Oct. 23, 2006 - For Sale or NOT for Sale, that is the ?
Shame on You!! On Friday the property was shown as ACTIVE and available to purchase. Before writing an offer, I called the agent who said it was in minutes of being sold. Just a couple of initials. On Saturday the property was STILL showing as ACTIVE. On Sunday...still showing as ACTIVE. I called and the female agent of the "team" said she had been away for four days and yes it was sold subject to inspection, and she would change the status in the computer. Monday morning...STILL ACTIVE!! Called agent and she was on her way into the office to change the status.
Some rules really should not be broken, and this is one of them. An agent needs to change the status from ACTIVE to ACTIVE STI (subject to inspection) ASAP! after a contract is accepted. While the rules give you 24 hours to do that, even 24 hours is too long. Four days is just nasty. Agents are showing the property. Buyers are narrowing down their choices to that one house. Lots of wasted time, effort and emotion only to find that the house was sold days ago.
Do I report the violation? Not until the house closes. Why? Because if it falls out of escrow, as it did once before, my buyer client may be penalized for my actions of reporting the agent being in violation of the mls rule, if and when they get an opportunity to submit an offer. There really is no excuse for an agent who lists property to not change the status fairly immediately. If you don't know how to change the status, which takes about two seconds, you should be listing property.
Changing the status from STI to PENDING or from PENDING to SOLD is not as ultra important to be done ASAP as from ACTIVE to STI. ACTIVE means agents are showing the property, and to cause agents and buyers to be wasting their time is just unconscionable IMNSHO. Some days I'd like to start my own Hall of Shame.
Oct. 24, 2006 - re: For Sale or NOT for Sale, that is the ?
Posted by Gene Duncan
I would encourage you to report this violation of NWMLS rules now and not wait until it closes. The only way to stop all the violations that go on is to report them....If this in anyway causes your buyer to lose the property if it should come back on the market, then the listing agent has an even bigger problem. Report it...
Oct. 24, 2006 - re: For Sale or NOT for Sale, that is the ?
Posted by ARDELL
Clients first Gene. I would NEVER do anything that could harm the client. It is too hard to prove that the buyer didn't get the house...or paid more for it...because of the violation being reported. How could you prove it? You can't.
Our MLS rules are 48 hours, and you'd be surprised by how many don't do it. It's unbelievable. I cahnge mine the same day we open escrow to either "pending" or "contingent - accepting backup" depending on the situation. I'm finding now that the market is slowing my area (the Los Angeles area) that many agents are becoming very sloppy about these kinds of things, which does nothing but waste everyone's time. I'm with you on starting a Wall of Shame... maybe on a national level. :-)
I had one "signed around" on Wednesday before Thanksgiving and I do it then. Takes a second really. I don't wait until I "open escrow", as in this case, escrow isn't open from Wednesday until Monday. I do it as soon as the signed around fax comes in.
ARDELL
DellaLoggia
On Seattle Real Estate including Kirkland, Bellevue, Redmond, Green Lake and most areas around Lake Washington North of Downtown Seattle.
Phone: 206-910-1000 - Mailto:Ardell@RainCityGuide.com
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