Feeling the way you do about him, if your house has not sold in 90 days do not renew the contract for any reason.

I definitely wouldn't renew with him. I've never heard of an agent being unavailable on the weekends; I would think that would be one of the most important times to be available.

Does your contract say anything about what happens to your listing if you immediately relist with someone else? I read one story where a seller ended their contract with their agent but after that contract expired, if they relisted their house it would come up as the same MLS listing with the same DOM. They had to wait 90 days for it to clear, IIRC.

I wouldn't wait the 90 days I would get rid of him now. For his replies to take so long bothers me & I've been there, it can get worst. Tell him you're not happy about such & such and either allow him to change or ask to be switched to someone else in his office for the remainder, perhaps maybe the broker in charge

anybody who said to me "have you calmed down yet?" would be history in about 3 seconds.

however, just fyi...
commercial agents/brokers often work weekdays, & the appointment desk or service will have records of showings on the week-ends so a listing agent can make follow-up calls.

i agree, the "have you calmed down yet" is demeaning and insulting. you wouldn't have to become upset in the emails to him if he was providing you with timely information. he would be toast. kick his butt to the curb. even though you signed a 90 contract, normally there is something about performance and that you can cancel the contract for any reason if your aren't happy. and baby, you aint happy.
ladybugbaby

We're 28 DOM. We've had about 25 showings (two 2nd showings), and not one offer.

28 days not long, 25 showings is great!

Not one offer and the only negative feedback is a corner lot.....other houses in neighborhood are selling.....

Patronizing attitude to you aside (not that its not annoying and unacceptable but my concern would be selling the house)
I'll admit that makes me wonder. If now that you've lowered your price you still don't get a nibble I'd wonder if he's not working with the other agents well?

What are your expectations for feedback and other communication? What do you consider a timely response?

Can you give an example of the content of an e-mail that has caused him to phone you and ask "Have you calmed down yet?"

Because it sounds like everything else is going well.

doesn't matter if she was in total hysteria;
*nobody*, not husband, not boyfriend, not momma, *nobody* who wants to maintain a relationship of any kind, should speak condescendingly to their wife, girlfriend, daughter.

& if you're a client or customer & a vendor of service or a seller of goods speaks to you like that, you *can* vote with your feet.
If you wouldn't allow a shoe salesman (do they even have those anymore?) to speak condescendingly to you, why would you allow it from someone who stands to make a very nice fee?

Doctor, lawyer, real estate practitioner, auto mechanic, whatever, these people are all in service professions.

The sneering attitude tells me that this person is not concerned with your position & he has a real problem understanding what it means to be in a service business.

There are other excellent Realtors out there who don't have an issue with it;
you don't have to endure obnoxious behavior in order to sell your house!

(Maybe residential real estate is just too small-potatoes for him;
wonder if he speaks to his commercial clients that way?)

I think you are getting anxious. Most sellers do this around the 3 week mark when no offers. Relax. You might be giving the agent the impression of being a high maintenance seller (and maybe you are, I don't know).

I don't know why you need feedback after very showing. If folks like it, they will make an offer or at least come back for another showing, if not, they won't. All you can do is make the home show the best possible it can be and price it correctly.

You already know the corner lot is an issue and nothing else. Just stop asking for feedback from all the showings. Also note that it is no longer a new listing and now the showings will decrease in volume, a lot.

Sometimes agents don't push their lookers for 'why is it a no?', on every house they view. So I wouldn't expect feedback for every looker - expecially if you DON'T NEED IT. Often the home is a 'no' for a buyer, but there is nothing wrong with the home, it just wasn't the one for that buyer. I looked at many, many homes that there was not one thing wrong with, but the home was not for me.

At some point you'll get feedback that is very opinionated and then you'll get your feelings hurt. Someone might not like your flowers or the carpet or something. But that would be one person's opinion and the overall common feedback (corner lot), you already have.

Relax and let the agent do his job. You got all these showings, he can't be all bad.

BTW, your subdivision (while nice) appears to have very similar homes (same age, general size, general options). It is almost a commodity, because one home is not all that different from the other. So yours will sell, just like the others sold.

I do agree with the other poster about you putting a privacy fence along the side yard that faces the street. If you are on your deck or in your yard, folks on the road can see you. I think that is part of the overall 'corner lot' negativity.

