Should I Be Honest Tell The Agent That Im Not Paying?

[lovenest 0]

Doing the paperwork lor; one set of documents to submit to HDB for 1st appt, apply online for your resale, go down during the 1st appt date, arrange for 2nd appt, go down during 2nd appt, the end.

You will be disappointed if you expect the agent to come fetch you to go HDB - maybe if you give 2% comm then they will come...

hahahahha...thx zirhk...u've been a great help.

and no i dont expect anyone to pick me up.

anyway im hoping no one will buy the house so he will come to me with the offer. so far im the only one with ready loan letter. the rest made offer but no letter yet. so u see its obvious trying to make best profit for themselve...sigh,

will update

[zirhk3355 1]

hahahahha...thx zirhk...u've been a great help.

and no i dont expect anyone to pick me up.

anyway im hoping no one will buy the house so he will come to me with the offer. so far im the only one with ready loan letter. the rest made offer but no letter yet. so u see its obvious trying to make best profit for themselve...sigh,

will update

Two agendas I have here: One to help you, and one to make sure such unscrupulous agents do not cheat our hardearned money.

Have you checked on the part where the agent wants to incorporate his/her comm in your OTP??

[Homeowner 1]

can u elaborate what happens and what services they do for us after signing OTP that makes the 1% easier for me to swallow???

so that i can feel better about it at least if i feel they r doing a job

I think the key point that GMC was trying to make is not just the paperwork after signing the OTP, but if there is any dispute and problems with the resale flat after signing the OTP, you can utilize the services of the legal department to fight your case...although if both the seller and the buyer are represented by the same agent and thus, the same real estate company and legal department...won't there be a serious conflict of interest?

[raincole 0]

If you approach the seller agent for the viewing of the flat and if you really like it, just approach the owner that you want to make xx offer and make them agree or not. It not, then moved on to the next flat. If yes, then signed OTP and all the docu. Then how come still need to pay 1% to seller comission??? So remember to bring along the OTP with you on every visit (OTP can be obtained from HDB). I brought along 1 copy of OTP even though I am using agent (help them to help you, no point throwing stone on your feet).

Unless the agent wants to do your paperwork. Then you can negotitate with them on this.

Edited May 28, 2007 by raincole

[lovenest 0]

owner not available at viewings...only the agent there..he will 'inform' the owner at end of day.

so he can cook stories hahhahaah

[GMC 12]

Doing the paperwork lor; one set of documents to submit to HDB for 1st appt, apply online for your resale, go down during the 1st appt date, arrange for 2nd appt, go down during 2nd appt, the end.

You will be disappointed if you expect the agent to come fetch you to go HDB - maybe if you give 2% comm then they will come...

"If" the sale is really that smooth sailing, then you can try to DIY. Not all case are that smooth.

anyway im hoping no one will buy the house so he will come to me with the offer. so far im the only one with ready loan letter. the rest made offer but no letter yet. so u see its obvious trying to make best profit for themselve...sigh,

will update

Dont be so black hearted, if no one buys that house, meaning it doesn't meet majority's eyes, so you may be ending up a with lemon.

Other buyers may be either paying up in full, or contra facility which may not require any in-principal loan approval.

What are you going to ask next, "why should I be paying for the valuation report made by seller?"

I think the key point that GMC was trying to make is not just the paperwork after signing the OTP, but if there is any dispute and problems with the resale flat after signing the OTP, you can utilize the services of the legal department to fight your case...although if both the seller and the buyer are represented by the same agent and thus, the same real estate company and legal department...won't there be a serious conflict of interest?

fingers never kenna burnt before, dunno the pain.

Didnt they ever ask themselves, why on earth is there a profession "Property Agent".?

BTW, it is not compulsory to pay 1% buyer comm for HDB flats, it is just an industrial practice.

I would neg for a lower rate and make everyone happy, and sit back be served.

[GMC 12]

If you approach the seller agent for the viewing of the flat and if you really like it, just approach the owner that you want to make xx offer and make them agree or not. It not, then moved on to the next flat. If yes, then signed OTP and all the docu. Then how come still need to pay 1% to seller comission??? So remember to bring along the OTP with you on every visit (OTP can be obtained from HDB). I brought along 1 copy of OTP even though I am using agent (help them to help you, no point throwing stone on your feet).

Unless the agent wants to do your paperwork. Then you can negotitate with them on this.

Let me correct you, if you like the flat, make an offer to the agent that is representing the seller.

