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How to Protect Yourself in Real Estate: What Every Homebuyer and Seller Needs to Know · Connor with Honor: AI, Real Estate and Real Life

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: And good day, everybody.
• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the 13th of March 2025.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: The anger against real estate agents seems to persist in a lot of different forums.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, usually you don't hear about the good stories of when an agent did something great for their clients and how the client was incredibly happy.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes you see that stuff, but most of it's really, really clues and horrible information.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Case in point, scrubbing Reddit, looking at the different postings on there on their Reddit group called Real Estate, and also first-time home buyers, fell into a story of a purchaser here in Southern California that hired somebody that he went to the gym with to help represent them when it came to real estate.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: Buying a$1.3 million house, everything seemed to be going well, but there were a couple hiccups at the beginning, and the guy said that he should have known better because it seemed like his agent was really not on his side 100% and only focused on the commission.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: So the couple things that came in at the very beginning were that when he was making an offer on the property, the agent didn't bother to verify the purchase price or maybe give him information.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: One of the things he mentioned was the property was categorized as a condominium, and he wanted the agent to follow up with the seller and talk about it.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_00: And the agent told him that time is of the essence.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: We need to hurry.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: Now, while that could be the case, he should have also informed the buyer: listen, if this is important for you to know, to talk about how the property is categorized, and if your decision is going to hinge on whether it is categorized as a condominium or a single family residence, then if we don't get a response from the seller and he accepts another offer that's not asking that question, we're still good.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: So don't let me know what decision you need to make, but understand that the longer we wait, depending on the market, depending on the activity on the property, is going to depend on whether the seller might get another offer and just take them over us.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: That's when you have a competitive market.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: That is the truth.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: I wish it were different.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: I wish everybody had particular time frames to respond, but the seller has a right to choose whichever offer coming in.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: The other sin, and this one is really, really difficult.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: It can't really justify it.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: So then they did get the property, they got into escrow, and then there were some questions that the buyer had pertaining to the property and wanted more information from the seller about it during their disclosure period, the time that the buyer has a right to ask questions.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: And when he asked his agent about it, the agent said, Well, you know, the seller's going to know that information.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: So this guy just accepted that as being okay.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: And it wasn't until after they closed escrow that the guy started thinking about it, looking online, and of course, then going on Reddit and getting a lot of uh unsolicited, well, I guess it was solicited information.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: He put up the posting and everybody flooded in with how horrible people are in the world.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: And this is what you should have done differently when time came.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: This is what I will say, and this is really the best way for buyers out there to protect themselves and also real estate sellers that are in the particular this looking to buy, and also the sellers sell real estate.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: What you do if you get into uh an issue with your agent, if you're asking them to do something and they're telling you they're not going to do it, all you have to do is just follow up with them in an email.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: Reach out to them and say, listen, Connor, I appreciate our discussion today.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: I understand that you explained to me that you don't want to pull comparable properties or you don't want to ask the seller this particular question and you justified it by saying this.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: I just wanted to send you an email confirming I understood you correctly because the way I get it, I'm the boss.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: I hired you to represent me in real estate, and this is what I want.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: This is what I'm requiring.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: Would you please explain it to me on email so I understand and have the record straight?
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: At that point, if the agent comes back in an email putting everything in writing, then more than likely that agent is justified, but you have just made the record.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: Verbal is wonderful, but verbal is difficult to prove later on.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: You get what you need from your agent.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: You get what you need from the people that you're hiring in the process.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: And because they're working for you, not the seller, the agent that you hire is a buyer's agent on your own side, not representative of the seller, they should be more than happy to fulfill your request because you are paying them or the seller's paying them, but they've been hired by you to work for you in the purchase of real estate.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: On the seller side, they have their own agent.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: I would recommend the same kind of philosophy.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: If your agent is telling you something that you don't feel comfortable with or it doesn't make any sense, then all you have to do is clarify it in an email.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: Now, later on, of course, real estate does have an internal affairs, if you will.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: I come from the police world, and of course, we had an internal affairs.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: So if cops were to screw up or make mistakes or whatever, they could be held to a different standard, and there was an investigative force that actually looked at the police officer to make sure they were doing everything right, and especially with allegations of misconduct.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: In real estate, that same mechanism exists.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's not called internal affairs, it's called RESPA, but there is an organization through the local board of realtors that has an enforcement arm.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_00: That's why it's important to hire only real estate agents that are realtors, because there is that additional level of conscientiousness.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: There's ethics, there's rules, there's laws, and there's penalties that can be put in place when something isn't actually a legitimate crime, but is a some kind of violation of ethics, that more of a gray area.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: But there is an enforcement mechanism, that's why that's incredibly important.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_00: I know people all the time say we got to get rid of real estate agents.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: That little thing I just mentioned, that law, that control mechanism, that overseeing entity over this particular trade group is incredibly important for both buyers and sellers.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: That's why lawsuits that are placed, that are deemed valid, actually work out and change the entire program.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: If you're using something or going it alone, you're gonna have to then hire somebody to sue that other party.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have that additional layer of protection in the process of buying or selling real estate.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_00: Now, when it comes to what you're going to pay, how much your agent charges or what you're going to pay them to represent you in the sale of your house and the buying of the house, that's your choice.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_00: All that stuff's negotiable.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: And if they don't agree with the number that you want to offer them with regard to compensation for the work that they're going to do for you, then moving on.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: Very, very simple.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: I would double check all the agents.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: I would see what they're talking about online.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: Review systems, they're okay, but the problem is that are put on syndication systems that basically agents pay to get your information in the form of leads.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_00: Your decision is valid.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_00: The way that you size up people, it's worked for you so far in life, and some of you might be better at it than others.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: Sit down and have a conversation with this person you're hiring.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: Get them on some kind of video if you don't want to meet them in a particular location or at their office at the first front when you're talking to them, have them hook you up on a Zoom call or have them FaceTime with you so you can see how they speak, their responses to you when they're answering your questions.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: And what questions should you be asking?
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_00: I would just ask them to explain how they are different in the real estate process.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_00: What are they going to do for you that might be different than other agents out there?
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: Where are they online?
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: And trust me, if you just open the door, they'll go in all force.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_00: If you hear something you don't like, you can then make your proper decisions and then of course follow up with them in an email, especially if they're giving you information that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up or you believe is too good to be true.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: I know you can do this.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Connor with honor.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_00: If you want more information, I do keep my blog updated every single day at SantaClarita Openhouses.com.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate you watching today's update.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's kind of nebulous, a little global, but evergreen.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: So please, when you're ready, reach out to me.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_00: Nothing like unicorns, cotton candy, and rainbows to keep one happy.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_00: Be well, everybody.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: I will see you in the next one.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Connor with honor.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: Over and out.