I expect you get an offer within the next few weeks...so relax.

Thanks for the replies, this really helps me reconcile everything and keep it in perspective.

Solie - an example was last week an email I sent covering various issues that we had discussed but never resolved, so I fired all my issues off at once... which maybe came off a bit OCD, but I wanted them done. Either he, or his office, or MLS made an error on the age of the house, they had the year built as 2000, and it was actually built in 1995. I wanted it corrected ASAP as I felt having it there (even though it was an error) was misleading. I also wanted to change up some of the photos on our virtual tour, primarily the exterior ones as we did the pictures too early (about 2 months before we even listed), so the grass is brown, there are no flowers planted, etc. The landscaping looks fantastic now that everything has grown in, and I'd REALLY like to showcase that. And, wanted to re-word the MLS description to include the optional upstairs laundry hoookup, and that we were including an 8-HP snowblower (as well as all appliances). We had also had a 2nd showing the night before, and I was anxious to hear something about that. PLUS, I asked him again if he would consider at least one open house.

So, rather than respond to the email promptly, he waited 2 days, then called and asked if I had calmed down yet. We did get the amendment through for the age of the house, as well as the new description, but I think I've given up on getting more recent photos up. Hell, I even offered to do it myself if he gave me access to the portal interface. I DO web design and programming, I could have taken care of that like nothing. Oh well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad, right?

I think because this realtor is a friend of a friend, his comments are more in a joking manner than to be intentionally condescending. But, when I'm in full-on rampage mode, that's not the time to patronize me!

Sweet_tea - you're right, and my husband tells me the same thing. YES, I'm anxious. I'm a very intense, results-driven person, and I don't deal well with things that are out of my control... this being one of them.

I really don't 'need' feedback from every showing, but I had asked him if he'd "heard anything from the last few showings". And it's just curiosity. I keep telling myself I must be doing something wrong, and I think I'm looking for a magic solution that someone will suggest and I can fix quickly, and the house will sell. LOL.

Anyway, it's almost as if he'd read this post or something, because shortly after I posted this, he called me at work to tell me he'd be bringing something through himself later today. And, while I was on the phone with him, his office called my cell phone to set up another showing this afternoon (just before his). I literally had a phone in each ear, LOL!

I caught him leaving as I was coming home. The showing people had already left. He brought some new printed brochures over with the new price and the added features (snowblower, etc). Still the old pics though *sigh*.

And interestingly enough - the buyer's agent from the house that sold across the street happens to be a guy from his own office, and he knows him. He had already spoken to him, and he told my guy that if it were up to him, they would have bought my house - hands down. It's much nicer inside and out, and just more bang for the buck with the finished basement and 4th bathroom. But, these people were stuck on the backyard and covered deck with skylights, and they were willing to pay 7K more to get that.

But still, it's good to know. There's always something about a house that a buyer will fall in love with. Someone WILL come along and fall in love with mine, too.

So, post-reduction, we're $7-10K below what the other houses have sold for, and that's going to be the price to pay for having a corner lot... and that's fine. Live and learn!

Thanks for letting me go on.. and on... and on! You guys will be praying for me to sell just so you don't have to hear me freaking out all the time :D

I'm curious about what reason, if any, he has given for not updating the photos?

mary_md, he hasn't really given me a reason. He kinda danced around it saying he'd ask the girl he brought in to do the virtual tour if they could be changed. I offered to supply newer photos, but, it could be (her) policy that she'll only use her own photos. I'm really not sure how that works. I think it really boils down to he doesn't know how to go about doing it.

Oh yeah..

"BTW, your subdivision (while nice) appears to have very similar homes (same age, general size, general options). It is almost a commodity, because one home is not all that different from the other."

Yep, they're cookie cutters for sure. Varying lot sizes and floorplans, but not unlike any other community development with production home builders.

"friend of a friend" always difficult. You should choose your agent because YOU can work with him/her, not because your friend could

Chelle 69,

I don't think you're being difficult or unreasonable at all.

Why should the pictures be a hassle for the agent? It's also in his best interest to show your house in the best possible view.

