Two of out of state Agents one upset.

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Greg Scott

Great advice I took the new real estate agents advice to lie and it backfired , it was t my first choice but I’ll learn and own it thank you

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Benjamin Orozco

WASN’T*

Theresa HarrisPro Member

Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes

@Benjamin Orozco I'm with Greg. If you want to build a professional relationship with someone, you need to be honest. The fact that your PM pushed their realtor on you and that new realtor told you to lie, is not a realtor who is professional or someone that I would want to work with. Even if the first realtor didn't work with investors, he obviously did a good job finding you your first place.

3 Reply

Michael Noto

Real Estate Agent · Southington, CT · Member since 2008 · 5k+ posts · 3k+ votes

@Benjamin Orozco You tried to take what you thought was the path of least resistance and avoiding a tough conversation by lying to him and he called you out.

Lesson learned, just be straight up from the jump and agents may not like it initially but we all understand that is the nature of the business.

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Theresa Harris

I definitely learned a lot from this experience. Honesty was my first choice but I followed the new agents advice. I like to be straightforward and a stand up guy and I am but I thought getting mentored from someone in that scenario was wise but I can see i messed up! I’ll learn to pre screen agents before wasting there time.

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Michael Noto

Yeah I went the easy route and avoided confrontation. I’m glad to hear from everyone here and there thoughts this will help me grow ! Thank you

Brett B.

Rental Property Investor · n/a · Member since 2019 · 143 posts · 117 votes

Sometimes being a "people pleaser" and landlord are not synonymous. So as you stated, take it as a lesson learned, but there are going to be much tougher choices ahead where you will need to be direct. Firm but fair. I would also be skeptical of any agent that blatantly told you to lie and a PM that supported this behavior. Hope that isn't their usual course of action.

Mike CumbieBusiness Member

REALTOR® · Brockport, NY · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes

HI @Benjamin Orozco,

Sorry to hear of your issue. I will say though that if I am talking to someone I ask if "they currently have an agent". If the answer is "Yes", they are simply hands off. I don't get into conversations and I especially don't try and take them from the other agent. Recommending ways to get out of an exclusive when they are going to become your client is shady in my opinion.

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Brett Baginski

Yeah I will learn from this for sure! Thank you for your input

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Mike Cumbie

Yes there’s a lot going on but in the I’m owning all of it and have to be more direct without sacrificing relationships thank you

Jay HinrichsBusiness Member

Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes

Podcast Guest on Show #222

Originally posted by @Mike Cumbie:

HI @Benjamin Orozco,

Sorry to hear of your issue. I will say though that if I am talking to someone I ask if "they currently have an agent". If the answer is "Yes", they are simply hands off. I don't get into conversations and I especially don't try and take them from the other agent. Recommending ways to get out of an exclusive when they are going to become your client is shady in my opinion.

this is the professional way to handle it.. its rule 101 for brokers.. and agents first thing out of your mouth is are you working with an agent if the answer is yes then you tell them have your agent contact me .. the other PM and agent are in the wrong here.. they should have told you since your already represented have your agent call us and we will be happy to work with them.. not cut your agent out.. If at that point you think you need to sever the relationship with existing agent you do so straight up..

this is very common any agent sitting on a open house the first words out of their mouth when someone walks in is are you represented currently.. I know being a new home buidler/seller we would get black balled in a minute if we tried to steal clients from our fellow agents.

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Ben Haab

Member since 2017 · 36 posts · 24 votes

So you trust your 'new' agent though he told you to lie to another agent so you can get out of a contract easier. Might want to evaluate who you work with.

2 Reply

Randall Weatherall

Real Estate Agent · Memphis, TN · Member since 2019 · 261 posts · 253 votes

Honesty is the best policy (go figure, it's only something that we've all heard since we were in third grade or younger lol. That said, I think you risked burning a bridge you may have to cross soon because the PM agent sounds shady in this case and may not be the right fit for you, though I'm hoping that I'm wrong there because I don't want any investor to have a negative experience with their Agent. You had a good thing going with this first one and didn't stick to your guns with the management company, but it sounds like lesson learned and the first Agent shouldn't really be too broken up over it; it's a fact of life for us.

