It is not the agent's responsibility to know what repairs are needed! Really?

Real Estate Agent
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It is not the agent's responsibility to know what repairs are needed! Really?

Joshua D.Pro Member
BiggerPockets Founder · HI · Member since 2008 · 16k+ posts · 5k+ votes

I saw a post on Twitter that I had to respond to . . . of course, the response and initial post are priceless, IMO.

First Tweet:

My Response:

Her response:

Am I in the wrong here? Or, is it the responsibility of a listing agent to know these things?

I look forward to your feedback here, and if you feel like responding on Twitter, I've supplied links to the 3 tweets above.

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Jon Holdman
Rental Property Investor · Mercer Island, WA · Member since 2008 · 22k+ posts · 14k+ votes
15y

IMHO agents are salespeople selling houses. They're not contractors nor inspectors. They might be able to point out obvious problems and might give ballpark figures as to costs, but that's not their responsibility.

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  • Mitch Kronowit
    SFR Investor · Orange County, CA · Member since 2009 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    15y
    Originally posted by James Hiddle:
    I wouldn't trust an agent with any type of repair estimate whether it's in depth or simple.

    Absolutely. I want the agent to just tell me what's wrong, not how much they think it will cost to fix or how it needs to be repaired.

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  • Ed Beck
    Involved In Real Estate · Boonton, NJ · Member since 2008 · 39 posts · 15 votes
    15y
    Originally posted by Mitch Kronowit:
    Originally posted by James Hiddle:
    I wouldn't trust an agent with any type of repair estimate whether it's in depth or simple.

    Absolutely. I want the agent to just tell me what's wrong, not how much they think it will cost to fix or how it needs to be repaired.

    And I wouldn't trust my electrician to fix my car...Why would you even say this? An agent is not a contractor and it is the buyer's responsibility to do his/her due diligence and inspections within the time allotted on the contract. The agent should have an 'idea' of the condition of the property, yes...Roof can visibly look like it's at the end of it's life. A split in the copper from freeze damage may be visible. Cosmetics are visible. The furnace or appliances may be MISSING. I am an agent and I can estimate these things. Loosely. I guess I am not the lazy, inexperienced realtor that this thread has seeminginly targeted. I actually do my best to inform the investors I work with so that they will buy more REO's from me. Sorry everyone has such a negative opinion about 'us'. It's really a shame that so many people used the term lazy to describe agents. There's a lot more involved on our end than just taking your phone calls, so before you call a general profession lazy, find someone who actually cares about what they do and you will make money together.

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  • Account Closed
    Tucson, AZ · Member since 2008 · 945 posts · 45 votes
    15y

    One of my first posts years ago had to do with this very thing: WHAT is the job of a real estate agent?
    I was working with an agent who helped me get my first house about 15 years ago. When I needed an agent, I went back to her. She showed me many houses. But as soon as we were out of the car, she started talking of her family, (opens the door) talking about her ex husband, (walking around) talking about the grandaughter, daughter, car, her hoa, whatever--everything except the building we were in, no matter how good or bad. As she locked up, she was still talking about her life. This woman was (is) a very successful agent, has been working here for over 20 years in residential and some commercial, has a brokers license, did some residential investing, worked as a general contractor for several years, then back into residential RE agent.
    One day she showed me a house filled with stuff. I saw it several times, and planned to make an offer on it. The former owners finally got all their stuff out of the living room and we saw the large "dish" in the floor that took up about half the room. The concrete floor had sunk by almost 5", from the center to the deepest part at the corner of the north and east wwalls. Further inspection showed no damage to the next room OR the footings outside. She said just fill it with concrete, it'll be fine.
    A foundations man that knew the area told me about it, and said it might cost about 3K, but more likely, 25 or more.

    I posted here in frustration because she would NOT say anything about any house, and her talking distracted me from seeing and understanding, even asking questions. It was difficult to get a word in edgewise. I wanted to know WHAT an agent's job was.

    The response at the time was that the agent was there ONLY to provide access to the house, ie, unlock the door for me, and lock up after.
    Nothing more.

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  • Joshua D.Pro Member
    OP
    BiggerPockets Founder · HI · Member since 2008 · 16k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    15y

    Ed - I'm not sure that everyone is calling all agents lazy, but it sounds like people in general sense a CYA mentality. As a former agent, I have a lot of respect for the agents who work hard and go out of the way to serve their clients. On the other hand, those that are lazy and do very little to collect a large commission check do a serious disservice to the industry.

    Most investors recognize the importance of a good agent. I just wish that most agents recognized the importance of service.....

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  • Joel OwensBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Broker · Canton, GA · Member since 2010 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
    15y

    In any industry there are those that believe being mediocre is a way of life.

    Sadly they also believe they should get excellent compensation for their mediocrity.So I wouldn't regulate these types to just one industry.

    For the stolen mechanicals issue what happens is the listing broker lists the property and makes periodic inspections.In between going under contract a perfectly normal property could have the outside unit stolen and the inside trashed.

    You have to answer was the property broken into because nobody was watching it or is the are not as great as I think it is.For the most part vacant houses even in nice area get some vandalism.Once someone occupies that is usually not the case.

    A bad area however will just keep getting things stolen over and over again.

    Peter is that the property I said you need to check about the flood zone??I remember J Scott was going to help you with it some.

    Certain parts of Cobb county are good and others are bad.When the condition of a property can change daily depending on where it is located it is hard for an REO broker to tell you exactly what is happening with it.

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