Shaming Scummy Realtors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here with an update. The house is under contract at 1.725.

One of the neighbors got wind of the sale and had a friend who had been looking in 22101 for a livable house on a half acre.

Had we taken the suggested price of the lowballers, we would have left about $500,000 on the table.

Think about that and try to tell me there aren't scummy agents out there.

OP's update is above. In OP's original post, she wrote "The lowest priced SFH in that zip is 1.8."

I don't think OP wanted to sell her parent's house for the most money, sounds like her #1 priority was to sell it fast. If she wanted to sell it for the most money, she would have listed the house on MRIS and asked for offers by a certain time. It sounds like they sold it in a private sale. Good for you OP for getting what you wanted! Sorry to hear about your parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here with an update. The house is under contract at 1.725.

One of the neighbors got wind of the sale and had a friend who had been looking in 22101 for a livable house on a half acre.

Had we taken the suggested price of the lowballers, we would have left about $500,000 on the table.

Think about that and try to tell me there aren't scummy agents out there.

OP's update is above. In OP's original post, she wrote "The lowest priced SFH in that zip is 1.8."

I don't think OP wanted to sell her parent's house for the most money, sounds like her #1 priority was to sell it fast. If she wanted to sell it for the most money, she would have listed the house on MRIS and asked for offers by a certain time. It sounds like they sold it in a private sale. Good for you OP for getting what you wanted! Sorry to hear about your parents.

why attacking OP? Sounds like you are an agent who is not saying anything against them. Everyone knows how shady agents are so I would believe OP on this.

[Anonymous]

If the lowest priced SFH in that zip was 1.8, in what world is an agent suggesing 1.2 NOT a shadey move?

We are talking about $500,0000. If we were talking about 50 grand, maybe you could sway me, but you're talking about a sum of money that buys an entire other house in most of the country.

Of course the guy is a scam artist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here with an update. The house is under contract at 1.725.

One of the neighbors got wind of the sale and had a friend who had been looking in 22101 for a livable house on a half acre.

Had we taken the suggested price of the lowballers, we would have left about $500,000 on the table.

Think about that and try to tell me there aren't scummy agents out there.

OP's update is above. In OP's original post, she wrote "The lowest priced SFH in that zip is 1.8."

I don't think OP wanted to sell her parent's house for the most money, sounds like her #1 priority was to sell it fast. If she wanted to sell it for the most money, she would have listed the house on MRIS and asked for offers by a certain time. It sounds like they sold it in a private sale. Good for you OP for getting what you wanted! Sorry to hear about your parents.

why attacking OP? Sounds like you are an agent who is not saying anything against them. Everyone knows how shady agents are so I would believe OP on this.

To the previous poster. I am not an agent. I think you should re-read the highlighted parts of what the OP wrote. Why would you think that I'm attacking the OP? I am part of the proletariat class trying to make sense of what OP wrote and I think I was able to come to a reasonable conclusion based on the data that the OP provided.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s absolutely not the most sought after zip in the DMV.

Georgetown, Kalorama, Mass Heights, Kent in DC all have much higher median home prices and some of the most expensive homes in the area.

+1 and I wouldn’t even say it’s the most sought after zip in Northern VA. Most people I know wanted to land in 22207. We ended up in 22205, which we prefer over being further out in 22101.

And yes I know there are some exceptionally expensive homes in McLean that appeal to a particular demographic (and also relate to there being larger lot sizes making it possible to build these mansions). I’m sure there’d be $10M + homes in Arlington if 1 acre + lots existed to support those homes. But in general, I know way more people in their 30s/40s who sought North Arlington or FCC (22046) than McLean.

Same. McLean today is for professional athletes, wealthy first-gen Americans (Indians, Asians, middle easterners), etc. Whereas 10 years ago your Deloitte partners or big law lawyers were buying there, today they’re sticking to N Arlington or moco / NW DC.

LOL. Literally 75% of all DC based Venable partners live in Mclean. Like, it's literally where big law goes to live.