When my MIL was selling her townhome, the agent wanted to show off her hardwood floors, but he left the little plastic garbage bucket in the kitchen with an open cover in the picture. I really don't understand how hard it would have been to move the garbage!

I would never use a friend or aquaintance as a realtor, unless they come with a lot of referrals. It's amazing how many people you discover are realtors when you are buying or selling. When I was selling my condo years ago, the most scattered, disorganized person at my job told me she was a part-time realtor. I already told her I had an agent (even though I didn't at the time).

Good luck and I hope it gets sold soon!

I think what it boils down to is:

1. Is anybody else going to do a better job?

2. Are the issues that concern you ultimately going to affect when the house sells and what price it sells for.

It seems to me that you should be able to get the photos that you want up. I think sometimes people on this site over emphasize the importance of "perfect" photos, but green vs. brown lawn does create a very different first impression. If you are competing with very similar properties, then little details like the inclusion of a snowblower and a laundry hook-up may matter more than usual. As far as the open house goes, do other people in your area do them? It sounds like that might not be a battle worth fighting. I know you shouldn't *have* to do this, but if I were in your shoes I would have my husband call and e-mail with only my non-negotiable requests (probably the new photos and the change in the description) and ask when this would be completely. This guy is getting people in the door, so I would tend to cut him some slack on the other stuff. My goal would be to get the house sold. Who cares if he thinks I'm a PITA as long as I get what I want.

The feedback is only important if it raises issues that you can address. It hasn't. It seems like this guy is only willing to do so much for you, so I would relax a little about the feedback.

Would you be better off with someone who would bend over backwards for you? I don't know. Maybe this guy knows what he is doing.

You probably already know this, but focus on the things you have control over. Keep the lawn nice, the house clean, maybe have bottled waters out in front of a display of brochures (that you can make) for viewers, be as accommodating about showings as your sanity allows.

Thanks for letting me go on.. and on... and on! You guys will be praying for me to sell just so you don't have to hear me freaking out all the time :D

I'm going to send you some of that selling magic dust. Maybe that will help?

How do you feel about the agent that sold your FSBO's house? How was their advertising and quality of pictures?

I really don't understand how hard it would have been to move the garbage!

From my experience, agents basically say, don't worry about stuff. I'd asked my 1st agent about moving something she told me not to worry about it, photo wouldn't be that big, wouldn't be that noticeable or something to that effect. Funny thing is, I never did get to see the photos she took, she said she was having computer issues and used mine.

It seems to me that you should be able to get the photos that you want up. I think sometimes people on this site over emphasize the importance of "perfect" photos, but green vs. brown lawn does create a very different first impression.

The problem with photos from what I understand is once they get a pro out to take them, I'm pretty sure most of those virtual tour companies host the photos on their own site; so she could have the agent change out the ones on his site that she doesn't like, but what ever is currently in the virtual tour can't be touched.

FWIW, she can always suggest she will pay for new pro pics to be taken. I told my agent I would pay for a virtual tour/pro pics. He decided that he was going to try this for some of his sales to see if it mattered. We were already sold by the time ours were done so it made no difference. It was his advertising on realtor.com, possibly my fliers & how I wrote "bring all offers". I think the 2 buyers (where we worked/accepted an offer) found us on realtor.com 1st, then drove by & took the fliers. It was the info on the fliers that peaked their interest since it was more detailed then realtor.com

Yikes! I think the issue stems from this agent specializing in commercial and not residential. Also the friend-of-a-friend aspect probably isn't helping matters (some people feel they can take advantage of this type of referral knowing that b/c of the friend issue, people are less likely to complain - hence the "have you calmed down yet" comment?).

The agent shouldn't have taken the listing if he was not able to do a professional job and provide the attention needed to selling a residential property in the current market. Unless he is not taking a commission, he isn't really doing you any favors... in fact he was the one who got the better end of the deal - he didn't have to work to get your listing.

I would treat him as I would any other professional relationship. You entered into a contract with him and he is not providing the service agreed to. If he is not experienced in residential (or he does mostly commercial and therefore is probably not as knowledgeable or interested in handling residential listings) and he took this listing, he was not being professional.

The fact that houses are staying on the market longer only adds to this problem (it's not like it was in the past where agents didn't have to do much b/c houses were selling like crazy and the agents just had to wait for the multiple offers to come in).

