Legal Or Unethical

[Joseph44 0]

Hi everyone,

I send mailers out to FSBO's, but I was thinking of sending to sellers who are contracted to an Agent.The mailers explain whole l/o plan. I also have in there the numbers for r/e agent compared to doing a l/o or a c/a, etc. But what if I also put in the info that IF YOU'RE NOT HAPPY WITH HOW YOUR AGENT IS MARKETING YOUR HOME, OR YOUR NOT HAVING ANY TRAFFIC TO SEE YOUR HOME, GIVE US A CALL. WE CAN HELP.

 

I would really like the opinion of this forum. Thanks and have a good day!!

[Brian - L.V. 0]

Personally, I don't believe this is either unethical or illegal, as long as you don't say "IF YOUR NOT HAPPY WITH HOW YOUR AGENT IS MARKETING YOUR HOME OR YOUR NOT HAVING ANY TRAFFIC TO SEE YOUR HOME GIVE US A CALL WE CAN HELP." I say that because if you're showing them the how a lease purchase will benefit them, you don't have to suggest they ditch their agent. By putting that, I'd think that you might be getting some nasty calls from some irritated agents.

 

If they want to do it our way, they'll contact you. Also, the homeowner would have to get an unconditional release from the listing broker before you could move ahead.

[Joseph44 0]

Hi Brian,

I understand your second paragraph and what you are saying. But you do feel it would be all right to send l/o info. On my mailers I do a comparison and show the numbers of a full service broker and and what we offer. So you're saying that is allright but not to go with the last sentence. Is that correct? Thanks for the response and have a good day!!

[Brian - L.V. 0]

So your saying that is alright but not to go with the

last sentence is that corect?

 

Personally, I don't see anything wrong with sending them the LPA flyer or something similar to show them there's a better way to sell. I know that other members are sending out similar flyers to homeowners on the MLS. Like I mentioned before, I'd avoid directly suggesting they dump their agent. If they're dissatisfied, they'll call you. Especially when they realize the benefits we can offer them.

 

Also, keep in mind when doing mailers (or any advertising for that matter) that you need to give it some time and consistent effort to see what's working. You may have to send out 100 flyers a week for a month or two to see significant results which result in a deal.

 

Something that I use in my other business (and didn't think to do until Bev mentioned it ) is you can put a code/reference # on your flyers to track your results. If you're doing a few different forms of advertising, something like LOF215 could work (Lease Option Flyer 2/15) so you know where the lead came from and when they received your info. Hope that helps, Joseph!

[MichaelC 160]

Joseph, just to repeat what Brian has already stated: leave out that last sentence you were contemplating putting into your mailings. That's an invitation for trouble. You can be certain that sometime soon after that flyer were to hit the streets you'd be receiving a phone call from some Realtor or Broker, threatening you with legal action. Ain't worth it. And like Brian said, any homeowner who is dissatisfied with their Realtor doesn't need to be hit over the head to call you.

[Krusty 0]

One thing. I was under the impression that if any form of advertising on the agents part that let you know the house was sale (ie. sign, flyer MLS, etc) actually led to a sale, then they would be due a commission.

 

In other words if it was the MLS that led you to send a flyer to that particular house, wouldn't the agent be due a commission on closing?

[Kimberly 0]

The agent gets a commission as long as the house is under contract -- no matter how the buyer found the house. The agent would also be due a comission if just after the listing expired, someone to whom he/she showed the house bought it.

 

You can ask for and receive a release from an agent who has your house under contract for various reasons. A couple of examples: maybe the agent hasn't been advertising, or you've decided to lease the house