Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Annoying real estate agent

Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
Collapse
 
  • Page of 2
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
Previous 1 2 template Next
  • #1

    Annoying real estate agent

    My building is up for sale.

    Fine.

    The real estate agent keeps showing the building.

    Fine.

    SHE KEEPS SHOWING THE APARTMENTS.

    Not fine.

    My shoulder still isn't healed. The current assumption is that it's excessive inflammation that just isn't going away. But this means the normal cleaning duties fall to The Husband... and while I love him, he's not detail-oriented. Vacuuming means run the vacuum around the visibly dirty spots. Cleaning the bathroom means spray cleaner on the parts he sees, wipe it off, and maybe give it a quick rinse. Laundry ... I end up doing it when I need clothes, and that's usually an emergency situation. Or I nag him about it, and we both feel miserable.

    So the apartment is a bit of a mess. It's not catastrophic, but it's not what I want it to be.

    The agent knows this. I've apologized for it, and frankly, I'm embarrassed to have anyone come in here and see it like this. I hate that I have people tromping through, judging my ability to keep my home clean. Even worse is that one of the cats has taken to peeing in a corner again, so I'm constantly cleaning up after her. Lord only knows what they think of that.

    So what do I get this morning, but a voicemail from her, telling me that they have an offer, and it's someone who hasn't seen the apartments, so she'll be bringing him through tomorrow afternoon, and by the way, they really want this to work, so could I please have the place looking its best?

    *insert record screeching*

    I'm sorry, but what, exactly, does the cleanliness of an apartment WITH A (temporarily) DISABLED PERSON have to do with a building sale? How is it MY responsibility for her to make her sale? Why does the buyer care if I have a pile of clothes in the corner, or a slightly grubby tub?

    The more I interact with this woman, the more I dislike her. She's artificially friendly, unwilling to work with us (she basically just informs us "I'll be there on X date at Y time!"), and has pissed off my favourite neighbours so badly that they're trying to get out of their lease. Let's see her make a sale with THAT little legality hanging over the building.

    Ugh. I want this DONE so I can move on. We can't afford to move for another several months, but I am SO ready to be in a place that won't be sold out from under us. There was no indication when we first rented that the building might be sold, even though apparently the landlord was considering the possibility. We were told that she wanted long-term tenants, for a stable building. Which would have been awesome. But no. Instead, boom. Sale.

    Now I'm just ranting. Enough. Now I'm off to load up on painkillers and try to whip the place into something resembling shape.
    Tags: None
  • #2
    I'd recommend reviewing your local laws. Especially since she's making a habit of this.

    Cos sometimes you might have plans already. Yes she has some rights, but so do you as the tenant.

    Comment

    • #3
      ....do I need to get my Whacking Bat?
      By popular request....I am now officially the Enemy of Normalcy.

      "What is unobtainium? To Seraph, it's a normal client. :P" -- Observant Friend

      Comment

      • #4
        The problem is that property laws in NY allow for showings of the apartment with 24 hour notice. And she has a master key (from the LL) that allows her access to the apartment even if we're not here.

        Last time she brought people in (luckily Husband and I were home), they left the door open.

        I have two cats. One of whom is VERY interested in what is On The Other Side Of The Door.

        I'm trying to figure out how to best tell her that a) I don't appreciate the passive-aggressive comments about the state of my home, and b) could she PLEASE not risk having one of my cats escape?

        Husband will be home tomorrow, so at least there's that. He's taken to just ignoring her completely.

        EDIT: Seraph, that might be advantageous. I'll let you know after tomorrow's debacle.

        Comment

        • #5
          I know this is probably risque (see what I did there??), and may get you in some hot water, but could you and your husband perhaps get "intimate" right before they show the apartment?? Or perhaps be in the throes of intimacy when the agent just barges in to show the place??

          But you'd have to ask yourself: Would that be a violation of your lease of some kind? Who would be more embarrassed, you & your husband, or the real-estate agent?
          Skilled programmers aren't cheap. Cheap programmers aren't skilled.

          Comment

          • #6
            Mjr, that's... tempting. Too bad I have to work tomorrow!

            Comment

            • #7
              Last time she brought people in (luckily Husband and I were home), they left the door open.
              That IS worth discussing with her. What if she does that when you're not home? She'd be liable for anything stolen or vandalized.

              also you may want to review this: http://www.ag.ny.gov/sites/default/f...ights_2011.pdf

              Yes they CAN show the apartment but they're not suppose to be abusive about it. Out of curiosity why does it always have to be YOUR apartment? Aren't there others she can show? If there's others then... perhaps she should start rotating the viewing, especially since your physical limitations DO make this a hardship on you. (always picking YOU when there's others to pick from... would that be considered abusive? I'm not sure, but it might not hurt to ask)

              It's under the "Right to Privacy" section - right above the "Disabilities" section.
              Last edited by PepperElf; 06-06-2013, 04:10 PM.

              Comment

              • #8
                Quoth PepperElf View Post
                That IS worth discussing with her. What if she does that when you're not home? She'd be liable for anything stolen or vandalized.