Kristin Kiddy

Real Estate Agent · Ormond Beach, FL · Member since 2017 · 216 posts · 158 votes

If the first agent you were working with was a good agent, just not at the level you wanted, you could have asked the second agent to accept a referral from the first agent. It is usually a percentage of the selling (second) agent's commission on anything he sells to you. It's done all the time. For example I can do a referral to my broker if I have a big ticket commercial client and I don't have enough experience to go through a multi-million commercial sale. Or if I have a client who wants to look in the county next to mine as well, I would do a referral to an agent who knows that area better (it may also be a different realtor association and mls that I don't have easy access to). I will still get a percentage of the commission for finding the buyer, but I know my client will be in good hands (and I will be following up to make sure they are satisfied).

Russell BrazilBusiness Member

Moderator

Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes

[email protected]301-893-4635 Podcast Guest on Show #192

You lied....and yet you are choosing to work with someone who recommends you lie. Your new agent also broke the law, tortuous interference, and the NAR code of ethics. Sounds like a great choice in an agent you made.

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Tony Kim

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles · Member since 2018 · 844 posts · 1k+ votes

Originally posted by @Benjamin Orozco:

I need a bit of advice here.

I researched a out of state agent in Kansas Topeka where I'm looking to BRRRR. He was a decent agent I was in contact with him for about 2 months. I found

My core 4. Real estate agent, Property Manager, lender, and contractor. Everything was looking to be working out fine. But the property manager is an elite PM and he works alongside a rock star agent, My PM recommend I work with his agent because they work investors so my decision was to stop working with the initial real estate agent I was in contact with since he didn’t really work with investors and didn’t have the same level of experience. Well I told my agent to cancel my buyer agency agreement because I wasn’t interested in investing in Kansas anymore but was very unwilling to do that. He finally did but it was filled out wrong and I asked for him to re send it and he called me out and told me he’s not an idiot he knows I found another agent and to not lie to him. I then told him the truth and that I felt bad wasting his time but that he is a solid agent but just isn’t what I’m looking for. The new agent I have sells the majority of homes to investors so it only made sense to make the change. Should I feel bad for the agent I fired? What could of I done differently. I’m a natural people pleaser but I also do have boundaries. I just want to learn from this so I in the future I can decide if it’s wise to juggle multiple agents at once or maybe create a different system to choose one:

I don't mean to pile on, but I can pretty much guarantee you that you are not getting a rock-star agent.

A rock star agent would be so busy with all the referrals and existing clients that the last thing he/she would need to do would be to encourage lying and also engage in unethical behavior to obtain an out of state client.

Rest assured, when a tough situation arises, this agent will lie to you as well. I'd also take a second look at your PM's integrity as well.

3 Reply

Sabrina Sanchez

Real Estate Agent · Worcester Ma · Member since 2019 · 118 posts · 117 votes

@Benjamin Orozco

Hi Benjamin,

In any business related situation I think it's important to remember to act professionally and with consideration. So although he was upset that should not have been communicated the way it did. On the other hand I think you should have let him know the truth from the beginning. I wouldn't want to feel like a client of mine is taking me as a fool. It's okay to move on, it happens and you should be with the right agent for your needs but overall consideration should be taken on both ends.

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Ben Haab

Thank you yes indeed

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Kristin Kiddy

That’s very informative thank you the lesson

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Tony Kim

Yes a very good look at how things really are thank you for this lesson

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Randall Weatherall

I tried to do things right but learned a painful lesson! Thank you for your time

OP

Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 64 posts · 29 votes

@Sabrina Sanchez

for a new investor like myself this was a great lesson for me thank you for your time to write and teach me.

Sabrina Sanchez

Real Estate Agent · Worcester Ma · Member since 2019 · 118 posts · 117 votes

@Benjamin Orozco

Awesome! I'm learning something new every day! Best of luck!

Sylvia B.

Rental Property Investor · Douglas County, MO · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes

Be prepared. Your new "rock star" agent is going to lie to you. Your PM is probably going to lie to you. It sounds to me like your "core 4" is on shaky ground.