I would talk to his superior and explain that you entered into the contract with him on the advice of a friend and you are not happy b/c of the lack of service he is providing. I would ask that another agent, who specializes in residential and your neighborhood to take over the listing.

And according to the National Association of Realtors, The Realtors Code of Ethics states:
"Article 11
The services which REALTORS provide to their clients and customers shall conform to the standards of practice and competence which are reasonably expected in the specific real estate disciplines in which they engage; specifically, residential real estate brokerage, real property management, commercial and industrial real estate brokerage, real estate appraisal, real estate counseling, real estate syndication, real estate auction, and international real estate.

REALTORS® shall not undertake to provide specialized professional services concerning a type of property or service that is outside their field of competence unless they engage the assistance of one who is competent on such types of property or service, or unless the facts are fully disclosed to the client. Any persons engaged to provide such assistance shall be so identified to the client and their contribution to the assignment should be set forth. (Amended 1/95)"

Good luck!

"I'm going to send you some of that selling magic dust. Maybe that will help?"

Please, send me some magic dust! Maybe if I smoked it I'd be able to relax a little, LOL!

So, I hacked the virtual tour interface, LOL. Well, not really hacked, but, ahem.. gained access to the backend... just to see how it works (mess with a computer geek will ya!) roselvr was right, the images are hosted on their server, and there's the option for the realtor to arrange them in whatever order, but there's no option to upload new photos. That would also explain why he changed the main exterior pic on the MLS Page, but all the pics in the virtual tour are the old ones.

I have offered to absorb the cost of having the virtual tour redone, but that was one of the emails that went unanswered. I think he keeps hoping the house will just sell, and we won't have to worry about it. Heck, I keep hoping that too, but, geez.

Thanks again for letting me bounce this around!

Chelle, if we were still on the market I'd be smoking it too if it helped lol

I'm not familiar with using the Canada real estate searches but you might want to go check things out. I ended up finding your agents company site, did a search for minimum 2 bedroom with minimum 2 baths from $300~$325 and your house did not come up. I had to put the MLS number in the search in order to see it there. Also when I put in the exact info that's on the MLS 3 bedroom 4 baths (do you really have 4 baths?) it came up with 2 other listings. It also did not come up on the Remax Canada site.

Email him again about the virtual tour.

Gonna call it a night, will keep the tabs open (Remax search) and look some more tomorrow.

Thanks roselvr. Remax in Canada is broken down into a bunch of regional divisions. In our city alone, there has to be a dozen. Remax Solid Gold, Remax Twin City, etc, etc. We're on the regional division website (Twin City).

In general though, Canadian versions of any websites are typically lame. We just haven't caught up with the rest of the world yet ;)

Yep, 4 bathrooms. Main floor powder, upstairs main, ensuite and the nicest bathroom in the house is in the basement... it's a big spa-style bathroom with a soaker tub and shower, ceramic tile, etc.

Lots of toilets to clean!

Here's the listing on the Remax site: Link

Chelle, I guess my biggest question would be what site does everyone use (like realtor.com) to find houses?

Bathrooms makes sense now, for some reason a bathroom in the basement never occurred to me although we have a rough in for it lol

The weird thing is that you did not show up on searches while people with the same house as you (from what I saw) came up. This actually happened to us on Remax, my agent got in touch with tech support & had it fixed. People may not find your house if it doesn't come up on searches.

rose, MLS.ca is 'the' site in Canada to find homes. I know I've never looked on an internal Realtor site for their listings, because 99% of them are on MLS anyway... which the exception of exclusive listings, which IMO don't get proper exposure anyway.

I've decided today I'm going to insist on having the Virtual Tour redone, even if I have to absorb the cost myself. And I'm not gonna take 'no' for an answer!

Chelle,

I don't know about Canada, but in Maryland, things in a basement aren't worth as much as they would be on another floor.

Have you personally toured any of the houses that are your competition? There is a reason why you are getting so much traffic and no offers. The amount of traffic tells me that you are priced right for the area, but there is something about your house that is making people offer on something else. You have to figure out what that is and either fix it or lower your price if it is something that can't be fixed. Things to think about - smells (of any kind), animals, offensive decor (political, religious, etc.), view, deferred maintenance, etc.

