@Bob I agree that too many agents don;t know how to sell, and that their interpersonal skills could use some work – agressive isn;t a good substitute for skillful I feel your pain on the short sale situation – everyone seesm to think that there is a quick fix, and there just isn’t

@Barry – Boo-Boo and I both thank you for the kind words –

Part of the problem is that many agents don’t know how to sell. They push and insult, instead of asking questions with the goal of finding a need or problem that they could resolve or meet.

We try to help the coop by explaining to them how its going to work, but an amazing amount of them just don;t listen when we talk about timelines, response from the corporate client, the seller’s parameters and the guidelines they put out.

Dead on. I deal with short sales. EVERY situation is different due to multiple factors, but some agents are locked into their preconceived notions that they took away from a short sale workshop or office meeting. it doesn’t matter what our parameters are, they’ll argue or complain.

There are a few REO agents here that are just awful to deal with, but since the properties get sold, I doubt the asset manager cares. Another is a jewel to work with and I check her inventory first when looking for clients seeking REO deals.

In my area we have three primary REO agents to take care of an overwhelming number of REO properties. I do think other agents (if for no other reason than spreading out the work) could do far better.

One of the three is exceptional and I have enjoyed working with her. The other two are just bad.

I have reasonable expectations – 1.) present in a timely manner 2.) return phone calls and e-mails in 24 hours and 3.) know and obey the licensing law.

Like I said 1 of the 3 does that – the other two simply don’t. And not to open the can of worms, but the only difference in the three that comes to mind, is that the one who does fantastic job is a Realtor and the other two are simply licensees. One actually was caught (rumored) to be living in the REO properties…

Obviously it’s regional, like everything else in RE. But what I am saying, is that I get your point. Degrading other practitioners to get business is counter-intuitive; however given the chance to bend the ear of the Asset Manager who hires these guys – I wouldn’t let go till they heard how badly these agents are ruining the lenders chances of selling the property.

MLS stats show that in my hometown, REO’s are priced well under other homes; but stay on the market noticeably longer.

Also, I am sure some REO agents are bad about returning calls, etc., but overall I find them to be – by far – much better and smarter then the average agent.

The Retail agent has trouble understanding what the words “as is” means, and the REO agent is usually not as responsive to the needs of the buyer as they might be since they have so many investor buyers constantly seeking their attention, but the real deal here is that trashing the competition is abad way to try to get the attention of a client under any terms. We’re constantly looking for new REO clients, and we nevere talk about the bad job the current agent is doing (even if they are) but rather about what we can bring to the table to suit their needs.

As far as dealing with REO agents from a cooperative perspective, I thik that the agent needs to have expectations that are different from the “normal” deal. We try to help the coop by explaining to them how its going to work, but an amazing amount of them just don;t listen when we talk about timelines, response from the corporate client, the seller’s parameters and the guidelines they put out. Guess we just have to keep trying

And BTW, Happy Mother’s Day to everyone in your family!

My experience has been awful with almost every REO agent I’ve ever dealt with. There is only ONE exception to this and she was amazing.

Getting in touch with most of them is impossible, getting offers presented in a timely manner is impossible and half of the listings in our area that are REO, don’t have signs and if you’re REALLY lucky there might be a real lockbox and not a $2 combo box that you can’t get the code to.

I know that they can do better because of the one agent I’ve encountered who did a good job. The number one complaint I hear from agents is in regards to the REO agents they have to work with.

If someone can do a better job so be it, but I agree that 90% of the peeps who seek REO listing agreements have no idea how poorly the lenders are going to make them look.

I think the REO’s get treated like crap, so they pass that right along to the Buyer Broker who is trying to help them clear the inventory.

In both the case of the lender and REO. Too much work, not enough money and insufficient staffing… Sorry I just think there is a better way, I just haven’t figured it out yet.