Housing News
Ethics and the lender’s preferred short sale listing agent
Realtors that take on short sale listings may have found some listings assigned by lenders to already be listed by another agent! What to do?
Short Sale Lender Listing Assignments
There’s a conversation going on right now in one of those social media groups, and it’s pretty interesting. You see, in certain parts of the United States, short sale lenders have a list of “preferred” short sale listing agents. The topic of the conversation is what to do when you as a Realtor are assigned a listing (because you are a “preferred” agent), yet the property is already on the MLS and listed by another Realtor®.
Do you….
- Contact the other Realtor®, explain the situation, and negotiate to take over the listing (perhaps paying a referral fee)?
- Tell the short sale lender that the property is already listed with another Realtor® and that you cannot intercede?
- Contact the seller and conspire to fire the current listing agent?
While this is certainly not the topic of a game show and the correct custom and practice may seem fairly obvious, it brings up an important point about short sales, fiduciaries, and fiduciary duties. I’m not an attorney and I don’t pretend to be one, but I am aware that a short sale transaction involves a seller (represented by an agent), a buyer (also represented by an agent), and a short sale lender (who ratifies the terms and conditions of the contract).
Parties to the Short Sale Transaction
Why is it that a short sale lender (not technically a party to the real estate transaction) can dictate how the parties behave and whom they can hire?
Short sales can be challenging for this very reason. Since the short sale transaction is a form of debt settlement, often both parties (the buyer and the seller) feel that they are at the mercy of the short sale lender if they want to get this short sale closed. Sometimes lenders say that they are looking for certain terms and conditions (for example, they won’t pay for termite work or back HOA dues). Because the buyer and seller are so desperate to get the transaction closed, they agree to the terms and conditions suggested by the lender.
The key is that the short sale lender does not own the property. The seller, whose name is on the title, owns the property and can make all decisions about who is hired as the listing agent in the transaction. The lender does not own the property, and cannot and should not make decisions on behalf of the short sale seller.
The Irony of the “Preferred” List
The truth is, however, that short sale listings are not for the inexperienced and faint of heart. And, once in a blue moon, a listing agent may bite off more than he or she can chew and take a listing out of his or her area of expertise. Even though the lender may make a better recommendation, the seller still has the right to make that ultimate decision as to the listing agent.
One alternative would be for the short sale lender, when contacted by prospective short sale sellers, to provide an online list of preferred agents—agents with the proven experience necessary to get the job done. And, therein lies the final rub; some agents on those “preferred” lists are there because they are “in the know” and not necessarily because they “know” short sales.
With respect to preferred short sale listing agents, you may be damned if you do, and damned if you don’t. Overall, this is a tricky topic with a lot of varying details. But, no matter what, never steal another agent’s listing out from under them. It’ll come back to haunt you some day—for sure!
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Housing News
Average age of houses on the rise, so is it now better or worse to buy new?
With aging housing in America, are first-time buyers better off buying new or existing homes? The average age of a home is rising, as is the price of new housing, so a shift could be upon us.
The average home age is higher than ever
(REALUOSO.COM) – In a survey from the Department of Housing and Urban Development American Housing Survey (AHS), the median age of homes in the United States was 35 years old. In Texas, homes are a bit younger with the median age between 19 – 29 years. The northeast has the oldest homes, with the median age between 50 – 61 years. In 1985, the median age of a home was only 23 years.
With more houses around 40 years old, the National Association of Realtors asserts that homeowners will have to undertake remodeling and renovation projects before selling unless the home is sold as-is, in which case the buyer will be responsible to update their new residence. Even homeowners who aren’t selling will need to consider remodeling for structural and aesthetic reasons.
Prices of new homes on the rise
Newer homes cost more than they used to. The price differential between new homes and older homes has increased from 10 percent traditionally to around 37 percent in 2014. This is due to rising construction costs, scarcity of lots, and a low inventory of new homes that doesn’t meet the demand.
Click here to continue reading this story…
Housing News
Are Realtors the real loser in the fight between Zillow Group and Move, Inc.?
The last year has been one of dramatic and rapid change in the real estate tech sector, but Realtors are vulnerable, and we’re worried.
Why Realtors are vulnerable to these rapid changes
(REALUOSO.COM) – Corporate warfare demands headlines in every industry, but in the real estate tech sector, a storm has been brewing for years, which in the last year has come to a head. Zillow Group and Move, Inc. (which is owned by News Corp. and operates ListHub, Realtor.com, TopProducer, and other brands) have been competing for a decade now, and the race has appeared to be an aggressive yet polite boxing match. Last year, the gloves came off, and now, they’ve drawn swords and appear to want blood.
Note: We’ll let you decide which company plays which role in the image above.
So how then, does any of this make Realtors the victims of this sword fight? Let’s get everyone up to speed, and then we’ll discuss.
1. Zillow poaches top talent, Move/NAR sues
It all started last year when the gloves came off – Move’s Chief Strategy Officer (who was also Realtor.com’s President), Errol Samuelson jumped ship and joined Zillow on the same day he phoned in his resignation without notice. He left under questionable circumstances, which has led to a lengthy legal battle (wherein Move and NAR have sued Zillow and Samuelson over allegations of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and misappropriation of trade secrets), with the most recent motion being for contempt, which a judge granted to Move/NAR after the mysterious “Samuelson Memo” surfaced.
Salt was added to the wound when Move awarded Samuelson’s job to Move veteran, Curt Beardsley, who days after Samuelson left, also defected to Zillow. This too led to a lawsuit, with allegations including breach of contract, violation of corporations code, illegal dumping of stocks, and Move has sought restitution. These charges are extremely serious, but demanded slightly less attention than the ongoing lawsuit against Samuelson.
2. Two major media brands emerge
Last fall, the News Corp. acquisition of Move, Inc. was given the green light by the feds, and this month, Zillow finalized their acquisition of Trulia.
…Click here to continue reading this story…
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JoeLoomer
April 23, 2013 at 10:04 am
OUTSTANDING post, Melissa. On planet Joe, I’d tell the lender to go pound sand and not to call me before they do their due diligence on the property’s status as listed or not – a very, very simple thing to do in two minutes on a computer. Soliciting another agent’s listing or trying to parachute in on the commission is just despicable.
Navy Chief, Navy Pride
Aaron Dickinson
April 24, 2013 at 12:17 am
If an agent chooses option 3 they would most likely be found in violation of the Code of Ethics and potentially face issues with their state licensing regulator as well. Interference of a contract is a serious thing.
Some banks have been hurt by fraudulent short sales so I can see their interest in having someone “hand picked” to deal with the transaction. In a typical short sale, there is no one looking out for the bank’s interests yet they are the one taking the loss. If they choose not to work with a seller that doesn’t use their agent, that is certainly their choice. If they are going to make that demand however, they are the ones that need to communicate with the seller and the seller should contact the preferred agent, not the other way around.