Estate Agent discussion

Random Hero said:
Why a good liar? do they lie?
Click to expand...

Maybe not all of them, but a lot of them lie straight through their teeth.

They will never tell you how bad the crime is or how many break-ins have taken place, they will almost always try to not disclose too much about any issue with the property and they will often lie about the amount and type of offers they have received. Its all about the sale to them.

Granted, they have to satisfy both the seller and buyer, so there will always be some white-lies. But I don't have the personality to become an estate agent.
 
Random Hero said:
Why a good liar? do they lie?
Click to expand...

The majority do...

When I was buying a house, I caught out more than a few agents trying to lie about structural issues with a property, or a property that was woefully illegal in terms of plumbing or electrical. One house had been extended twice, and the agent was adamant that the structural work on the house was sound, and was very upset with me when I called her on it and pointed out the VERY large structural cracks that were radiating up from the foundation...

Granted, one agent (the one I ended up dealing with), was not aware of some things, and I showed her certain tell-tale signs for structural issues, and she was actually happy that I showed her those things, and then started removing houses from the list of houses for me to see because she had started picking up on the structural issues.
 
I think estate agents are ripping the public off with their exhorbitant commissions. 15 years ago maybe it was justified when they needed to pay for advertising in the papers etc, but these days of the digital era, the high comm is not justified and they just force people to get bigger bonds which have to include the agents commission, thereby contributing to increasing debt with the banks.
On top of this dont forget all the legal fees involved which the buyer/seller has to cover.
 
yes, I bought a house recently and Chas Everitt took 6.5% commission.
 
CamiKaze said:
yes, I bought a house recently and Chas Everitt took 6.5% commission.
Click to expand...

And lets be honest, in some areas the demand is so high that buyers are hounding the agents for houses, no need for any extensive marketing.

In my area, the agents get so much interest that they don't entertain offers with conditional sales or without deposits. If you point out any faults with the property, they simply move onto the next offer.
 
The_MAC said:
And lets be honest, in some areas the demand is so high that buyers are hounding the agents for houses, no need for any extensive marketing.

In my area, the agents get so much interest that they don't entertain offers with conditional sales or without deposits. If you point out any faults with the property, they simply move onto the next offer.
Click to expand...

I found some latent defects that were not pointed out to me after I bought the house.

The agent is not answering her phone, emails or whatsapp messages. I am discussing these probs with the transfer agent.
 
CamiKaze said:
I found some latent defects that were not pointed out to me after I bought the house.

The agent is not answering her phone, emails or whatsapp messages. I am discussing these probs with the transfer agent.
Click to expand...

Has the transfer gone through completely already?

If not, tell the transfer agent to put it on hold, contact the seller and tell them they need to fix the issues.
 
My dad was at first a very successful car salesman, then decided to try property. He hated every minute of it. People calling at all hours, no more weekends, taking forever to close deals. He's now a successful car salesman again...
 
ToxicBunny said:
Has the transfer gone through completely already?

If not, tell the transfer agent to put it on hold, contact the seller and tell them they need to fix the issues.
Click to expand...

Its gone through. But since the defects were not pointed out, the voetstoots clause means absolutely nothing as CPA plays a role now in this case.
 
CamiKaze said:
Its gone through. But since the defects were not pointed out, the voetstoots clause means absolutely nothing as CPA plays a role now in this case.
Click to expand...

Ahhh bugger.

Yeah I know it does, but once the transfer has gone through, it gets more tricky to get the previous owner to come to the party unfortunately.

What kind of latent defects are you experiencing?
 
Selling my house at the moment ... I sold my last place privately and so I initially marketed it myself but after no 'bites' handed it to 3 agents. Have to say that they have worked friggen hard and in less than one week I have had 5 good offers. They have been outstanding at negotiating and are all well clued up. I think that the downside of being an agent is that you can work a place really hard, but then get pipped at the post by another agent bringing a higher offer. You get ... nothing.

And yes, the new CPA now requires you to complete a declaration stating that you are / are not aware of a whole range of issues with the property. This has to form part of the offer to purchase contract.

PS Most agencies these days charge 5%. I have negotiated them down to 4%.
 
Last edited:
I wouldn't want to be an estate agent. You have to master the art of giving the wrong impression while not actually lying, spend all your Sundays showing whiny people houses that they probably can't afford, fend off your competitors who are like sharks circling a wounded seal to a newbie agent, navigate through a sea of red tape and regulatory compliance, and at the end of the process have the fortunes of a family that is making their biggest single lifetime purchase on your conscience.

Not to mention that when the property boom ended, something like 30000+ agents left the industry. Yes, 7% or even a share of 7% of a house sale price might sound like a lot but many of them work many many months to get a sale and more often than not have to split it with a referring agent. I think some of the established pros with a good network do earn quite well, but they are usually sociopaths by that stage. (Just my opinion and a generalization, but based on experience).
 
garp said:
I wouldn't want to be an estate agent. You have to master the art of giving the wrong impression while not actually lying, spend all your Sundays showing whiny people houses that they probably can't afford, fend off your competitors who are like sharks circling a wounded seal to a newbie agent, navigate through a sea of red tape and regulatory compliance, and at the end of the process have the fortunes of a family that is making their biggest single lifetime purchase on your conscience.