Agree. Every house I sold in McLean was to a big law partner. I sold one house with a baseball player who lived up the street and everyone loved him because he knew how to handle emergencies -- charging car batteries, moving brush out of the road after storms, showing dumb lawyers how to release garage doors and open them manually, and showing dumb lawyers how to untangle the pool scrubber when the lines got tangled. I know this because my clients told me the baseball player did all of this for them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here with an update. The house is under contract at 1.725.

One of the neighbors got wind of the sale and had a friend who had been looking in 22101 for a livable house on a half acre.

Had we taken the suggested price of the lowballers, we would have left about $500,000 on the table.

Think about that and try to tell me there aren't scummy agents out there.

OP's update is above. In OP's original post, she wrote "The lowest priced SFH in that zip is 1.8."

I don't think OP wanted to sell her parent's house for the most money, sounds like her #1 priority was to sell it fast. If she wanted to sell it for the most money, she would have listed the house on MRIS and asked for offers by a certain time. It sounds like they sold it in a private sale. Good for you OP for getting what you wanted! Sorry to hear about your parents.

why attacking OP? Sounds like you are an agent who is not saying anything against them. Everyone knows how shady agents are so I would believe OP on this.

To the previous poster. I am not an agent. I think you should re-read the highlighted parts of what the OP wrote. Why would you think that I'm attacking the OP? I am part of the proletariat class trying to make sense of what OP wrote and I think I was able to come to a reasonable conclusion based on the data that the OP provided.

The way you did sounded like you care a lot more about scummy realtors.

[Anonymous]

OP you are totally right about scummy realtors. When we bought our house we happened to go on a walk through for realtors the Thursday before the house went on the market / Open House Weekend because our realtor worked in the same office as the seller's realtor.

We put a bid on the house on Friday and both realtors loved the idea of the house closing quickly. It was during late August and I think people were on vacation and/or getting ready to shift into back to school mode.

Thinking about it later we were amazed that the seller's real estate agent didn't hold the open house and accept all bids until Monday morning. Later we got word that two people put in contingency offers and when we were moving in someone drove by and said they wanted to buy the house and would offer us more for the house (we declined).

Obviously the realtors just want their cut ASAP.

[Anonymous]

When we sold our last house the buyer's agent took the key from the lock box and made a copy. He and the eventual buyers were going in to the house whenever they wanted. We had moved out but lived near by and caught them twice. We had to lock the screen doors and use other methods to keep them out. Our realtor was reluctant to say anything as they were the first to make an offer. We always felt like that agent colluded on the price with the other agent much like the poster above is describing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP you are totally right about scummy realtors. When we bought our house we happened to go on a walk through for realtors the Thursday before the house went on the market / Open House Weekend because our realtor worked in the same office as the seller's realtor.

We put a bid on the house on Friday and both realtors loved the idea of the house closing quickly. It was during late August and I think people were on vacation and/or getting ready to shift into back to school mode.

Thinking about it later we were amazed that the seller's real estate agent didn't hold the open house and accept all bids until Monday morning. Later we got word that two people put in contingency offers and when we were moving in someone drove by and said they wanted to buy the house and would offer us more for the house (we declined).

Obviously the realtors just want their cut ASAP.

What you describe is called a 'pocket sale'. Both agents benefitted from a quick closing and probably everything waived. That may have happened even if the house had been on the open market but the best way to get the most money out of the sale of your house will ALWAYS be on the open market.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP you are totally right about scummy realtors. When we bought our house we happened to go on a walk through for realtors the Thursday before the house went on the market / Open House Weekend because our realtor worked in the same office as the seller's realtor.

We put a bid on the house on Friday and both realtors loved the idea of the house closing quickly. It was during late August and I think people were on vacation and/or getting ready to shift into back to school mode.

Thinking about it later we were amazed that the seller's real estate agent didn't hold the open house and accept all bids until Monday morning. Later we got word that two people put in contingency offers and when we were moving in someone drove by and said they wanted to buy the house and would offer us more for the house (we declined).

Obviously the realtors just want their cut ASAP.

What you describe is called a 'pocket sale'. Both agents benefitted from a quick closing and probably everything waived. That may have happened even if the house had been on the open market but the best way to get the most money out of the sale of your house will ALWAYS be on the open market.

