Hi,

I'm a new poster and probably should have introduced myself first. I'm known as Bud Mack and I am seeking advice or understading.

I was in the market to buy another investment property. I noticed a house two blocks down from me was for sale. I contacted my real estate agent, whom I have been dealing with for six years and asked her the particulars. We found out the price was amazingly low at $40.000 as the houses in my area goes for 120,000-170,000. No work needed to be done in the house. The real estate agent told me that although the asking price was $40,000 I should offer $50,000 and to contact the bank ASAP for pre-approval for which which I did. We submitted the offer of $50.000. I was waiting to hear if my offer was accepted but my agent never got in contact with me so I called her about two weeks later. She said my offer was too low and another had been accepted.

Six months later out of curiousity I asked her what it went for for and she said $50,000 but that I had offered $40.000, which is not true. In checking the city records I now know the house sold to a real estate company, who she has now gone into partnership with, at a selling price of $40,126 and somehow they paid $27,000. The property is now valued at $134.000 on the city site.

I'm really kind of bewildered as to why she would tell me it sold for $50,000 when it didn't. Why was my offer not accepted? I had preapproval for the $50,000 in hand, perfect credit.

I know there is not much I can do at this point but I'm just hurt by someone I really trusted and whom I had bought 4 properities from. Is there not some kind of ethics in real estate? I really want to confront her but don't know if I should. Maybe I'll just let it go and look for another agent.

Thanks for listening.

Bud

i would encourage you to call her and have a talk. could be a legit reason for the difference in information that you have vs what she has and on top of that, no difference gets solved with silence. good luck to you. please let us know the outcome as many people do not post the resolution and it helps all of us who read.

Ethics are only if they are a REALTOR which is different from state licensing laws. Real estate commissions look at if license laws were broker not if it was "the right thing to do".

Proving Ethics even if a REALTOR will be tough as it happened long ago.

If you bought 4 houses from her over 6 years at a value of say 60k then she has made 2,400 times which is 9,600. Over 6 years after broker fees and splits and taxes it is not much. Not that it should matter but when buying these cheap properties agents don't make much on commission.

Only the agent will know if they stuck it to you or not.If the agent splitting 50/50 can make 40k to 50k profit and with commission only make 1,200 which one would you do?

I wouldn't work that way but real estate is cut throat. Just go out and find another deal with another broker. You don't always win out on every deal.

If you ever want to invest in commercial real estate in the 28 county Metro Atlanta Georgia area I am your guy.

good luck-no legal advice

Thanks for the responses.

When I got home from work after finding out what I assume are the details of the sale, I called my sister who is a real estate agent in DC and has been for 25 years.

She thought that certainly, if it happened the way I said, it was indeed unethical. She did suggest that I talk to the agent and that I should find the signed copy of the paperwork we submitted for the bid. She also said I should investigate who the company is that bought the house. She said that anybody can buy a house and put it under a company name. She said there was a way to look up who actually owns that company but could not tell me where to look here in Ohio. Anyway, she said that if I find out that the agent really did something unethical that I really should go after her.

She, too, said that real estate was a dog-eat-dog business and that if you run across a deal that is too good to be true, the average buyer will most likely never get it. That's a daunting thought for peoople who are looking for a good and fair investment.

The agent has made more money off me than the $9.600 mentioned. I bought my main home from her which was more than the four houses combined, not only that I have sent numberous family members and friends to her which have resulted in sales. So just from off me, she has made at least 50,000 or more.

I still cannot understand why my bid was not accepted if it was more than what it actually sold for. My sister said it may have been a short sale but I really don't think that was the case. Her behavior had really been puzzling me. Before this happened she was calling me all the time with investment opportunities. I've had to call her twice to ask her to look out for me since there is supposed to be such an influx of cheap properties for sale but she has not sent me anything and when she did it was the worst crap you ever wanted to see, houses she should have known would not have interested me since she knows my criteria.

Anyway, I will think about it and see if I want to take this any further. More than likely I will live and learn from this and go on to the next agent.

Bud

Bud even if you find out the details of the sale they still own the house and not you so it's time to move on. The energy you spend throwing into this will not create more cash with investment but moving on to buy another deal will.

You need to think of it this way. Many agents are also investors themselves. If an agent sees a smokin hot deal they can get for themselves and they have the means to do it they will. The leftover properties get fed down the line.

If I had a network of buyers and I found a property I could make 100k on I would try to purchase first if interested and then if not pass it along to my investors. It sounds like she already submitted this deal for you as a client and then decided to buy it herself. If that's the case that is a whole other ballgame.

In my scenario If I buy a good deal my list doesn't know about the property so there is no conflict.

super realtor brings up several very important points:

If it is such a great deal, many agents will buy the property themselves. One of the reasons I became an agent is to find the best deals for myself.

Do not waste your valuable time and energy on this but move on to the next property. There may be better deals out there that you miss by wasting time with this one. Remember what happened with this agent for your future reference.

Good luck and best wishes with your investing!

If they took title to Property in Ohio, then the Company has to be registered with the Secratary of State:

http://www.sos.state.oh.us/Default.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

Feel free to PM if you need help navigating the site.

I would move on though and find a new agent.

Thanks for the replies. I had already determined to move on. I guess it really galls me that I was the one to find the property and asked her to help me.

This has been a good learning experience for me and I will approach things in a diffent way in the future. What's meant for you, is meant for you and apparently this house wasn't.

Dayton, thanks for the site. Just out of curiousity, I will go on to the site to find out who owns the property. If for no other reason than to prove that I am wrong about this person as we are/were friends as well as business associates.

I can respect that everyone is in business to make money but I also feel there is a certain way to conduct oneself. Also, there is the fact that I had tried to encourage the agent/friend that she should bid herself as she did not own a home. She claimed she did not have the funds. I truly would have understood if she had changed her mind or somehow found funding. But I guess it bothers me is that she may have done so in a secretive way. And maybe I'm wrong in all this and I hope that I am. More so than any other aspect of this I am honestly bothered by the lies and not sure that I can trust her again as a friend or an agent.

Bud