I got a phone call the other day from a highly incensed real estate agent. She was just spitting mad because she had spent $1000 on marketing costs and she just found out that my blog was showing her Westmoreland Hills home for sale at the top of page one. She was "offended" that I would have her listing on my IDX site and not have her name plastered all over it.
For the record, our MLS rules require that the brokerage name only be listed on any IDX site but not the listing agent. MRIS never brands the tours or emails we send out with the listing agent name, so that contact information is for the agent working with the client only. My very powerful IDX site is completely in compliance. Some of the national sites that do not get their listings feeds via the MLS may provide a listing agent's name.... in six point font at the very bottom of the page. There does not not seem to be a great deal of consistency.
She proceeded to tell me how she's done this for a very long time and has worked with so and so. She planned to send out a memo to the company to tell them that agents would market other people's listings and try to get business off of them. Seriously? What rock has she been under?
This "old hand" is on her first listing and her second transaction. Clearly she wasn't quite so truthful to me and that means her sellers likely got a load of bull also. Poor folks.
She thought that I would be mad also "if I ever spent $1000 on a listing." Again, seriously? My job is to expose my seller's listing to the widest pool of buyers there is. That includes agents with buyers in the market, buyers searching the Internet, neighbors who might know someone who wants to move in, etc. The entire concept of the MLS is to cooperate and bring in buyers! I would shout thank you from the highest points if my marketing brought in buyers from anywhere. That would be $1000 well spent. Any other result is a waste of money.
Two reasons why an agent would be so mad:
1) She wants to sell the listing herself and make more money. By limiting the address on the Internet and believing that if she controls where this gets distributed then no buyers will come with agents and she can get more commission. Never mind that it is in her seller's best interest to sell this home with the widest distribution of buyers possible.
2) She has an overpriced listing and she wants to get all the buyer calls so she gets business out of the listing she knows won't sell at the inflated price.
Neither of the scenarios is in the best interests of the seller and only the agent will benefit. Perhaps that's why she was so mad?
Sellers have to take a bigger role in the sale of their homes. Understand what is at stake and make sure you've hired the person who is the most competent to sell your home. Ask more questions!
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