(Still) More Evidence of Tight Supply “Buyer’s agent will pay a 15% referral fee to anyone who gives an address for a potential listing that leads to a sale.” –email pitch (April 2, 2013) How tight is housing supply in the Twin Cities at the moment? Tight enough that at least one Buyer’s agent (above) is resorting...Read More
Not Getting What You Don’t Pay For It won’t show up in my 2012 sales statistics (or my bank account), but one of the more protracted deals I was involved with this past year was helping a good friend (and repeat client) buy a $63,000 St. Paul foreclosure. Why no record of the deal? Because I...Read More
Incentives for Buyers’ Agents “Agents – Complete this feedback in total and Earn Points Towards a Vacation Travel Incentive.” –Showing Feedback Form Savvy shoppers can get miles (points) when they shop, fly, fill their gas tank, etc. So, why not offer Buyers’ agents an incentive to fill out showing feedback forms? Great idea! Missing from...Read More
“The Fire Drill,” or, Working With Buyers in a Hurry As opposed to the standard Buyer Rep contract, which imposes generic rights and duties on the Buyer and their agent, I think there should be a variant specifically for “Buyers in a Hurry.” Such a contract is an especially good idea when said Buyer is...Read More
Hiring a Buyer’s Agent Too Late It doesn’t happen often, but once in awhile I’ll get a call from someone who wants to hire me to help them purchase a home, but I can’t help them. Why’s that? They called me too late. The typical scenario is the would-be Buyer went through a Sunday open...Read More
Flying (& Mountain Climbing) Metaphors Pilots in turbulent weather will frequently announce to their passengers that they’re “climbing to 40,000 feet” or “descending to 30,000 feet” in search of a smoother ride. As a Buyer’s agent, I will point out to clients if moving up (or down) a rung in price makes sense (cents?). That...Read More