                *snip*

                Yes they CAN show the apartment but they're not suppose to be abusive about it. Out of curiosity why does it always have to be YOUR apartment? Aren't there others she can show? If there's others then... perhaps she should start rotating the viewing, especially since your physical limitations DO make this a hardship on you.
                *snip*.
                Regarding her leaving your door open, if she doesn't seem too worried about it, I'm thinking maybe you need to write to her company about the legalities and such ...

                I too was wondering why your apartment is being shown so much. How big is this building anyway? I once lived in a three-story apartment building and when it was up for sale, I think my apartment was part of the package tour once. Maybe. And I'm not even sure of that. (That was several years ago, LOL.)

                Hey, if you're going to be at work so you can't embarrass the viewers, maybe you and your husband could just leave a lot of *ahem* interesting attire (and toys ...) lying around ... in interesting parts of the apartment.

                Comment

                • #9
                  If there's an empty apartment, that should be the one being shown.

                  As for the condition of the other apartments; someone who is sufficiently interested to put money down on a proper building inspection can have an architect survey them. It's his job to find things like black mould and damaged structural members.

                  That would limit the number of times your apartment was inspected to the number of people who get to 'interested enough to invest money in a professional's opinion'. Probably only one or two. And they won't be interested in surface dirt. If paying a professional cleaner when you move out will fix it, it's of no interest to the architect!
                  Seshat's self-help guide:
                  1. Would you rather be right, or get the result you want?
                  2. If you're consistently getting results you don't want, change what you do.
                  3. Deal with the situation you have now, however it occurred.
                  4. Accept the consequences of your decisions.

                  "All I want is a pretty girl, a decent meal, and the right to shoot lightning at fools." - Anders, Dragon Age.

                  Comment

                  • #10
                    When my ex-husband and I were first married we lived in a duplex. Our landlord would show our apartment (while we were at work) without letting us know. We were not aware of this until we met new neighbors who commented on how nicely decorated our apartment was. When I asked when they saw it, she said that the landlord showed them ours and said it was because they showed better with furniture. He never had mentioned that he did this, and when we looked before renting our apartment he showed us the empty one. We told him that he was not welcome to bring strangers into our home without our permission and threatened to change the locks if it happened again.
                    "I guess they see another cash cow just waiting to be dry humped." - Irving Patrick Freleigh

                    Comment

                    • #11
                      There is no empty apartment. Three floors, eight apartments, and ALL get shown to the "serious buyers." How she determines "serious," I have no idea.

                      I did tell her about the door, and she apologized. Apparently she's been leading the groups into apartments instead of following them, and that group just happened to be raised in a barn. She said she'll be more careful.

                      She also said that we were down to the wire. This guy has a bid in on the building.

                      Either way, we're prepping for a move next spring. I can't trust that a buyer won't raise the rent significantly on the next lease renewal.

                      Thanks for the info, Pepper. I have a feeling my neighbours are going to be using that argument in their efforts to break the lease. They have a fair bit of artwork.

                      Comment

                      • #12
                        Is she leaving straggling strangers in your apartment, or just not bothering to confirm that the last person in her conga line is securing the door upon exit?

                        Either way,

                        Mike
                        Meow.........

                        Comment

                        • #13
                          My guess is that your current landlord DID want long-term, stable tenants...because it's easier to sell an apartment building when the buyer has some reassurance that the income will be at a certain level for an extended time.

                          Buying an apartment building is an investment, not at all like buying a single-family home. If there are long-term, reliable tenants bringing in $X per month, that's an important aspect of the sale. If there is a high turnover rate, or the tenants are more transient, it is less attractive to a buyer.
                          "She didn't observe the cardinal rule: Don't F**K with people who handle your food"
                          -Ryan Reynolds in 'Waiting'

                          Comment

                          • #14
                            Quoth icmedia View Post
                            your current landlord DID want long-term, stable tenants...because it's easier to sell an apartment building when the buyer has some reassurance
                            Just what I popped in to say.

                            But that's your leverage Kia. Tell the current landlord that the real estate agent is handling things poorly. That circumstances are such that you cannot help him sell his building w/o more cooperation from his agent; better notice, less critique, etc.

                            Comment

                            • #15
                              Quoth KiaKat View Post
                              So what do I get this morning, but a voicemail from her, telling me that they have an offer, and it's someone who hasn't seen the apartments, so she'll be bringing him through tomorrow afternoon, and by the way, they really want this to work, so could I please have the place looking its best?.
                              Oh, the HELL no.

                              A message like this would have prompted me to leave the place a wreck, sit on the sofa scratching my belly watching TV with the volume turned up as loud as possible during the showing, with a beer at hand and a loud burp as finishing touches.

                              This realtor is a bitch. She's violating rules and being abusing of the rules that let her show the apartments. Not cool. I would have no incentive to make her job any easier, especially since as you say you are pretty sure you'll have to move anyway. So fuck her.

                              Then when she bitches at you, you can calmly tell her, "I don't work for you and you do not tell me what to do. You know I've had recent surgery; making short term demands on me is unreasonable and I've had enough. I've had enough of your nearly letting out my cats. If this continues I will be filing a complaint with your licensing board."
                              They say that God only gives us what we can handle. Apparently, God thinks I'm a bad ass.

                              Comment

                              Previous 1 2 template Next
                              Working...
                              X