From Mortgage News Daily:
Readers Weigh In On Real Estate Competitiveness and Commissions
A few months ago we reported on testimony given before a subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee, largely targeting the National Association of Realtors for what was termed anti-competitive activities. Detractors – and they outnumbered supporters, charged that real estate brokerage is self-regulated with the rules set by brokers themselves and that the industry had acted to restrict use of multiple listing services, unfairly set commission structures, and to undermine less-than-full service real estate agents.
The anti-competition theme was one that Congressman Michael Oxley, Chairman of the parent committee, had been riffing on for some time; requesting a study on NAR practices by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2005, results of which were also presented in testimony at the hearings.
Those testifying in support of the anti-competitive charges included representatives of from government agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission, The Department of Justice, and GAO and industry critics such as discount realty agents and on-line real estate competitors (Redfin and Lending Tree) and, while they were pretty hard on NAR, the Consumer Federation of America was brutal. They had telegraphed their message a week or so earlier with a press release headlined “CFA Congressional Testimony Calls Real Estate Brokerage System Cockamamie.”
I’m a consumer reporter whose stories air in 80 cities nationwide. I recently did a series on the NAR, Justice and FTC. Realtors really need to stop insisting their services have value. The issue isn’t that you don’t provide value: what you have to explain is how sometimes you earn 20 grand for 40 hours of work. Until you can, this issue won’t go away. Period.
An attorney wrote: Several of my clients have been financially harmed by unethical Capital R – Realtors. Realtors must be required to adhere to professional ethics, NOT to an ethical code established by them (NAR). Self-regulation never works.
MLS is a monopoly no different than the phone companies used to have and the cost of selling a home is far too high in relation to the value of the service provided. Away with protectionism, MLS must be opened up to innovative new services.
In the industry as a whole, the realtor is the only one that is self-regulated and it isn’t working. Realtors have been allowed to grossly overstep their boundaries in the finance and title end and their overall knowledge is minimal in these areas. They fear no consequences from their own governing body. In this state, the realtor gives a buyer a printout of properties and the borrower is on his own unless he sees one he likes and the seller pays 6% for that.
Tell me who is *this* realtor working for?
Picture a large 10 acre property in Basking Ridge, owned by a church and being listed by a realtor who listed the property at an unrealistically low price — atleast 30-40% below its true market value, had an offer reportedly the same day and allowed the church to be bullied into a contract that pulled the property off the market (hence no competition for the buyer.) I tried to explain to the church that they should atleast see if they had other offers over a few weeks but the pastor refused to even talk to me. “Besides,” his secretary told me, “we are thrilled — one of our church members is the realtor and — it sold in under a day!!” — yeah, for much less than what it was worth…. Try telling a church going guy that he was just fleeced by one of his flock…. Sad.
Real estate agents truly have replaced used car salesmen as the pond-scum of the earth in my book…. Never have seen such a slimy slimy group.
Smelled all along like an inside deal to me — property worth much more than what the buyer paid and hmmmmm goes against the notion of the listing agent wanting a higher price (and as such a higher commission.)
I really….really like this quote
“In the industry as a whole, the realtor is the only one that is self-regulated and it isn’t working. Realtors have been allowed to grossly overstep their boundaries in the finance and title end and their overall knowledge is minimal in these areas. They fear no consequences from their own governing body. In this state, the realtor gives a buyer a printout of properties and the borrower is on his own unless he sees one he likes and the seller pays 6% for that.”
SAS
on a different note
thinking of getting a Jeep Compass.
anyone know this car? What is sales tax in NJ? should I goto another state?
Last 2 cars I bought, I bought out west and drove home.
SAS
Candidates Are Ignoring $1.35 Trillion Minimum Tax `Time Bomb’
http://www.irnnews.com/news.asp?action=detail&article=14704&category=20
SAS
anyone know this car? What is sales tax in NJ? should I goto another state?
7% in NJ. If you buy it outside of NJ, you will have to pay 7% when you register in NJ. The dealer will either collect the 7% or you will pay upon registration in NJ.
Well, if Microsoft and Bell Telephone had to pay the piper, hopefully the NAR can too.
And David Liareah should be charged with something, ther must be a law with such flagrant misrepresentation and deception.
SAS, from what I hear Jeeps are very reliable these days. Great in the snow/ice/rain too.
Compass, that is one aesthetically challenged car in my opinion. SAS, I would have thought you’d be something like a Merc M class guy. I don’t know about Jeeps, but DCX has had their quality issues so I’d be a little leery. If you are going to go down the little SUV route, why don’t you look at the Honda CRV (just redone) or the BMW X3 or maybe a Subaru.
DebtVulture,
I do have an BMW M5.
;)
SAS
The X3 is very nice SAS. About $30K-ish if you don’t go crazy with options.
Yeah, there’s no tax benefit if you buy your car out of state, but at least you should be able to deduct any payment made in the state in which you bought the car.. So for example if you bought the car in PA and paid sales tax on it there, you’d only pay the difference when you register in NJ. (at least that was how it was when I bought my car in PA and moved it to NYC)
And the Jeep Compass is kinda fugly, I’d hold out for the Patriot..