It is the agent responsibility to convey your offer.

You may get back fired by making an direct offer to seller.

1) There may not be any chemistry between seller and buyer, where agent can come in to patch things.

2) If offer too low, agent may help you convince seller to sell.

owner not available at viewings...only the agent there..he will 'inform' the owner at end of day.

so he can cook stories hahhahaah

When we sell a house, a good agent will advice owner to excuse themselves during the viewing, this will transform into a more spacious home.

He may be cooking stories to your advantage.

[lovenest 0]

"If" the sale is really that smooth sailing, then you can try to DIY. Not all case are that smooth.

Dont be so black hearted, if no one buys that house, meaning it doesn't meet majority's eyes, so you may be ending up a with lemon.

Other buyers may be either paying up in full, or contra facility which may not require any in-principal loan approval.

What are you going to ask next, "why should I be paying for the valuation report made by seller?"

fingers never kenna burnt before, dunno the pain.

Didnt they ever ask themselves, why on earth is there a profession "Property Agent".?

BTW, it is not compulsory to pay 1% buyer comm for HDB flats, it is just an industrial practice.

I would neg for a lower rate and make everyone happy, and sit back be served.

i asked questions becos im not familiar with how things work with property agents and how they work.

thank you to those who helped make things clearer.

sarcasm not appreciated.

plus im done discussing....i know what i want and what i should do now.

[zirhk3355 1]

"If" the sale is really that smooth sailing, then you can try to DIY. Not all case are that smooth.

This is the reason why there is such a company called "diyhdb.com". Erm I am not from that company or supporting them, but I really think such a service is fantastic and hopefully can put the rest of the agents on their toes.

Anyway, I really cannot think of anything that is so seriously bad in a resale transaction; its really just a simple thing, at most don't buy lor. If you do not do anything wrong, its not like you can lose tens of thousands of dollars or go to jail.

And what can the agencies' legal department do?? Remember agencies are not law firm; they do not provide legal services. Their legal department PRIMARY PURPOSE is to act in favour of the agency and recover commission - along the way as they try to help themselves, you MAY benefit in spin-off, not directly. Let's not talk about unique situations, but in day-to-day cases where the transactions are not smooth, the probability is that the agency will lift its skirts and run away. You really think they will offer legal advice to help you, a NON-PAYING CLIENT?

[zirhk3355 1]

Let me correct you, if you like the flat, make an offer to the agent that is representing the seller.

It is the agent responsibility to convey your offer.

You may get back fired by making an direct offer to seller.

1) There may not be any chemistry between seller and buyer, where agent can come in to patch things.

2) If offer too low, agent may help you convince seller to sell.

In a realistic situation where the agent 'bao ka liao' and represents both the seller (who is paying 2% comm) and the buyer (who is paying 1% comm), what do you think he will do? Persuade the buyer to accept a higher price, or persuade the seller to accept a lower price?

Let's not talk about 'good' agents, 'responsibility' or even 'ethics' lor - in a REALISTIC situation, how many agents out there are good/responsible/ethical? Especially when their ricebowl is FULLY on commission?

When we sell a house, a good agent will advice owner to excuse themselves during the viewing, this will transform into a more spacious home.

He may be cooking stories to your advantage.

Again, in a realistic situation, the true reason why agents ask owner to excuse themselves is to control the whole game - the agents want to pick and choose buyers, not simply based on which one can offer highest offer, but more as to which buyer is paying comm, which buyer is bargaining for lesser comm, which buyer got co-broke agents, etc.

Edited May 28, 2007 by zirhk3355

[lovenest 0]

In a realistic situation where the agent 'bao ka liao' and represents both the seller (who is paying 2% comm) and the buyer (who is paying 1% comm), what do you think he will do? Persuade the buyer to accept a higher price, or persuade the seller to accept a lower price?

Let's not talk about 'good' agents, 'responsibility' or even 'ethics' lor - in a REALISTIC situation, how many agents out there are good/responsible/ethical? Especially when their ricebowl is FULLY on commission?

Again, in a realistic situation, the true reason why agents ask owner to excuse themselves is to control the whole game - the agents want to pick and choose buyers, not simply based on which one can offer highest offer, but more as to which buyer is paying comm, which buyer is bargaining for lesser comm, which buyer got co-broke agents, etc.

true...agent bluntly told me i'd prefer to sell u the house cos u r direct buyer and i get 1% com from u. when i made an offer that will not equate to him earning more than what he was expecting...he said that then its the same as the last offer and was not interested.

