My friend recently put an offer on a house. Her contract was turned down, and she was told that a better contract had been received. Turns out the better contract was from the listing agent herself! I know this isn't illegal, but does it violate some sort of realtor's code of ethics? Sort of seems like the equivalent of insider trading...
2006-08-16 07:17:20 · 7 answers · asked by abcd 2 in Business & Finance ➔ Renting & Real Estate
You are incorrect. It is entirely and wholly illegal for a real estate agent to leverage the transaction in this manner. Although it may not be something that will get litigated if you don't want to spend thousands of dollars on an attorney, you need to report this immediately to your State's Real Estate Agent Regulatory concern and file a formal complaint. You will have to be able to prove what you are describing above, or at least have very good circumstantial evidence for the regulator to inquire about it with the Realtor.
2006-08-16 07:26:19 · answer #1 · answered by rightonrighton 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most people want to make money out of selling their house. I would say that as long as it was not your friends real estate agent buying the house, then it become a dog eat dog world. If the listing agent was all that interested, when the seller came to the agent in the first place the listing agent should of said I will take it .... instead of putting the house on the market and have interested people look at the house. It is sad, but as a seller all they are looking for is dollar signs!
2006-08-16 14:26:45 · answer #2 · answered by Lady D 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
1) Agents are required to present all offers
2) If your offer was, in fact, better, then the agent is in violation of fiducuary duty. But to the seller, not to your friend. That agent owes them the best price they can get, but owes your friend nothing. As long as they don't lie, they can do basically anything to them.
3) There's nothing inherently wrong with an putting in an offer themselves. But in a large number of cases where the listing agent puts an offer in, the reason is that the property is priced below market and the agent thinks they can make a profit. Kind of a conflict between that and your duty to get the best price for your client, don't ya think?
2006-08-16 14:33:51 · answer #3 · answered by Searchlight Crusade 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Licensed agents are under an ethical (and in most states, legal) responsibility to disclose to all interested parties to a trade when they have any potential interest as a principal.
You can check local records and see what the agent paid for the house (this is public info). If they paid less than your friend's offer, your friend and seller may have a cause against the agent.
If you are interested, contact your state's real estate commission.
2006-08-16 14:34:29 · answer #4 · answered by Jamestheflame 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's not unethical or illegal. That agent worked for the SELLER, so it was his/her job to get the best price for the property. It just so happened that her customers made a better offer. That happens sometimes, so perhaps if your friend really wants a house, she should make the best offer possible to not lose out next time! The better offer is going to get it everytime, no matter who writes the offer.
2006-08-16 16:34:41 · answer #5 · answered by akc1106 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The listing agent will get DOUBLE COMMISSION if he sells it himsef, so that's quite an incentive to sway the seller's opinion on the offer.
It's unethical if the accepted offer is NOT better......The seller, by law, is supposed to see all offers (at least in my state) and have them presented without bias from the agent.
Your friend's offer might have had one or many aspects that were not as attractive to the seller, i.e. pre-approval, low down payment, lower than asking price, etc.
Move on to the next available house! There are plenty for sale!
2006-08-16 14:25:25 · answer #6 · answered by tonevault 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
$30,000
2006-08-16 14:22:21 · answer #7 · answered by NONAME 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