Not to mention that when the property boom ended, something like 30000+ agents left the industry. Yes, 7% or even a share of 7% of a house sale price might sound like a lot but many of them work many many months to get a sale and more often than not have to split it with a referring agent. I think some of the established pros with a good network do earn quite well, but they are usually sociopaths by that stage. (Just my opinion and a generalization, but based on experience).
Click to expand...

I was wondering why no one mentioned the buyer's agent. Is this uncommon in SA these days? (I had a buyer agent when I bought my first place in SA). In the US, commission is 6%, usually split to 3% each for buying and selling agent. Each one of these agents likely have to split it 50/50 with their larger realty company, so 1.5% each. There are agents here that make $100m per year sales, so they do quite nicely off 1.5%, but it usually involves building enough reputation to be retained to sell an entire new block of flats for example, or 10s of million dollar properties. So, in general the income of agents covers aarge range - from nothing to A crp load.
 
Hello everyone, just saw this thread and thought I'd share some of my experiences.

I am currently in real estate and let me tell you - it is *not* easy to make a mark in this industry.

If you are thinking of becoming a property professional, this is what the route looks like these days:

You have to become an intern at a property firm - you cannot write the old EAAB multiple choice exam anymore.

Then you have to do an NQF4 qualification while doing your internship. This involves you starting; and maintaining a folder which documents all your activities.

You have to pay for this if the company does not.

Once completed - which could take 2 years; you have to start studying for the Professional Designation Exam (PDE) - EVERYONE has to write this one.

After this is done, you have to sign up for your CPD points - and pay for it too.

Then don't forget to actually do the work of an agent.

Which includes the following:

- cold calling sellers/landlords from the newspaper/gumtree/olx or facebook.
- knocking on doors of potential sellers where you see other agent's signs.
- telling your friends you are in real estate
- telling your SOI you are in real estate
- taking people to house after house after house, only to realise later that week they already already put in an offer on another house and you were showing them "back up" houses just in case.
- driving people around and to houses only for them to throw a hissy fit about not liking the type of house ie. wood/stone/facebrick etc.
- showing houses on weekends and holidays
- taking people to houses on holidays - Xmas and New Year's included.
- waiting avg of 3 months to get your comm.

If you are a rental agent, you also deal with the following:

- arranging service providers to tenants
- hearing from tenants service providers have not pitched
- arranging providers again
- calling to confirm whether they arrived or not
- tenants calling your at night to say their geyser burst and you need to sort it out yesterday
- explaining to tenants why you took their deposit to install a new carpet after they used it as an ironing board - and then listening to their tirade about why rental agents are lower than pond scum
- not getting paid if the tenants decide not to pay rent

Now, don't get me wrong - this is a wonderful career - I have my own time. I can work where and when I want to within the above set parameters.

Would I make some changes - of course, but every job does have its unique set of challenges.

One of the challenges I find with being an estate agent is that no one gives you credit/appreciates your sacrifices but only talk about your shortcomings.

Regarding the poster who asked about buyer's agents - in South Africa we don't have buyers and seller's agents. We have one agent who works with bot the seller and buyer.

In terms of commission, 7.5 is generally the max, but the average is around 4-5%.

Now, on a large sale of let's say R 5 000 000 - that's a whole lot of money - even split 50/50.

However, on an average sale of R 1 200 000 - it's not that much - especially if you have not had a sale for about the preceding 12 months - and yet sellers then tell you to drop commission since you are rolling in dough. :-(

Anywho, my advice to new agents would be to look for the most successful agency and work there. Look for good areas where sales are hot, like Pretoria,KZN, CPT CBD and Atlantic at present.

Realise that you will need at least 12 month's worth of living/operating capital since you probably won't have a meaningful sale within that period.

Realise that you will do loads of "grunt" work like handing out flyers, knocking on doors etc to get your name out there.

Realise that this game is much more about attitude and motivation than anything else.

I have found that this industry is brutally honest - it teaches you things about yourself you would not have found out anywhere else.

Also realise that quitting does not make you a loser - it just means your talents are better suited somewhere else.

Have I thought about quitting and getting a job with a fixed salary - every single day!

Why do I stay on? - I don't like to quit.

Personally - I have been in this business now for 3 years.

In 2014 I had 1 (one) sale. My comm was split and my share was +-R 25 000.

In 2015 I have 6 sales since Dec.

That is the volatility of this industry.

If you can live with that - welcome!
 
ShareMosselBay said:
Hello everyone, just saw this thread and thought I'd share some of my experiences.

...

Personally - I have been in this business now for 3 years.

In 2014 I had 1 (one) sale. My comm was split and my share was +-R 25 000.

In 2015 I have 6 sales since Dec.

That is the volatility of this industry.

