How not to sell a house (long)

[gerund]

(Inspired by BrenDAnn's "How not to sell a car")

My house has been on the market for about 6 months. I'm extremely happy with the current Real Estate agency I have as they have done everything except sell my house. Needless to say the advertisement has attracted a lot of other salesmen and businesses trying for a piece of the pie.

I keep getting letters from conveyancing firms offering good rates/quick service. Only problem with that is, my sale is complicated by a couple of legal issues that I need my current solicitors to handle. So those letters go straight in the bin.

I am also getting letters from the other Real Estate firms in town offering to take over my sale. Those letters also go into the bin. One in particular just amazed me at the sheer effrontery involved.

When I started this process I asked my neighbour (who is a builder) to introduce me to a good real estate agent. He came up with one, we met. We discussed what I needed and he had (what sounded like) some really good ideas. Part of my sale involved my buying a much smaller place to live, but the only place he could show me on that day was too small and not suitable.

So I rang this agent a few days after I talked to him, told him my solicitors were working on my legal problems and they would be solved in a week or so and we needed to move on advertising my house and looking for somewhere new. My words were "Let's not wait, let's go now. Do it. Now"

I waited a fortnight for him to do something. Nothing happened. I asked my neighbour if he knew another agent and he introduced me to the one I currently have. What a difference! I said "Let's go!" and they did. They had photos done a web listing, advertisements in the weekend supplement. Everything moving.

The original agent wrote to me last week. It was a folder with all the houses in the area that had sold and a cover letter that said "I realise you were in contact with us some months ago and at that time indicated an interest in selling your house."

That letter went into the bin at the speed of light.

But the culmination of it all was the next trick from a third agent. I have a sticker on my door that says "Do Not Knock - No Salesmen" So this agent knocked on my door. He started by saying "I know your place is for sale, but tell me is the house next door occupied?"

I relied by saying I did not know. He finished up by saying "Well lots of luck with your sale" obviously fishing for a comment from me that it had not sold yet and I wanted to swap agents.

Not a chance. He's lucky I haven't had time to complain about him. It was the lamest excuse I have ever heard for knocking on a door when he was not supposed. He knew that house had been sold about 3 months ago and it was obvious by the work in progress that it was vacant. His agency will never get any of my business either.

To summarise: Just like BrenDAnn's "How not to sell a car" it started with the first salesman not listening to me and not offering me anything I really wanted. Then it has continued with other salespeople hanging around, writing me letters, trying to get an easy commission.

[BrenDAnn]

Aww, I inspired a thread. Lol. What is it with salesmen taking people for being dumb and naive anyway?

[protege]

Aww, I inspired a thread. Lol. What is it with salesmen taking people for being dumb and naive anyway?

Many seem to think that they can get away with it. They'll attempt to walk all over the customer(s) and then can't understand why people get upset

[notalwaysright]

My words were "Let's not wait, let's go now. Do it. Now"

This would make most Realtors really happy! I guess they were scared off by whatever legal issues were involved? But come on, only a certain amount of sales are going to be super easy and fast. The rest are going to be long drawn out processes... And it's not like they're doing it for free...

I hated living in a place which was for sale. It was really obviously occupied, and the listing said "call and knock first, show if no answer." Because that way people could see it while I was at work. Two different times Realtors unlocked the door and came in without calling, ringing the doorbell, or knocking. One time I was trying to sleep, and suddenly the door opens. Anyway, the whole thing left a bitter taste.

[gerund]

This would make most Realtors really happy! I guess they were scared off by whatever legal issues were involved?

The legal issues were not what scared him (I think). They (the legal issues) were solved in two weeks just as I said they would be and my new agent had done them before and had no problems.

What I think scared off the first agent was:

I wanted to sell this house (5 bedrooms 1 bathroom 2 carports) and buy a small flat or unit (2 bedrooms 1 bathroom 1 carport) for one half of what I could sell the house. The first agent offered me something that would have been one third of the value of the house and had 1 bedroom 1 bathroom and 0 carports. He had 3 of those for sale and I think they are still for sale now about 7 months later because they are shitholes. This first agent thought he would not be able to find me something I liked.

What actually happened was the second agent said that there was not much around at my price and I suggested to him a place to look. He looked there, there was something for sale. I signed a contract. All in the first week he was my agent. I then said to him, now you can get on with selling my house.

If the first agent had the same discussion with me he would have had all the business. But he never came back. Never rang. Never got me to sign anything. Just disappeared.

I think the first agent looked at the house I am living in now and thought I would not lower my standards to live in a place for one half the price. As it happens the place I signed a contract on is not wonderful compared to the place I am living now, but it is in a really suitable area for me and it is in a really quiet place too. So I am prepared to drop my standards (and spend some money on the new place to make it liveable) so I can make the move.

[KuariKaydrith]

This would make most Realtors really happy! I guess they were scared off by whatever legal issues were involved? But come on, only a certain amount of sales are going to be super easy and fast. The rest are going to be long drawn out processes... And it's not like they're doing it for free...

