What are the benefits of working with a real estate agent or broker as opposed to working with a real estate attorney?

As a realtor what do you say to defend your occupation when someone thinks there isn’t any reason for your job??

Well generally OTHER real estate brokers/agents do not like working with attorneys because they muck up the contracts!!

Generally people see lawyers as cheaper because they charge by the hour.The problem is attorneys DRAG everything out to bill for as many hours possible so the savings realized isn't much.

An Attorney doesn't know market sales,doesn't know where to find the deals,will not usually talk to people and assemble deals on properties,etc.

Basically ALL they do is review a contract.That is not all that is needed to make a successful transaction.

You could make every arguement and just like a FSBO they might still hold there ground.At that point you move on to other clients.You won't do business with everyone.

Thank you for your reply. You made some good points.

My issue isn’t necessarily with clients, it’s with my father-in-law who thinks what I’m doing is a pointless occupation. I’m done worrying about what he thinks but was curious as to what others say in situations like that.

let him know that i am a former US Marine with no collage education and i make a solid 6 figures..(probably could not do that to many other places, oh.....and love what i do).....if that is pointless i'll take it anyday!

i am only 30 years old and my business will probably double in 2009...fortunatley i have myself to depend on for retirement and benefits..yes, i actually like that.

my family asked me why i wanted to get into real estate until they saw the potential...now htey brag to everyone on how good i do in a horrible market

people should not judge someone by what they do...tehre is a place for everyone....a job is a means of providing the life that you want.....

are you an attorney?

That's impressive estatereal. Thank you for serving and for your response.

I'm not an attorney but a broker.

An attorney is helpful if you've already found your property to buy or if you're a seller who has already found a buyer and you have agreed upon your price. That doesn't happen too often!

Your Father in Law??? Do you owe him money or something? Who cares what he thinks. Give him a box of air for christmas. BigC

Ask him when he's ready to discuss his daughter's dowry.

LOL........

I have a mother-in-law who thinks I would be a good martial arts instructor or a mechanic.I tell her not to worry about me I am doing fine.

Some people see security in a JOB.This use to be the case decades ago but statistics show on average people change JOBS(professions) about every 5 years because of low-pay,downsizing,etc.

I make more than my brother-in-law,his wife,and my mother-in-law combined.I don't tell them that or I would be hit up for money all the time.

Some people will never be able to wrap there mind around being an entreprenuer because they are not hard-wired that way.They see a mindless job and a paycheck as comfort and security.

You don't reach high asperations and dreams by playing it safe and hiding under a rock your whole life.

I wouldn't mention hard real estate times or your business could do better around him as that will just fuel the fire.It sounds like you are just looking for some validation and a pick-me-up but that is not the person to go to for that.

Trust me I go through this every year!

Broker/Appraiser: No I don't owe him any money. He just thinks that it's pointless to go through a broker when people can sell their homes on their own. He mentioned an attorney the one time we discussed this and that sparked this question.

Artiste: lol!

super realtor: This was a one time conversation. Only to inform my in-laws what my new occupation was. I defiantly didn't bring it up for a pick-me-up or validation. I didn't realize he would go off on a rant about real estate agents but he has said nothing since nor have I (or will I ever).


I didn't mean for this question to discuss my crazy in-laws. Lol. I was honestly curious as to why one wouldn't use an attorney over an agent.

I wonder if it's to late to negotiate a dowry with my father in-law. Its been 7 years, I am entitled!

R.A.- take this advice from me- DO NOT EVER be fooled into thinking you can do business with your father-in-law! There may be a time when he softens to your situation and wants to use you for a transaction- DON'T! I sold a house for my in-laws a few years ago with whom I have always had a good relationship and it was the worst thing ever. I gave them a smokin' deal because I represented both sides (3% for a double end) AND sold the house for WAY more than they expected in less than 7 days and I still had to write them a check back out of my measley 3% double-end commission for almost $4k because "they didn't understand our listing agreement" and I "tricked" them. That transaction was almost the end of my relationship with them. They treated me sooo horribly over that, asking "what is it you do, anyways" and "why do you have to get paid so much". My husband was furious with them too and I vowed from that moment forward I would never discuss or do business again with them for the rest of my life. I still harbor resentment over it and it totally has nothing to do with the money but the fact that they apparently have no respect for me and no sense of decency. I cannot imagine treating "family" as horribly as they treated me then. It has been almost 4 years and it still ticks me off when I think about it!

