I read most of another Inman “News” article trying to say I am an unethical piece of crap who doesn’t represent the best interest of our buyers or sellers. It is another trendy article that tells “consumers” to believe that I have to make my next sale more than I have to follow my ethical, moral or professional responsibilities…
Actually, it wasn’t an Inman article, it was just a re-post of an article written by my friend Rob Hahn. Inman is cool like that… #ClickBait
Rob seems to talk about how the horribly unethical real estate industry is being rightsized by technology. It talks about how us overpaid and lazy schleps like to sit around and panic over the next shiny object that will render us the taxi cab in an Uber world.
I have a question. When is the last time you hired a cab driver or an Uber driver to do more than get you from point A to point B? Did this ride entail third parties? How about financing or inspections? Was there a written legal contract involved?
I’m just curious…
I have had the opportunity to meet Rob at a few industry events over the years, and I actually enjoy much of his work. Sometimes, however, we will disagree on things.
I’m really getting tired of this disruption mentality BS.
Let me respond to some nuggets of wisdom here.
Some of the suckitude is because of the real estate industry. It sucks when your listing agent won’t return your three phone calls asking for an update. It feels bad if you feel your buyer agent is pushing you to choose a house because she
wantsneeds a commission check. And the industry is responsible for that suckage.
Personally, I NEVER allow “three phone calls” to go unanswered from a seller. NEVER. The “needs a commission check” crap makes my blood boil, too. This isn’t something I practice and it certainly isn’t true. Sure, I have bills to pay. However, I work VERY hard every single day and I ALWAYS put the wants and needs of buyers and sellers before anything else.
The last paragraph of the “article” says this:
It might do all of us a ton of good to recognize that the end goal is not the careers of real estate agents. The end goal is to deliver the best overall consumer experience possible at the highest profit margins possible. Everything is a tool to deliver that experience… including technology, data, and the paycheck and careers of
taxicab driversreal estate agents.
Here’s an odd thought…. Maybe professional REALTORs® already know this. Maybe agents do care. Maybe they have cared for a LONG time. Maybe people who make a living bashing industries or trying to “disrupt” anything they can (as long as VC money pours into their pockets) are the ones who are causing consumers the most pain.
Know this… There are a LOT of REALTORs® out there who care about their clients. There are a LOT of them who are industry experts. There are a LOT of them who help people make very important decisions about potentially life-changing moments. There are a LOT of them who help people make a LOT of money buying and selling homes in “good” markets, and in “bad.”
Technology has helped us in many ways, but I am certainly not one of the sheep who believe that a great REALTOR® isn’t an asset to many people in this great country.
To my knowledge, Rob has never held a real estate license. In my opinion, it is a good idea for people to hear from someone who has a REALTOR’s® perspective, too.
Does everyone need or want my services? Heck no. Do I believe with my entire heart that I have helped hundreds of people and represented them honestly, honorably and ethically?
ABSOLUTELY.
The Phoenix Real Estate Guy was started by Jay Thompson, and I have a little blogging problem... he liked to say...
AMEN! Inman #clickbait is over rated and designed to sell subscriptions. There’s a reason they like to throw water on hard working folks in the industry, it’s easy. I am proud of the hard working agents and brokers I have come across in this industry. They work hard to help people they’ve only known for a short time obtain the American Dream of Home Ownership. Realtors volunteer thousands of hours in their communities to improve the quality of life from Habitat for Humanity, Food Banks, Delivering Meals on Wheels, Clean up days, I could go on and on. I challenge Inman and Rob to focus on what right, not the 1% that seems to struggle. The masses that are out there doing the business, taking care of their families and supporting their community. That’s an article I’ll read.
Thanks Holly!
When I think of dedicated industry champions, your name certainly comes to mind.
Thanks for all you do, my friend.
It doesn’t help our cause when agents bash other agents for needing to get paid for their work in the form of commissions and seem to laugh at the public for paying us our commissions, saying they will work for them for no commissions, etc. We all know it’s false advertising at the very least.
You have issues with Inman… I too have issues with them. But let’s look at the whole industry of Real Estate Agents. To get your license you can put a mirror to your face and if it fogs up you’re in. 90 hours of un-related info of how to sell a home. a school test… A state test and a 1-hour contract course. Pay your fees and now you can charge 3% for your services? You’re seeing this uprise of non-traditional brokers because they don’t see the value. If 95% of home buyers are searching online and 100% of buyers agents are online why pay 3% to on the listing side to sell your home?
Hi “Mike.”
I don’t have issues with Inman, I have an opinion.
Thanks for stoping by…
The client that most appreciates a good agent is one that has had a bad one. With 16 years now I believe I can offer better contract writing, disclosure, Market knowledge, legal knowledge and protection. I still take legal and disclosure classes and continue to learn. Real Estate is not an easy profession. It’s hard to understand why the largest financial decision of your life would be handed over to an unqualified low fee Realtor. In life cheap could in many cases cost you more hassle and money at the end of the day. I for one appreciate knowledge and good service in any profession.
I care about my clients and respond to all of their calls. I’ve read some of Rob’s articles in the past and he tends to be anti-Realtor. I mentioned that on Facebook and got slammed. Whatever. I focus my time on helping my clients build wealth through real estate. Educating them on how to evaluate properties so they can make a good buy or price their home to get the highest price possible. I work 7 days a week.