Why is it that when a mortgage related question is asked here Real Estate agents have some of the worst answers? Yet when Real Estate questions are asked here Mortgage people usually have the best answer?
2007-02-15 15:30:18 · 7 answers · asked by Yuliya P 7 in Business & Finance ➔ Renting & Real Estate
Commission income may be a part of this situation; Real Estate agents are used to seeing a commission from 2.5 - 3% on the buyer’s side, and often the same or slightly less on the listing side. That situation has attracted floods of people into the industry looking for easy income. This often results in more people focused on commission income as opposed to providing excellent customer service. Mortgage lending is also very competitive but many people will walk from a lender trying to make what a real estate agent would. 2 points up front is very hard to sell. 1-1.5 points yield spread will cause a higher rate that also can scare away a rate shopping borrower. That’s where option arms became very popular as the rate is so low a lender can price for larger rebate and still show a very low rate. Personally, I won’t sell option arms to people and feel they should be outlawed. Sorry, back to your question, Product knowledge is key, go into a real estate office and ask how homes are built and the average agent is clueless. Agents show houses yet most know nothing about houses. Go into a mortgage office and the loan rep has to know loan products inside and out. Loan officers often have to recommend changes to clean up sloppy written offers. To be a very good lender one must know real estate and lending. To be a good real estate agent one should know enough about all services their client will require so they can make good referrals. It is not required of agents to know lending but some think they know it all. A few really do however and they provide great answers here, those are the minority of the trade. A lot of loan officers provide horrible answers here also. I have done real estate, and mortgage lending for a very long time. I have seen bad agents make tons of money and also seen totally unethical loan officers rake in huge commissions. To their respective clients they seemed to, at the time, have the right answers. I have witnessed right here many times the asker will choose the as best answer, a totally off the mark answer. Some questions are so out there that no answer will be able to comprehended by the asker. Maybe some of the agents are trying to answer it so the asker can "get it” to a smart person that agent might appear ignorant. To the mentally inept asker however that agent might be understood better. I really can't believe there are distinct sides to this question as the real variable lies in the askers more than the answerers.
2007-02-15 16:15:50 · answer #1 · answered by Kevin H 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I know this situation happens, but by the same token, there are mortgage people that don't do their jobs properly and real estate agents who do a fantastic job.
Many new people have entered the real estate field in the last few years. In general, these people do not have an understanding of the financial side of the business. An experienced real estate agent should be able to answer most of your questions. the caveat is that there are situations that the real estate agent does not have the answer to because there are always situations that are unique to each buyer.
The same is true for mortgage people. Those who have been in the business long enough understand how some things work and tie into the loan process. Newer morgage officers usually don't have that understanding.
The bottom line on all of this is the real estate/mortgage business is very much a "Cover your A**" business. Experienced people in the business usually will only answer questions they know for certain. If they don't know, they will pass it off to someone else to answer. New people in the business will say anything to try and get the deal done.
2007-02-16 10:08:57 · answer #2 · answered by txrealestateagent 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The real estate person is a people person; they know and understand what people want and need. They are the people that can help you find the property that is right for you and your family. It is the real estate agent that knows the schools, the district, the politicians, the rotary club, and all manor of the things we want in our lives.
What you have to do to get the property that is best suited for you is not in the Realtors area of expertise (most times). This area is the nuts and bolts of financing. Mortgage people study the relative movement of money (interest rates vs principals) and other financial happenings and know that if they can apply a current occasion to the life of a prospect that the prospect may be better off and the finance guy can earn a living.
As a mortgage guy, I try to help the person with a financial dilemma find a way forward. The way forward is always possible if the two ends can come together.
2007-02-15 23:49:52 · answer #3 · answered by whatevit 5 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Lets break down your question, part 1; regarding real estate agents answering mortgage questions. Most of us agents have established long relationships with mortgage lenders that take very good care of our clients concerns. Because of that it isn't our job to research their industry, we focus on being better real estate agents, they focus on being better loan reps. The young inexperienced agents aren't in real estate for the same reasons some of us older veterans are. They often think they know it all, yet rarely show true skill. Regarding part 2 of your question; I can only take responsibility for my own answers and feel a bit ashamed that the real estate industry has eroded knowledge wise enough for your observation to have merit. It is shameful that people deemed experts by virtue of licensure can be so poorly educated in a business in the beginning of their career. I think given the variables we as agents have to work with, that most of us do a better job in our field, than most mortgage lenders do in theirs. Let me ask you this, if lenders are so much more effecient than real estate agents, why are foreclosures so rampant? We got them what they wanted. The deal we got them isn't in default. I don't give 2 cents worth of care about who thinks what answer is best. Sometimes the harsh reality is never what the reader wants to see but they eventually learn the hard way that it was that answer that best fit.
2007-02-18 22:31:15 · answer #4 · answered by Myron 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's probably because mortgage people work daily with all kinds of real estate issues as well as the mortgage end of the business. Real Estate Agents have some dealings with the mortgage part of the loan but not as much. They aren't aware of all of the different mortgage programs and new loan products out there, because they don't have to deal that much with the mortgage part of the transaction.
2007-02-15 23:40:02 · answer #5 · answered by kelly h 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
It is a synergy. You can liken real estate agents to used car salesmen and the mortgage people as the loan sharks. The loan sharks have the power and the education while all the used car salesmen have is their crooked patter.
Hope this helps
2007-02-16 00:09:15 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋
Easy, we do all the paper work, agents get paid alot of money for doing very little. I see it every day.
2007-02-15 23:36:48 · answer #7 · answered by Dwayne S 2 · 0⤊ 4⤋