Stop focusing on your agent and figure out why your house isn't selling. If you are getting showings, the MLS site and virtual tour are doing their job, whether you like the way they look or not. The purpose of those things is to get people in your house. You have that - now why aren't they buying?

Sorry to be so terse, but I'm an agent and I'd be happy if one of my listings was getting that kind of traffic.

Debby

but there is something about your house that is making people offer on something else. You have to figure out what that is and either fix it or lower your price if it is something that can't be fixed.

dspotten - shouldn't the realtor be the one to find out that out from feedback? Why does she have to figure this out all by herself?

So far I've gleaned that she is 7-10,000 below what other houses have sold for, she has a corner lot, and her nicest full bath is in the basement (3 full and powder main) and that the old pictures are still on the virutal tour.

I've seen nothing on feedback except the one realtor who said his buyer bought a neighboring house because they loved the backyard and skylights.

She needs more info from her realtor to fix or adjust price.

Debby, my house is fine. Here's the virtual tour, as you can see it's not a dump.

Neutral colours throughout, well maintained, and it doesn't smell. We do have pets, but I clean constantly, and I have a cleaning lady come once a week for a thorough cleaning. I've also recently steam-cleaned all the carpets in the house. It's very clean. I'm pretty sure there are other people out there who have dogs and have successfully sold their house.

The feedback has been consistent. Love the house - hate the lot. Too much sidewalk to shovel. Not enough privacy in the backyard. Yada yada...

As for my agent - another gong show today, and my husband is now ready to step in and fire him. We got a call this morning for a showing between 2:00 - 3:00. No problem. Nice Saturday afternoon, we piled dogs and kid into the car and went for a drive. Came back at around 3:15, coast was clear, so we went in. As soon as I walked in the door I knew nobody had been there. All the lights were still on - no card on the table. Great. I called the Remax office and asked what happened. She told me she'd find out and get back to me.

Well, apparently the buyer's agent called my agent directly to let him know they were running about an hour behind. He was supposed to let us know. Of course, he didn't. Why? Because he's at the cottage, of course! In fact, he's "on holidays" for the 3rd time this month. He told me he's going to show the house himself on Monday evening, someone who called him directly without an agent. But, he may not be back from the lake in time to show it, so he may have his associate come over to show it... but I digress... back to today.

So the lady at Remax told me the agent said they should be there within 5 minutes. Gathered everyone back in the car and off we went again. This time we parked a street over in a spot where we could watch our house. Sure enough, they showed up, and spent a good 25 minutes in the house. Then they came outside, walked around for awhile, and were just standing out front talking. My daughter and I got out of the car and made like we were just walking the dogs, and got within earshot. The buyer's vehicle had out-of-province plates, so they are probably re-locators. I couldn't make out everything they were saying, but I heard the agent say "I'll find out where the nearest school is" and then "but I can't even call because he's out of town".

Great, these people are interested in my house, and my agent is unreachable.

The agent left, and the people hung around for a bit in their car, drove around the neighbourhood a few times, checked out house from various different angles. Finally, they left.

About an hour later, they came back, and circled around the court a few more times, stopped in front of our house, was really checking it out.

For all I know they're wanting to put in an offer, and our agent is MIA.

Mary1000: Shouldn't the realtor be the one to find out that out from feedback? Why does she have to figure this out all by herself?

Why should chelle69 figure out why her house is not selling if she can? Because no one wants to sell the house as much as she does. Not her Realtor. Not a buyer's Realtor. No one.

And remember, there isn't always feedback.

While I always understand folks expect the Realtor to do everything to sell their house, the reality of the situation is many, if not most, sellers can do themselves a world of good by being proactive with their sale. Fill the box with fliers. Clean the house for a showing. Sign fallen over? Pick it up. Need to see the competition? Go visit some competitors houses. Need to adjust the price? Adjust it. These are some small things all sellers can do to potentially help their house sell faster.

As far as what to do with a MIA Realtor? Nothing can help chelle69 with that except firing the guy.

Best wishes chelle69 :-)

Thanks everyone.

Well, shortly after I posted this, my realtor called me from the cottage - at 9:30pm. The people from today want to come back tomorrow from 11:45 - 12:45. They also wanted to know about the schools in the area.