Why are consumers complicity with scummy agents. Walk away without a house but with your moral intact!

[Anonymous]

Op, this shows that the past realtors who were pushing you to sell at $1.3-1.4 were all scummy and didn't care about your gain.

[Anonymous]

We are thinking of listing our house in 22101 on Kirby Road near the intersection of Kirby and Old Dominion. I’ve contacted several Realtors, and the estimates they’ve given me all fall in the same range, 1.2 to 1.4 million. I think that is low compared to other sales in the area, so I’m wondering if these realtors are undervaluing the property Just to get a quick sale and whether I should keep looking for someone else.

Our house is 2,800 square feet with four bedrooms and three bathrooms on a 0.38-acre lot. It was built in 2003 and renovated in 2019. There aren’t many true comps in the immediate area on Kirby Road. I did find one house a few blocks away on Kirby that has a pending sale at 1.3 which puzzles me because it is smaller and seems less desirable. It was listed “as is.” The lot is slightly smaller at 0.22 acres and the square footage is listed at 2,008, which seems odd for four bedrooms and five bathrooms, but listing numbers can sometimes be off. Here is a link to the Zillow listing for that house.

[/url]https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1650-Kirby-Rd-Mc-Lean-VA-22101/51757345_zpid/?view=public

Given that, I don’t understand how a realtor can suggest pricing my house around the same number as a smaller, “as is” property in worse condition. Are these realtors pushing for a quick sale by recommending a lower price? I think my house should sell for more than a smaller, less updated home in the same neighborhood, and I believe 1.7 [url]is realistic. Should I keep looking for another realtor? I don’t want someone who will simply agree to whatever price I choose if it isn’t realistic, only for me to end up settling for less later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If the lowest priced SFH in that zip was 1.8, in what world is an agent suggesing 1.2 NOT a shadey move?

We are talking about $500,0000. If we were talking about 50 grand, maybe you could sway me, but you're talking about a sum of money that buys an entire other house in most of the country.

Of course the guy is a scam artist.

The lowest price SFH in 22101 isn't $1.8M. Not even close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the lowest priced SFH in that zip was 1.8, in what world is an agent suggesing 1.2 NOT a shadey move?

We are talking about $500,0000. If we were talking about 50 grand, maybe you could sway me, but you're talking about a sum of money that buys an entire other house in most of the country.

Of course the guy is a scam artist.

The lowest price SFH in 22101 isn't $1.8M. Not even close.

Even if someone underpriced the house that much, it would lead to a bidding war and go for much higher than list.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are thinking of listing our house in 22101 on Kirby Road near the intersection of Kirby and Old Dominion. I’ve contacted several Realtors, and the estimates they’ve given me all fall in the same range, 1.2 to 1.4 million. I think that is low compared to other sales in the area, so I’m wondering if these realtors are undervaluing the property Just to get a quick sale and whether I should keep looking for someone else.

Our house is 2,800 square feet with four bedrooms and three bathrooms on a 0.38-acre lot. It was built in 2003 and renovated in 2019. There aren’t many true comps in the immediate area on Kirby Road. I did find one house a few blocks away on Kirby that has a pending sale at 1.3 which puzzles me because it is smaller and seems less desirable. It was listed “as is.” The lot is slightly smaller at 0.22 acres and the square footage is listed at 2,008, which seems odd for four bedrooms and five bathrooms, but listing numbers can sometimes be off. Here is a link to the Zillow listing for that house.

[/url]https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1650-Kirby-Rd-Mc-Lean-VA-22101/51757345_zpid/?view=public

Given that, I don’t understand how a realtor can suggest pricing my house around the same number as a smaller, “as is” property in worse condition. Are these realtors pushing for a quick sale by recommending a lower price? I think my house should sell for more than a smaller, less updated home in the same neighborhood, and I believe 1.7 [url]is realistic. Should I keep looking for another realtor? I don’t want someone who will simply agree to whatever price I choose if it isn’t realistic, only for me to end up settling for less later.

Care to share the initials of the realtor?