I don’t want to work with a Realtor

Why the Consumer does not trust Realtors

I write about For Sale By Owners to hopefully assist them in the process of selling their homes.   I do it for free, giving advice to assist them in the process.   I figure that by doing so I will provide information that will prove my abilities, and when they are ready, they will call me for assistance.

So it’s pretty common knowledge that some people rank Realtors right up there with car salesmen and lawyers.  Why I mention this?   I got an email recently from an angry For Sale By Owner that blames me for all the ills of the real estate market and the current mortgage crisis.

Realtors are one reason for this countries mortgage meltdown. They pump up the values of homes, they put unqualified buyers in homes that they can’t afford, and they have more bullxxxx than car dealers. They take there cut at closing and run. Any problems talk to the lawyers. It’s not the realtor’s problem.

Wow!   My profession responsible for this Country’s mortgage meltdown!  Go figure?   At the time, I just replied “Good luck with the sale of your home.”  This person has no idea what it is that we do when we work with Buyers to purchase their homes.  Nor do they understand what it takes to properly sell a home in today’s Real Estate market.

Read Also: Market Conditions Vary. Good Advice Doesn’t.

Consumer Misinformation

As I read the message I realized that there is a lot of misinformation regarding Realtors out there.   Let me address some of the statements in this FSBO’s email message:

Pump up values

• We do not choose the values of homes, we report what has happened in the market, the buyers, banks and appraisers determine if it is an acceptable value
• I tell many of my potential sellers the value of their home and they are angry with me, because it doesn’t match the number they want, in fact it is far less
• If we question the value of a home – we have it appraised

As of today there are 11 homes that I turned down to list with unrealistic selling prices, and another dozen that didn’t ask me to list their homes.   Trust me if I think that I could get you the price you desire, I would.

Put unqualified buyers in homes they can’t afford

• Apparently this Consumer  never heard of pre-qualification or read any of the articles I have written to buyers regarding qualifying for a mortgage

  • Why you should pre-qualify for a mortgage before you start your WNY home search!

  • How to Select a Mortgage Professional in Western New York

  • Documents to gather before meeting with your Mortgage Professional.

The team here at Turning Key Realty, has each buyer qualified with a Mortgage Professional, either one of our Mortgage Brokers or one that the buyer selects.   We do not show a home to a buyer unless they are qualified.   I can’t work that way.

They take their cut at closing and run

Well that is interesting, many agents keep in touch with people they sell a home so they can have repeat business.  What we do is provide a valuable service, and when we complete our service it is customary to be paid.

We do not cut and run, many times we are the first person that is called when there is a problem.   Unfortunately NY State laws limit what we can do and many times we must defer to an attorney.

For more information call Colleen Kulikowski

(716) 650-0051

Thinking of selling your Western New York home? Interested in finding out the current market value of your single family home, condo or investment property? Then call www.BestBuffaloHomes.com at (716) 650-0051 to discuss what is happening in today’s Western New York Real Estate Market. We would be happy to give you a personalized Comparative Market Analysis for your home or assist you to purchase a home. View additional WNY Market Area Statistics here.

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