He told me he'd be available to come back to town tomorrow in the event we get an offer. So, I'm calmed back down a bit now.

*fingers crossed*

The feedback has been consistent. Love the house - hate the lot. Too much sidewalk to shovel. Not enough privacy in the backyard. Yada yada..

Chelle, the privacy can be changed, can you put up a nice fence? It might help. I might be able to find the one corner property that was catfishsam's competition, they had a cute fence around their corner lot, very big curb appeal. It might give you ideas. Let me know.

The other thing you can do is offer an incentive. I was offering a $1,000 decorating expense, which my buyer did not ask for.

I would call a few fence companies to get estimates. You can then either put a fence up, or give part of the price as the decorating expense as an incentive. We had what's called a shadow box fence at our last house, it was a nice looking fence. Link for {{gwi:2046418}}

Is it possible for you to hang out until they get there? That way you would see they've come and aren't leaving for no reason. Once they pull up or walk in the door, then you pull out.

Great, these people are interested in my house, and my agent is unreachable.

Doesn't he have a cell phone?

rose, it would cost at least 5K to rip out the existing chain link fence and put a privacy fence in. Plus, it would have to be moved in 4 feet due to the city bylaws with privacy fences on corner lots here. Has to be 2 feet from the sidewalk for a chain link, or 6 feet for a privacy fence.. or something like that. Plus, it can only be 4 feet high. With the height of the deck, you're not going to be private anyway. The only way you'd really get privacy would be to rip out the deck, and build stairs down to a ground-level deck or patio. That's an expense I'm not willing to take on (yet), only being 1 month into this. Now if I'm still sitting here 6 months from now, I'll think about it, LOL.

With as many showings as we're getting (averaging about 1 a day), someone is bound to overlook the privacy thing. I did! Well, I didn't so much overlook it as it's just not that important to me. I live inside the house, not in the back yard. Like I've said, unless I'm running around naked in my back yard, I really don't care who glances over and sees me. We're in a very quiet neighbourhood, it's not like there's heavy traffic from every angle.

Yes, he has a cell phone (he called me from it last night), but if he doesn't pick up after so many rings, it forwards to the office.

Anyway, yesterday's people are coming back today, so we'll see what happens! :)

The feedback has been consistent. Love the house - hate the lot. Too much sidewalk to shovel. Not enough privacy in the backyard. Yada yada...

To me, this totally explains why the house may be slow to sell. As Chelle pointed out, she liked the house and didn't think twice about the corner lot location. She needs a buyer who likes or ignores the corner lot location.

We had a similar situation with our townhouse. We had a glossy green kitchen - we LOVED these cabinets (the owner previous to us installed the cabinets). But almost every realtor who came through suggested replacing the cabinets with some generic oak stuff. Well, we weren't about to spend the money so we had to wait for a buyer who also felt the same way, or would change the cabinets immediately. There was really nothing our realtor could do except bring as many people through the house as possible.

Chelle, your realtor has done a good job (however he is doing it) marketing the house if you're getting essentially a showing a day. You may question if he's able to close the deal once you have interested lookers, but from what you've written, he's bringing people to the house.

FWIW, I think your virtual tour is fine. It shows a clean well-maintained house in good condition. The garage is a bit imposing - here in Maryland the facade of the garage is usually in line with the facade of the rest of the house, or it just sticks out a little (maybe a third of the entire depth).

Thanks guys.

Well, yesterday's people came back again today. Again - over an hour late. Again, the buyer's agent called the office notify us of the delay, and again.. I wasn't notified. Oh well. They spent about 25 minutes in the house, and raced off to other appointments they were also late for. Haven't heard anything back yet, but I'm not obsessing over it either. We have 2 more showings tomorrow evening, and if these people come back for a 3rd time, it's all good.

We replaced the screen on the slider door tonight, and I got a quote and hired someone to refinish the deck.. that will be done this week. The previous owners painted it with latex and it's peeling off. It's not hideous, but a bit of an eyesore compared to the rest of the house. I think it will be $700 well spent.

