Matt Patty

I read a lot of articles on AR about the importance of a buyer having their own "good" representation. Here's a true story that I feel illustrates this point.

One of my spinning plates is floor time at the office. I work for a big brokerage, we have over 200 listings in the office and yes the phone actually rings here. About 3 months ago I took a call from an investor and right off the bat we hit it off. He's a very smart man but also very salt of the earth, so we get along well. I met him the next day to show him a listing and after a little consideration he passed on it. But he did tell me, "Matt, I like you and if you're willing to work with me, then I'd like to work with you." And so it began. The next day we had a conversation about what he really wanted which was an REO property that he'd put a bid on a few months prior but hadn't gotten it. He figured somebody else had purchased it. I looked it up on MLS and saw that the property was withdrawn (no right to relist for the listing agent) So I began inquiring as to the ownership status and found out Fannie Mae owned it. I then proceeded to get after Fannie Mae with a series of phone calls and emails, basically telling them "Hey listen, I have a cash buyer for this one..."

So here's the sad turn. Fannie Mae decides to re-list the property. They call the former listing agent, who's a very well known REO agent, and tell him that his customer (who is also my customer) had the highest bid on this property and that they are getting ready to put the property back on the market with a different agency. So this well known, REO agent calls my customer and tells him, "Hey listen I can get you XYZ street, after all..." He then meets the customer at the site, implying that he is still the listing agent and thusly has procuring cause for the sale and that he can get it done, wrap it up quickly etc. etc. My customer calls me and says "Matt, I apologize but here's whats happening... He then promises me that when he gets the property repaired that I have great listing in my future." I tell him that I understand, that I don't want to get in the way of his deal and that the listing agent has procuring cause in this situation, so I don't want to mess up his chances at getting what he wants just so I can try to make a paycheck.

Well here's the truth. The well know REO agent, was not the listing agent. He took the offer and deposit, but the property was listed with another agent. So Mr. Well Known REO agent hoodwinked the buyer into working with him, knowing the buyer would never have voluntarily done so.

Here's the collateral. Turns out there were some title issues with the property. It was supposed to close at the end of June and here we are in August with no closing date yet. The well known REO agent who hoodwinked my buyer has dissappeared from the scene, washed his hands of it. The listing agent doesn't want to deal with the buyer, because he doesn't have any fiduciary relationship to him. So the buyer is stuck going after Fannie Mae to get this property closed with no help, assistance, support from anyone. He and I touch base every few weeks, he's a great guy and I'm really looking forward to getting started working with him, but if I were his buyer agent on this deal, he wouldn't be alone on an Island right now.

So to all the buyers out there, here's the moral. Get yourself a good agent. Someone who you trust to see you through to your closing and beyond. Don't fool yourself into thinking you're going to get a better deal by going straight to the listing agent or that you don't need any assistance in purchasing a property. Even if you don't NEED help, why not take it? There are agents out there who take buyer representation seriously, get training to be better buyer reps and who care about you as a client. Don't get stuck in a situation where no one cares about you or your interests in a deal, like my friend and customer has found himself in this situation. Good Luck

This is my mantra in tough real estate deals. Bottom line is that most deals aren't going to be easy. You will have to overcome at least one hurdle and at the end of the day even though it can be a stressful process, closing day is worth it, not just for the clients but you the agent as well. The satisfaction I get from getting clients what they want is the second greatest joy for me (behind family life). With that said, getting them there isn't always easy and hey, thats what they hired me for right? If it was always smooth sailing to buy a home then people wouldn't NEED Realtors to do it. For sale by owner would be the way to go (which it isn't since 80+ percent of FISBOS eventually list with a realtor) and we'd all be out of a job. So for those of you with a tough deal or two going right now, hang in there, keep being solutions oriented and don't throw in the towel until the fight is over. Keep working to get your clients what they want and at the very least, if you don't succeed this time, you'll know that you gave it your best shot and did every thing you could to make the deal work. With this mindset, you'll be closing more often than not and your clients will thank you for getting them to the finish line. Good luck!!!

This is pretty humble, basic advice but he or she in haste will waste. Here's what I mean by this. Lets say you have four deals going on in the same week. You're signing a P@S with one client and the next one is blowing up your phone. You have an appointment to show a listing in 45 minutes and you just don't know how you're going to satisfy everybody... Sound familiar? Its a good thing. Now back to the original client, you rush because you're in a hurry and what do you know, you forget to get your clients signature on the lead disclosure (or something to that effect). You turn the contract in and sure enough, you get an email from your administrator, "hey dodo, you forget to get your client to sign the lead..." So whats the collateral... You were way too busy before and now you have to set another appointment to re-sign the bottom corner of a form... Talk about wasting the precious little time you DON"T have to waste in the first place... So here's the moral, and I'm writing this one for my own personal therapy as well as hoping to help my fellow rainmakers, SLOW DOWN... ... Take a breath, take your time and make sure you get it right the first time so you don't have to go back and redo it.

Check out the link below for a great article on home ownership. The housing market will recover and a vast majority of people want to be part of that recovery!

http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20110706_value.htm#.ThRS0PHBFMg.facebook

Like most realtors, I do cold calling. I contact expired listings, call around my listings, I follow up with contacts I make in my day to day life, I chase leads and I look to make more contacts in the process. Very rarely have I ever gotten any flack from a member of the general public regarding my persistance in these matters. But if you ever do encounter a resistant homeowner or home buyer just ask them this question... "Would you hire a realtor who DIDN'T follow up on every lead, or who DOESN'T go the extra mile to sell homes?"

The process of accumulating clients is very similar to process of satisfying their needs, whether they are buying or selling. Its follow up, persistance, research and sharing of information that gets clients where they need to be in order to sign on the dotted line. If a customer wants to hire a lazy realtor then they can hire the one who doesn't do any of the above. They won't ever feel pressured, they won't have to deal with multiple offers if they're selling and if they're buying, they won't ever wind up having to cut that pesky deposit check, pay for a home inspection or an appraisal either. Basically, the hiring of that lazy realtor will just be an exercise in futility but it won't cost you that much. Just a little time and a lot of opportunity.

Anyway, back to the main point. Its very easy to make someone see why your cold call is actually proof that you're good at what you're doing. This is an effort and repetition business. The more you are repeating a concerted effort to market yourself and your listings, the more you'll sell. And at the end of the day, your clients will be thanking you for your persistance.