Back in the day…
In the early days of Real Estate, it was a fun experience working with and against other Realtors to get the best deal for my clients, while also doing the right thing because it was right.
Yes, it was hard, and sometimes dirty work! By dirty, I mean convincing a guy to get down on the dirty ground, sometimes in mud, and crawl under a post-and-block foundation with an Ice Pick to poke the beams, checking for dry rot on the beams under the house. For that purpose. Many of my colleagues and clients knew that I carried an Ice Pickone in the fanny pack I wore side-saddle on my hip. Some thought I carried a weapon. I didn’t dispel that rumor.
Most of the time, agents were helpful and cooperated with one another to close deals that benefited both parties. And I might add, themselves.
But, not always!
My client, a new Pastor at a local church, inquired about a nice house for sale through a Big Shot Realtor who looked down on all other Realtors, especially Women Realtors. My shy, soft-spoken pastor said his congregation gave him $10K as an incentive to move to Phoenix. I explained to him that if the loan officer asked whether any part of his down payment was borrowed and he said yes, he would be denied. I took him to the bank, and he told the loan officer that his down payment was a gift.
In those days, the selling agent presented the written contract in person to the seller and the seller’s agent, many times at the seller’s home. My paper offer was for $5K less than the selling price. I presented the contract for 5K less, with a $10K check attached to the offer. The selling agent presented EVERY reason to say no, or at least to raise the offer to full price. No matter what his arguments were, the sellers remembered that the nice man was a pastor, and were mesmerized by the ten-thousand-dollar check and the fact that my client was a pastor. They accepted the offer, with no revisions. To say that the agent was mad at me would be an understatement!
A couple of weeks later, at an MLS meeting, when he glared at me, I decided to jab him a little, and I casually mentioned, “Oh, by the way, that Earnest money check bounced the first time it was deposited, but it cleared the second time.”
That guy was one of the Big Time Brokers who were nasty to us lowly agents, and we loved beating them at their game. For instance, when you sign on with an agency, all your listings and sales you sweat blood and tears over belong to that Broker! If or when you leave for greener pastures, it was done more often than they would admit. Your listings and sales are all left behind. Soooo… When you left, all sales had to be closed, and you never left a listing behind. It requires a bit of juggling, but I did it several times. My mamma didn’t raise no fools!
One more quick story: My favorite broker was a woman, and she was a kick in the pants! Her conversation went something like this: “I know I owe you money, but you need to stop hollering at me. On the first of every month, I put all my bills in a hat, take them out one at a time, and pay them until I run out of money. Mr. XXX, if you aren’t nice to me, I won’t even put your bill in my hat! And she slammed the receiver down, saying several words I don’t think I should write. I, of course, was falling off my chair, laughing.
She also taught me how to do an Open House! (or how not to do one.) We arrived at our house, turned on the lights, opened all the shades, set out a plate of cinnamon buns, and put our Mountain Rhyne wine in the refrigerator. We then sat in this unairconditioned house for hours. We drank several glasses of wine over ice, and just as we decided to call it quits, a miracle happened! A customer arrived! To my horror, I still remember how we both tried in vain to appear sober, much to the buyer’s amusement. I NEVER drank anything but ginger ale when working after that lesson.
I loved working with her and would never have left if she hadn’t had the brilliant idea for all of us to rent a desk monthly and keep 100% of the commission on every transaction. I figured the math for several months and would have made more money, but when I checked with the state Real Estate Division, I was told it was legal, but they felt the broker would become a landlord rather than a Broker. I passed and went to another company, but, of course, it became normal and legal later.
The only thing I love more than R.E. is writing books. I have produced a few books. Thank you if you have read any of them, and I hope you enjoyed them. I loved writing my children’s books. I think we must encourage them to dream and become the Captain of their ship, the hero or heroine! My children’s books contain a lot of dialogue, which makes them fun to read aloud to kids.
My books are available on Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Everand, Smashwords, Tolino OverDrive, bibliotheca, Baker & Taylor, BorrowBox, Hoopla, Vivlio, Palace Marketplace, Odilo, Gardners, and Amazon.
All my posts are on my website at www.brendacolbathbooks.com.
To read my past blogs, click “Posts” and scroll through the list. I always answer if you leave a comment.
Hope your day is filled with fun and love. See you next time…