I was out weeding my gardens and had to trim the grass growing around my For Sale sign. That kinda made me sad.

jy_md - I have no problem with the amount of showings we're getting, and I do think our home is adequately marketed. My only issue is the lack of communication, and him not being reachable half the time. Of course, at this point I'm sure he considers me a colossal PITA and can't wait to sell it just to be rid of me ;)

marys1000 mentioned "If now that you've lowered your price you still don't get a nibble I'd wonder if he's not working with the other agents well? "

Which brings me to a new issue, and I think there may be some truth to that. Our neighbours across the court (ones who started out FSBO then listed with an agent, and subsequently sold 5 days later) were over talking to us (they're rooting us on big time, bless their hearts) was telling us their agent (from a different realtor) knows of our agent, and knows a few people who have closed deals with him - and he's apparently not very good to work with. Again, unreachable, and when the going gets tough, he shoves things off onto other people. Not sure how much truth there is in that, but it might explain why, out of 30+ showings and 30+ agents, the agents are for some reason pushing their clients to other houses. This is a question HE'S also pondered, but didn't have an answer for. If there's any truth to what we've heard, that may be our answer.

I don't know, but I just have that sinking feeling in my stomach that we made a very bad choice, and it's a lesson well learned.

Anyway, tomorrow is a new week. Onward.....

Chelle, in your original email you indicate that your agent "specializes in Commercial, but has done plenty of Residential in his time" which makes me think that may be part of the problem with his responses to you. Seems to me that most agents specialize in one or the other (certainly true in the community where I live) without a whole lot of overlap. That may be why he takes most weekends off and alot of holidays....lucky him!

Nevertheless, his communication style would drive me up the wall! Enough to change to an agent that specialized in Residential....LOL

Margaret

Ooops, meant original post, not email...

Chelle,

RE: We replaced the screen on the slider door tonight, and I got a quote and hired someone to refinish the deck. that will be done this week.

These things should have been done before the house was put on the market. Does your agent have a way to contact agents that previously showed the house to let them know these things have been done?

About feedback - when I am working with buyers, I try to get feedback from them so I can pass it on. Unfortunately, most people think 'if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all'. Occasionally I get some useful feedback and pass it to the listing agent. Most of the time not.

Debby

Chelle, what we did was put privacy fence in front of the chain link in some parts of our yard. One the side where I had 2 barking corgies, we let them have the chain link, put the privacy fence on our side. In the far back we took it down but on my other neighbors side we left it up since they were like family to us and we didn't need privacy from them. They ended up putting the rest of the privacy fence up to hide the neighbors house behind him, chain link eventually came down.

Now, since your agent is apparently doing a good job getting people in, that means he must be advertising (have you checked on that?) and I don't doubt that buyers see your house in a search and want to see it, it shows well. You now know he may be difficult or unreliable, we had agents like that at our old town. The one gal that stood me up, no one showed her listings as well as another guy's office, he used to list dumps. Both have reputations. While most people know about the gal, I don't know how many know about the guy.

I wonder if he's willing to team up with another agent at his office? Tell him you don't like that he is not around weekends and about the conversation you over heard.

"These things should have been done before the house was put on the market. Does your agent have a way to contact agents that previously showed the house to let them know these things have been done?

I was willing to, but our agent didn't think it was necessary. Really, the deck isn't THAT bad, and there was a worn area in the screen. The screen repair took 10 minutes and about $4. I doubt that's a deal-breaker. And, nobody has mentioned the condition of the deck. I'm just doing it because "I" would like a freshly painted deck if I were moving into a new house. Everything else inside and out is maintained to par.

rose, how would that work - if he teamed up with someone else? Would they have to split the commission 3 ways?

One team I interviewed gave 1/2 of the commission to the buyers agent then split the other 1/2 between themselves, so it would take nothing from the buyers agent.

The other alternative is canning the agent all-together. If you told him you were happy that people are coming through but not happy with weekends, ask if he is willing to team up with someone available on weekends, either he says yes or no.

Did you sign a 3 or 6 month contract?

rose, it's 90 days. I'll give it until the weekend.. we've had some action the last couple days, including another showing today at 1:00, and one tonight at 7:30. I have a feeling something is going to give soon. Don't ask me why, I have no idea why I think that, LOL.

I'm not unhappy with the amount of showings, but Lord help me, they're sucking the life out of me. We must be at showing #40 by now!