[GMC 12]

In a realistic situation where the agent 'bao ka liao' and represents both the seller (who is paying 2% comm) and the buyer (who is paying 1% comm), what do you think he will do? Persuade the buyer to accept a higher price, or persuade the seller to accept a lower price?

Let's not talk about 'good' agents, 'responsibility' or even 'ethics' lor - in a REALISTIC situation, how many agents out there are good/responsible/ethical? Especially when their ricebowl is FULLY on commission?

Again, in a realistic situation, the true reason why agents ask owner to excuse themselves is to control the whole game - the agents want to pick and choose buyers, not simply based on which one can offer highest offer, but more as to which buyer is paying comm, which buyer is bargaining for lesser comm, which buyer got co-broke agents, etc.

I was in that situation, I told the sole agent that he know represents me and don't ask me to pay a higher price. It is his duty to convey my offer and up to seller's discretion to agree to the price. As much as he wanted to help the seller cut losses, he accepted only 1% comm from seller and rebate $500 in cash to them.

I agree good agents are hard to come by. There is still room to improve your networking.

May I ask you, ask a layman, how many times of HDB and Private transactions, regardless of new or resale or even rental have u experience.?

true...agent bluntly told me i'd prefer to sell u the house cos u r direct buyer and i get 1% com from u. when i made an offer that will not equate to him earning more than what he was expecting...he said that then its the same as the last offer and was not interested.

Congrats, the agent see you up, thinking you can pay loh.

Who knows at the end of the discussion, just another .....

Edited May 28, 2007 by GMC

[Maeryn 0]

There are all kinds of agents out there. My 1st agent was my cousin who bochup me after the deal turned sour. HDB rejected the resale application as they caught the sellers subletting their flat out illegally. My agent was reluctant to follow up on claiming my damages from the sellers as I have to incur penalty on my bank loan. The sellers' agent behaved in an unprofessional manner too now that his commission went down the drain.

So I moved on to another agent who found me a suitable unit cos he knows his friends have a unit that meets my requirements. He managed to get me a viewing b4 they mkt the unit and we sealed the deal without the unit being released to the open mkt. He helped me to negotiate for a lower price (his friends did not appoint him as agent as they were confident of their flat). I am happy to pay him the 1% commission in that he found me an unit thru his network and followed thru with all the paperwork, appointments and final inspection.

Not all Sellers want to deal direct with the potential buyers, if you dont want to pay the 1% commission, you may end up losing the flat of your choice. Is it worth it? It's your call

[zirhk3355 1]

I was in that situation, I told the sole agent that he know represents me and don't ask me to pay a higher price. It is his duty to convey my offer and up to seller's discretion to agree to the price. As much as he wanted to help the seller cut losses, he accepted only 1% comm from seller and rebate $500 in cash to them.

I agree good agents are hard to come by. There is still room to improve your networking.

May I ask you, ask a layman, how many times of HDB and Private transactions, regardless of new or resale or even rental have u experience.?

Like I had said above, this is the reason why diyhdb.com was set up and am I glad someone did it! Finally, there is no need to pray and hope that we will meet with the once-in-a-blue-moon "good" agent or be stuck to pay the undeserving commissions. We now have a choice. BTW, I am in sales too, and I cannot agree more that people who work hard and honestly should be paid their dues.

However, that I had not network enough to know that there are good agents around cannot be further from the truth. During a period of time where I was contemplating to become an agent myself, I had worked with several of them (whom are still my personal friends till-date) when I have referrals and also consulted them on the industry. Also thanks to their hard work to close the cases I gave them, the mere referral fees (not commission) I get from my 'freelancing' at that time can easily make any working executives green with envy. But alas, I just felt the industry is not for me lor...

I think this is a friendly debate on reasoning/logic so let's not question each other's background/credibility. I would not answer your question on how many transactions had I experienced, but would only say most laymen in my social circle would always think of me whether they had questions/problems with brokering of properties.

Edited May 28, 2007 by zirhk3355

[GMC 12]

Not all Sellers want to deal direct with the potential buyers, if you dont want to pay the 1% commission, you may end up losing the flat of your choice. Is it worth it? It's your call

I was personally in touch with the seller of my existing condo, the neg was bad as both parties doesn't want to give way and yet both don't want to lose each other. Have no choice but to get an agent into the picture, the deal went thru smoothly, seller was also happy to pay the agent some $1.5k of comm for helping to seal the deal eventhough buyer is not paying comm.