Summers, here in Nevada we can only work for one or the other. It is either the new homes sales tract or general real estate with a brokerage. We can't do both here. This is different where you are?

Agent 007,

you cant work for a broker and list the homes of a builder?

I let the sales trailer agents do their "thing" when they're flipping my burger at McDonalds. That's where a lot of them are working nowdays in my area (or Home Depot). I've sold 3 new construction homes in the past month and in only one situation was I actually impressed with the knowledge and professionalism of the trailer salesman. At one of the communities where my client bought a townhome the person in the sales trailer had to "get back to me on that" for most of my and my client's questions. He later told us that he was new and a part-timer. True story.

Well that's too bad about those agents. That shouldn't be the essence of a new home sales guy, but as with anything, a couple bad apples tend to spoil the whole bunch. Good work on getting the ball rolling in the right direction again!

We use our own forms because we have a team of corporate attorneys that has seen the various suits/complaints of the buyers in the past and have tailored the contract to safeguard the company. We could use your forms, but it's different because these are new homes and certainly require different disclosures as a result of that. As for missing signatures...why in God's green earth is the on site agent not doing it with you and your buyers? I cannot fathom even one good reason that he wouldn't if everyone is within close proximity. Of course, sometimes you have to put the contract in FedEx to get the deal done...but I would rather drive 2 hours to meet up with you and your clients than send it through FedEx and not be there to make sure all of the signatures/initials happened properly and to answer the inevitable questions that will arise.

The timelines for getting a signed contract bother me too. However, mathematically speaking, our admin people are busy folks. They can't just drop whatever they are doing to sign this deal. I dislike it, but it's the nature of the beast.

Out here we don't use "closing attorneys" we use title companies. But to answer your question, it's for a few reasons.

1. We own the title company
2. They are properly equipped to handle everything that has to do with new construction.
3. They can dedicate themselves to us and only us.

Based on my experience about 85% of title companies are effectively worthless. At least this way there is a relationship established between them, mortgage, the city, the county, the builder, sales, and all the pieces are more simple to put together.

I have no idea what builders are paying Realtors in your area. Out here it's a bare minimum of 3% (a few stragglers aside) and there are some places that go to about 5% even. Honestly though, if you are in a new home deal as the buyer's representative and you are having to do a lot of work still, then either you or the new home agent are doing something wrong. It's my personal goal to make a Realtor's life easy. It's excellent for return business when deals just run smooth for them.

There is a small grey area here. There are some Realtors in town who are "full time" on site new home people, but they also have the ability to go into the resale market and go that route as well.

I haven't looked into this, but at no given point are you either a "new home sales" person or a "resale" person in a legal point of view. In fact, when I was with the corporate sales team with my current builder I had the opportunity to sell my clients a new home from any builder in town...which I did occasionally.

BTW, not to toot my own horn (which is a nice way for me to warn you that I'm about to LOL) but I took 4 people to communities by other builders, represented the buyer, did it just the way I talked about in my original post, and ultimately contracted 3 out of the 4 prospects.

I may be the only agent employed by a builder to represent a buyer at another builder's site.

007,
All of the new construction is in the MLS and all of my team members are licensed Realtors and yes you can do both here...I can't understand why some areas would prohibit doing both but each state has it's own rules.

I am a partner in the ownership of one of the developments I represent, have the second development with another builder, have another builders spec home listed with other lots available for custom build, and have represented many buyers at other developer projects...:)

A Train

You state that in Nevada that you can be a new home agent and also sell resale properties. You better recheck that because as a new home agent of the builder you can not sell resale properties. The second note is that any agent that would trust their clients well being is not a good agent. You are representing the builder and he is the one who is making your paycheck and your loyalty is to him. This is why you onsite agents have buyers sign the screw the realtor book, otherwise known as the visitor log. You don't even tell them the truth about signing that book. Why should they believe that you are working in their best interest. When I take my clients to a new home community I am there when they sign the contract, when they go to the design center, when they do their walks with the superintendant, when they do the final walk-thru and when they sign their docs. I would not just drop my clients off at a builder and trust that that agent would take as good of care of my client as I would.

LMFAO!!! I couldn't stop laughing at this comment!!

There are over 100 posts in this thread...I suggest you read some of them before you chip in with your $.02.

Realtors do not get paid as a result of the work you put in, that's not what you are worth to me, nor to my company. We could care less whether or not you attend your buyer's design center appointment, walkthroughs, or title appointment. You do that as a courtesy to your client, and that speaks highly of you. As far as we are concerned, it's not necessary. How do you think we get the hundreds upon hundreds of other buyers into contract and through escrow without a buyer's agent? You aren't necessary to the process. You are, however, fully capable of being a big, big, big help, and I'd be glad to further inform you on how you can be part of the solution and not part of the problem.

What you do get paid for is this big phrase we use in this business called "procuring cause". I won't insult your intelligence by reminding you what that is, but that is what you get paid for. That is why Realtor commissions are paid out of every builders marketing budget. Now, if your client happens to come in and take a look and sign the "screw the Realtor" book, as you so succinctly put it, then I'm sorry. You simply weren't the procuring cause of the transaction. However, as stated before, if you come to me and I haven't already put your buyers into contract, I will do what I can to get you included in the deal so long as your aren't an indignant egomaniac who has a false sense of entitlement to a commission that legally you haven't earned. How is that any different than your buyers calling an agent on a sign in some yard, then the listing agent coming in, showing the house and locking your buyers down?

Sure, you'd be upset. You'd feel cheated. But in the other sense, you can't win 'em all, and furthermore it stands to reason that if you were doing such a great job for those buyers you would have locked them down and gotten them in a home already.

I hate to seem brash, but that is the reality of the situation, guys.

A-Train--I am not going to pile on, but I do have one favor to ask you. It will help you and all of us. When you reply to someome on these threads, will you use the quote feature as opposed to the reply feature? I have no idea whom you are replying to on most of your replies. That would make it easier to figure out. thanks.

^^tip

if you look at the top of the individual message you will se "RE: UserName"

That is 100% on the money. Like it or not, you have to educate your customers and let them know how this game works. If they still go to a builder (or a listing agent via sign-call) without you, then either 1) you didn't educate them very well or 2) they don't like you.

Locally: When a buyer executes an exclusive “Buyers Representation Agreement” and purchases a property during the term of the agreement, the buyer is legally bound to pay that agent the agreed upon commission irregardless of who else the buyer may buy through.

There is also an onus on all agent to make a reasonable effort to ascertain whether or not the buyer is currently represented by another agent and to check with our computerizes “Buyers Registry” to see if the buyer has been registered as a client of any other buyers agent and to circumvent some of the problems related to the topic under discussion.

In some instances, a buyer who has ignored the advice of his buyers agent and purchased a property through another agent has ended up having to pay two commissions.

Usually, I make a point of advising a client of such and that I wouldn't want to see them stuck with having to pay two commissions, and so far buyers seem to have paid attention to my advice.

Important Notice: This information is provided as basic educational information by the author and is not a substitute for the advice of an expert and/or the advice of a lawyer. There is NO representation as to legality, accuracy, correctness of the herein information and the reader is strongly urged to consult a lawyer in the relevant jurisdiction to ensure accuracy before acting on this information .

Sure, fear tactics work very effectively...especially when it comes to how fat or thin your wallet may become as a result of your choices.

That's kind of what the builders do to make sure that buyer's agents are doing the right thing as well. It's kind of an extreme measure to make sure that people follow procedure as to your liking.

It's somewhat sad that it has come to this, but a few bad apples probably spoiled the whole bunch a number of decades ago.