I am a buyer and would like to switch my agent on a property purchase?

Question

I was in the process of buying a property and our offer expired. I was not very happy with my agent's performance on this offer due to numerous reasons. I never signed a contract with the agent and I am thinking of using another agent to put another offer on the same property. When our intial offer expired, I did not hear from my agent and I think he got the hint that I would not use him again. Any advice out there?

Also, the new agent that I would like to use is not from the same company

An example would be how I contacted the my agent numerous times via email and left messages. I was a bit upset as he forwarded me an email from the seller's agent asking for a counter. He did not email me about the counter untill 2 days after the seller's agent had contacted him with the same email.

As for how the offer expired, in the inital offer, I gave the seller 1 week to respond and they wanted the MLS listing price and I told them no way. The offer expired and that is the end of it.

This property is located in CA.

So even if the agent has done a horrible job in dealing with the seller's agent and myself, there is no way around it? I have not had contact with the agent in over 3 weeks and we still like the property but I do not want to deal with the agent anymore. Also when we were first shown the property, she was representing the seller and it should have been our first clue when he changed to another agent when it was listed on MLS.

Answer 1

In any event, the fact that one agent has already "shown" you the property, will still entitle that agent half the agent commissions.
It can't be hidden. Just the "offer" on MLS will reveal that you are the same buyer.
A new agent should and may ask if you have worked with any other agent, different broker makes no difference.
S/He will be pissed if you lie, because it will affect his/her commission.

If the commission is your concern, use a second party to buy it, then after closing, turn it over to you.

Answer 2

You are asking for trouble by switching. The agent in question has already written an offer on the property involved with you. Thusly, that agent has a claim to a portion of the commission involved, as does the listing agent. If you bring a THIRD agent into the mix, there may well be a 'triple split' involved, and you might be the one who pays for that third agent.

As an example, if the listing commission is 6%, the listing agent and your current agent would split that amount according to agreement. Bring another one in there, and they will ALSO demand a certain split. You're not going to see two agents split what they are entitled to with a third.

Someone will pay the extra percentage involved, and in a situation as you describe, it would most probably be YOU.

Mary is dead wrong on her stance. She apparently does not know the legalities of real estate brokerage splits and rules governing same.

Answer 3

I have been a Realtor for years but this situation still perplexes me. This falls under "Agency Law" and is best sorted out by the agents involved and the state real estate commission and local board of Realtors as far as who receives the commission. Still, as the client you remain the BOSS and have the right to choose another Realtor to represent your interests in the purchase process if in fact the original contract is a dead deal. But if your deal is simply in the process of closing when your original contract expired you will be elongating your time to close because your new Realtor will have to physically show you the property, write a new contract to be approved by the seller and the mortgage underwriter. The seller may not be very happy with this and try to claim he/she is due your good faith deposit as a result. If you are simply days away from closing, and just feel you were poorly serviced by your Realtor, it might be best to bite your tongue until after the closing and warn others away from him/her in the future.

Answer 4

I would say on the surface you may be able to find another agent to help you but be very careful.

First, you need to realize that the broker/agent may not see it as you do and in this country any one can sue anyone for anything. That being said, it is unlikely that the broker will do anything.

It isn't clear when you say your offer expired. There really isn't such a thing. However, if you have called your agent and they have not called you back that can be considered "abandonment" and would void any claims the agent/broker may have. the problem you may have is proving it. you would have to be able to document in some way that the agent did in fact abandon you.

now, all of that being said, if your sole objective is to get the house instead of switching compnaines why not call the broker (owner) or manager of the compnay and explain your problem. most of the time they will understand your concerns and let you work with another agent who would be more receptive to working with you.

good luck

Answer 5

Don't know what state you are in but the first agent will most likely be entitled to a portion (negotiable with the new agent) of the commission based on being the "procuring cause". He started you on the purchase of that particular home, so he is entitled to a commission even without a buyers representation agreement

Answer 6

You did not say which state you are in.

In CA the buying agent will be entitled to their commission even if you hire another agent. Your new agent would be an additional agent and you would need to pay them any commission owed. The commission from the seller will go to the original agent you were working with. They brought the deal in and are entitled to their full commission here.

Answer 7

If you are now willing to give them the MLS price, why not just go back with your old agent? Seems you won't be buying the house anyhow if you get a new agent..... Do check out agency law though in your state. In Texas, if you get a new Realtor, and sign a buyers agency agreement with him. The first Realtor will get paid by the seller and your new Realtor will get paid by YOU.

Answer 8

doesn't not matter, the first agent procured the deal in a sense of bring both parties together, in material that your offer was not accepted,

you can go to another agent to make an another offer but you should explain the situation to the other agent, then if they say no big deal, it would not be your issue, if after disclosure the first agent moved for part of the sales commission of the second agent

Answer 9

In my state you would difficulty having another broker to work with you, because the new broker under the law would not get paid. What I would do is contact the listing broker, explain the situation to him (or her), and try working through him. The old broker will get paid of course. Remember that both brokers are working for the seller. They are not on your side. They are probably not on the seller's side either. They will do anything to put a deal together. That is how they get paid. You could hire your own broker to work for you, but this would cost you money. You could deal with them through an attorney who will work on an hourly basis. He will truly work in your interest. I did that once and found out at the closing that the attorney did not know anything other what he learned in law school about real estate.

Answer 10

I hate to say it, in your case, because your agent didn't get you to SIGN a buyer's agency agreement, then you can get another Realtor and there isn't anything the former one can do.

Verbal buyer agency agreements must changed to written contracts, no later, than at the time of the purchase contract signing.

That was a very foolish Realtor. Had you signed a buyer's agency agreement, even if the sales contract had expired, you would still owe a commission on anything they showed you for the duration of the buyer's agency agreement.