Honestly, there have been very few closings that I didn't have to correct the lawyers work. Just because they are lawyers doesn't mean they don't slip up. Just think about how many times you had to call your client to get them back in to re-sign what they screwed up. Some lawyers can't even get the hud right without their assistant doing it for them. BigC

LaceyF: That's terrible that happened to you! There is NO way I would do business with my in-laws, it has never crossed my mind but, thanks for sharing your story.

Broker/Appraiser: That's a good point.

hearing that story pisses me off! strangers are the best clients!

No I don't owe him any money. He just thinks that it's pointless to go through a broker when people can sell their homes on their own. He mentioned an attorney the one time we discussed this and that sparked this question.
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Well some people can, and some people can't, and some people don't want to. Just because he thinks it's pointless doesn't mean everyone else feels the same way.

What was it that they thought you did that "tricked them"?

I recently had a listing presentation with a very close older couple who treat my DH like a son. They had listed a couple of years ago with a relative whom they were no longer speaking to (first red flag?). For about 200,000 over what they should have listed.

I was completely honest with them, gave them a market overview, showed them comps, did not give them an exact number to list at, because it seemed to me they weren't motivated or realistic. After that, we were over for dinner one night, and the wife told me her husband was unrealistic about their house. Three days later their house showed up on our office caravan, listed with another agent in my office. I spoke to the husband, and expressed my disappointment that he had not told me he was listing with another agent, which resulted in a tirade about how I had "hated" their house, said a lot of negative things, and how could I sell something I disliked so much, so he listed with this other guy.

He is still priced $200,000 over what he should be listed at.

People who see no reason for a Realtor often have never bought or sold property. Or if they have, they had a problem-free transaction, a good agent, and a smooth closing, so weren't aware of much of the 'work' being done on their behalf.

So in cases when someone questions the need for a Realtor, I usually ask them a few relatively simple questions... such as who is responsible for providing the survey, who is responsible for the title insurance policy, what happens if the home does not appraise, who pays for the HOA docs, what disclosures are required when listing a home, what happens if it turns out after the sale that the property is located on a toxic waste dump? Etc, etc.

Generally, they scratch their head and realize that there's a lot more involved than sticking a sign in the yard...

If they still insist that FSBO's are the right way to go, I let them know that only about 30% of FSBO's actually sell. If that doesn't convince them, nothing will.

My offer to them was to represent them on the sale side for free. Totally free. At the time I was at a 100% office so I had that kind of autonomy. I explained that they have to offer a commission to the buyer's agent, they agreed. I suggested listing it "exclusive" for 10 days to give me the chance to sell it myself. They signed an exclusive listing agreement that I explained to them in detail. I helped stage the house, I ran a nice ad, held an open house and sold it THAT DAY for more than asking and closed it in 30 days without incident. After closing, they asked when I was going to refund them the commission. I was like "uh, excuse me?" And they proceeded to say that I said I would sell it for FREE and they wanted their 3% back. I responed with "but you signed an exclusive listing agreement with me for 3% for me to sell the house, which I did." Then they said something to the effect of "you tricked us we didn't know what we were signing". So, they would have rather paid a stranger the 3% to sell the house than me based on what they said. And, by the way, these are not stupid people! There was no way they didn't understand our listing agreement. I explained it the way I do to every client and NOBODY has ever claimed they didn't understand what I was talking about. Besides, don't you think after closing is the wrong time to say you didn't understand your listing? ooooh I'm getting pissed thinking about it again...

In-laws can be bad. In this case from what you have said, hubby should have stood up to them and ended it that way. It looks to me like the money was more important than family. I would have burned that 4k in front of them, before I would of just handed to them. But it's easy to say what I would do. BigC

I certainly think that your seller is being extremely obtuse, but. . . when you said you wanted 10 days to have the chance to sell it yourself, did you explain that if you sold it during those 10 days you'd be paid? Did they sign such a contract?

I was thinking the same thing as Paceryder. It doesn't mention anywhere in your post that your services were anything but free.

Now I'm curious as to what the 10-day exclusive contract was for. Otherwise, couldn't you have just sold it in 10 days without an exclusive?

Linda