Are You Really a REALTOR®?

Toward the end of last year the Honolulu Board of REALTORS® brought in electronic lock boxes. The Sentrilock® boxes have brought in a much needed improvement over the old mechanical boxes. We can now monitor who and when they enter our listings. It also allows us to create dedicated 1-day codes for venders and agents who have not set up their smart card. I could go on for another paragraph touting the merits of the program.

What is quite disturbing is the number of real estate agents who have not activated their smart cards and those who are not using the boxes on their listings.

Sunday evening I was out at dinner and received calls from three different agents wanting to show my listings in the morning. I had nearly identical conversations with all three of them.

Call From Agent 1:

• Me: No problem it has an electronic lock box on the front door, consider it confirmed. Please drop a business card on the counter to confirm you were there.
• Agent 1: I do not have a smart card. Can I get a 1-day code?
• Me: You do not have a smart card? The Board of REALTORS® issued them to all agents. Are you really a REALTOR®?
• Agent 1: Yes I am a REALTOR®. I have decided not to use them.
• Me: How are you doing business without the card? It also serves as your ID. I apologize, but I am not near a computer and will not be able to generate a 1-day code at this time. If you send me an e-mail, I can forward the codes later tonight or first thing in the morning.

The story gets better. Of the three agents who called, two of them did not have e-mail. I than suggested they call my office in the morning for help.

Three real estate agents, none using electronic lock boxes. Two of the three do not have access to e-mail. Can you imagine being on the other side of a transaction with one of them?

1. No e-mail. Phone and hard to read faxes. (oops I am assuming they have a fax)
   1. One of the beauties of e-mail is the paper trail it creates. If I am dealing with a less than professional agent on the other side, I really would prefer hard copies of all communications in my file.
2. With no Sentrilock® card we will need to generate 1-day codes for all accesses of the home.

If these agents do not even have the basics, we would be looking at a messy transaction.

Buyers and sellers should check out potential agents to find out what level of services they provide. Not all agents are the same.