I hated living in a place which was for sale. It was really obviously occupied, and the listing said "call and knock first, show if no answer." Because that way people could see it while I was at work. Two different times Realtors unlocked the door and came in without calling, ringing the doorbell, or knocking. One time I was trying to sleep, and suddenly the door opens. Anyway, the whole thing left a bitter taste.

Where I am we have rules that realtors are supposed to follow, especially when selling places with rental units. 24 hours notice being a big one, not that the agent a former landlady of mine had actually followed that. The real estate agent was with what I call a fly-by-night real estate operation - as in it was not a national company and advertised primarily by signs posted around place, and said that they'd sell your home for less - and she was really, really shady. The house didn't sell and the company was soon out of business...I think they were set up in this city for maybe six months tops.

I was a university student at the time and I had a rule - I would not allow anybody into my place unless I was home, and I demanded 24 hour notice. Nothing too major, I figure. But the agent routinely ignored even those couple of things, even trying to claim that they had left me messages - until I told her that I had call display and there was NO record of her attempting to contact me at all. I complained first to her office and then to the provincial board about her actions. I swore that I would never go through this sort of crap again, and even told my current landlord that if he were to put the place on the market that I'd be gone within a month of being notified of the house going on the market. Thankfully he's got no plans to sell any time soon

[wolfie]

Two different times Realtors unlocked the door and came in without calling, ringing the doorbell, or knocking. One time I was trying to sleep, and suddenly the door opens.

WTF? Coming into someone's home unannounced? That could easily get them mistaken for a burglar - and treated as such. After all, if someone's just woken up, they're not firing on all cylinders.

[dalesys]

... if someone's just woken up, they're not firing on all cylinders.

However, they may fire all cylinders...

[wolfie]

Couple things I recall reading. One was either a preface or an endcap in one of the "Hammer's Slammers" books by David Drake. He wrote (I'm paraphrasing) that when people say that "war changes people", they mean that front-line soldiers are trained (either formal training or response to situation) to act in a way that would be considered clinically insane by civilian standards.

The other was about a veteran's experience. When he got out of the army, he stayed in his mother's trailer ("mobile" home) for a while. Since there wasn't an extra room, he slept on the floor. One night, his mother needed to get to the other end of the trailer, and stepped over him. When he woke up enough to realize what was actually happening, he stopped trying (fortunately he was unsuccessful) to strangle the "intruder in the camp".

[notalwaysright]

I think there is the 24 hour notice rule here, too. I was not an official renter, I didn't have a lease, I was basically living in the house until it sold. Long story. Plus, I honestly didn't mind if people wanted to see the house with little or no notice. I mean, there were times when the dorks called me while standing on the front porch at 6:00 PM, "hey, I have some buyers who want to see the place, can we see it now?" *sigh* But normally people went through the house while I was at work, which wasn't a problem. I have a separate story about how people were assholes to my cat, but that's another topic.

Anyway, the market was even worse in this area at the time (2009ish) and there were three houses in a row for sale. One was vacant. The realtor who came in while I was asleep muttered something about thinking this was the vacant house, and high tailed it out. I'm a very light sleeper, I would have heard even the quietest knock. I did let our realtor know, and she said the lockbox which stores the key logs who unlocks the box. So she would look it up and notify whoever.

[Zellie Crescent]

If a property has pets and it's being shown the pets have to be kept safe and comfortable, if it was my house and I found out the potential buyer hurt my fur baby I would tell them to fuck off and sell to someone else. As for unscheduled walk ins, walk throughs whatever you want to call them I would be super pissed and tell them it better not happen again or I'd find another realtor.

[Slave to the Phone]

My sweetie was in the Marines for 20 years. He got out 15 years ago. We have been together that long and I'm STILL careful when he's sleeping.

Our agent was really good when it came to us buying our current home, she was TERRIBLE at showing out last place. We were friends with our next door neighbors and they told us that she usually wasn't there when she said she was.

[otakuneko]

Being on the buyer side of the 24 hour rule is pretty frustrating too. I mean sure, I'd probably want 24 hour notice too if I were selling, but argh, I wanted to see moar houses. >.<

Not sure if buying or selling a house sucks more, since I've only done the buying. I guess I'll find out whenever I sell.

[notalwaysright]

Being on the buyer side of the 24 hour rule is pretty frustrating too. I mean sure, I'd probably want 24 hour notice too if I were selling, but argh, I wanted to see moar houses. >.<

Not sure if buying or selling a house sucks more, since I've only done the buying. I guess I'll find out whenever I sell.

Selling. Selling! Selling is worse. I guess it would be different if it was a sellers market. Clearly, it was a buyers market both when we bought and sold the house.

When we were looking for houses, I don't ever remember having an issue with the 24 hour notice rule. But I dunno, we made an appointment with the realtor and told her what houses we wanted to see. She would go and post notice. No biggie.