of the Poconos like you...my neighborhood currently has a severe shortage of available inventory to the point where the last 3 listings that came on the market in my neighborhood went under contract in 3 or 4 days even though it is in the dead of winter in what is usually the slow selling season here (the open house down the street this past weekend street had massive foot traffic even though it was a miserable rainy weekend). In such a market, I would want the agent to put the listing into the MLS at a very competitive price and quickly hold an open house with a notice that all offers will be reviewed the Wednesday after the Sunday open house in order to start a bidding war.

 

[sandpiperapp]

Nope, no agent is going to earn my listing by simply throwing the listing in to the MLS, they are going to have to do a whole lot more and enter the listing into the MLS.

BTW, I don't live in the real estate wasteland of the Poconos like you...my neighborhood currently has a severe shortage of available inventory to the point where the last 3 listings that came on the market in my neighborhood went under contract in 3 or 4 days even though it is in the dead of winter in what is usually the slow selling season here (the open house down this past weekend street had massive foot traffic even though it was a miserable rainy weekend). In such a market, I would want the agent to put the listing into the MLS at a very competitive price and quickly hold an open house with a notice that all offers will be reviewed the Wednesday after the Sunday open house in order to start a bidding war.

If I was in that market, I would go 100% Fsbo and save the brokerage fee. But then again, I am a broker with actual experience in selling, qualifying, and running a real estate business.
Those who are not experienced in the real estate business are just taking educated guesses, with not enough real estate education.

 

[timd354]

If I was in that market, I would go 100% Fsbo and save the brokerage fee. But then again, I am a broker with actual experience in selling, qualifying, and running a real estate business.
Those who are not experienced in the real estate business are just taking educated guesses, with not enough real estate education.

Yes, I hear you....I would too if I were selling my house, but then again my wife was an agent and I was a loan officer many, many years ago, so I know all about qualifying potential buyers. Someone with no experience or knowledge should probably hire a broker, even in a hot market like the one in my neighborhood