If you can live with that - welcome!
Click to expand...

Thank you for the clarity and the effort you put in, in typing out this information... I will diffidently not be working in this industry now. :)
 
ShareMosselBay said:
Hello everyone, just saw this thread and thought I'd share some of my experiences.

I am currently in real estate and let me tell you - it is *not* easy to make a mark in this industry.

If you are thinking of becoming a property professional, this is what the route looks like these days:

You have to become an intern at a property firm - you cannot write the old EAAB multiple choice exam anymore.

Then you have to do an NQF4 qualification while doing your internship. This involves you starting; and maintaining a folder which documents all your activities.

You have to pay for this if the company does not.

Once completed - which could take 2 years; you have to start studying for the Professional Designation Exam (PDE) - EVERYONE has to write this one.

After this is done, you have to sign up for your CPD points - and pay for it too.

Then don't forget to actually do the work of an agent.

Which includes the following:

- cold calling sellers/landlords from the newspaper/gumtree/olx or facebook.
- knocking on doors of potential sellers where you see other agent's signs.
- telling your friends you are in real estate
- telling your SOI you are in real estate
- taking people to house after house after house, only to realise later that week they already already put in an offer on another house and you were showing them "back up" houses just in case.
- driving people around and to houses only for them to throw a hissy fit about not liking the type of house ie. wood/stone/facebrick etc.
- showing houses on weekends and holidays
- taking people to houses on holidays - Xmas and New Year's included.
- waiting avg of 3 months to get your comm.

If you are a rental agent, you also deal with the following:

- arranging service providers to tenants
- hearing from tenants service providers have not pitched
- arranging providers again
- calling to confirm whether they arrived or not
- tenants calling your at night to say their geyser burst and you need to sort it out yesterday
- explaining to tenants why you took their deposit to install a new carpet after they used it as an ironing board - and then listening to their tirade about why rental agents are lower than pond scum
- not getting paid if the tenants decide not to pay rent

Now, don't get me wrong - this is a wonderful career - I have my own time. I can work where and when I want to within the above set parameters.

Would I make some changes - of course, but every job does have its unique set of challenges.

One of the challenges I find with being an estate agent is that no one gives you credit/appreciates your sacrifices but only talk about your shortcomings.

Regarding the poster who asked about buyer's agents - in South Africa we don't have buyers and seller's agents. We have one agent who works with bot the seller and buyer.

In terms of commission, 7.5 is generally the max, but the average is around 4-5%.

Now, on a large sale of let's say R 5 000 000 - that's a whole lot of money - even split 50/50.

However, on an average sale of R 1 200 000 - it's not that much - especially if you have not had a sale for about the preceding 12 months - and yet sellers then tell you to drop commission since you are rolling in dough. :-(

Anywho, my advice to new agents would be to look for the most successful agency and work there. Look for good areas where sales are hot, like Pretoria,KZN, CPT CBD and Atlantic at present.

Realise that you will need at least 12 month's worth of living/operating capital since you probably won't have a meaningful sale within that period.

Realise that you will do loads of "grunt" work like handing out flyers, knocking on doors etc to get your name out there.

Realise that this game is much more about attitude and motivation than anything else.

I have found that this industry is brutally honest - it teaches you things about yourself you would not have found out anywhere else.

Also realise that quitting does not make you a loser - it just means your talents are better suited somewhere else.

Have I thought about quitting and getting a job with a fixed salary - every single day!

Why do I stay on? - I don't like to quit.

Personally - I have been in this business now for 3 years.

In 2014 I had 1 (one) sale. My comm was split and my share was +-R 25 000.

In 2015 I have 6 sales since Dec.

That is the volatility of this industry.

If you can live with that - welcome!
Click to expand...

Brilliantly said!!!!

Amazing how many bad experiences posters have had with estate agents.

I am doing my internship for 6 months now with an incredibly reputable agency.

I am averaging 3-4 sales a month.

Average comm on a deal 5 to 7.5%. I prefer walking away from deals where sellers want to beat you down to 2 and 3%. not worth my time in the long run. I strongly believe in the ethos "goed koop is duurkoop"

General split in comm in 50/50 agent and agency. Dependant on performance split improves to 60/40 and 70/30.

I motivate sellers as much as possible to go the Exclusive Mandate route and this creates competition amongst buyers rather than agents. When you have an open mandate the agents chase to get the FIRST deal rather than the BEST deal, because you are so afraid that another agent is going to beat you to the post.

There will always be the seller on the street who believes private sale is the best. Good luck with the work.
 
Skywalker786 said:
There will always be the seller on the street who believes private sale is the best. Good luck with the work.
Click to expand...

I would use an estate agent if I could afford it. I only bought my house a year ago and am now selling. Spent 50k on transfer and lawyers fees then, would now spend 70k on estate agents fees. I'd make a huge loss. I know people who have sold their properties privately with no issues. They just saved 100k + - hard to argue with that
 
In my opinion, estate agents are to be put in the same category I put lawyers.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X