Realty Freak

A Deceptive Listing?

Whether you are a real estate agent or a consumer on a real estate website searching the MLS for property the premise is the same.  You start with a basic set of criteria (number of bedrooms, does it have a basement, does it have a garage etc...) and then narrow down the list to a manageable number of properties to visit.  If you don't start with a fairly defined search, you may find yourself with hundreds of listings to scrutinize before finding the best ones to visit.

Yesterday I was helping a client find a home by searching the MLS.  She was very clear when she told me her criteria, four bedrooms, two full baths or more, a basement, a master bath, and a two car garage all were "must haves".  Of the 80 or so properties I found, only a few of them looked like they would be worth a visit.  This was one of them:

Style: Ranch					Master Bath: Y                    Basement: Y
Air: Central Air					Park Type: Garage
Age: 26-50 Years					#Cars: 2

Sounds promising right?  See if by reading the agent remarks you can find the reason we didn't waste our time with this listing. Download deceptive_listing.pdf

COMPLETELY REMOD IN THE LAST FEW YRS.EURO-STYLE WHT KTCHN, CER. FLRS,NEWER FURNACE,HDWD FLRS IN ALL BDRMS.NEWER CARPET IN LR,NEWER WNDWS IN LR.4BDRMS, 3 BTH.FRESHLY PAINTED, VERY DEEP LOT W/ROOM FOR GARAGE. HOUSE IS IN MOVE IN CONDITION, CONVENIENTLY LOCATED, CLOSE TO TRANS,SHOPPING,EXPRESSWAYS. GREAT LOCATION!

Find it?  This house doesn't have a garage but it has room for one.  And at around $15,000 to build one, this would push the house out of my clients price range even if she was willing to go through the hassle of building one.

What Is a Real Estate Freak?

freak (frēk)

1. A person who is ardently devoted to a particular subject or activity
2. A thing or occurrence that is markedly unusual or irregular

It didn't take long after entering into the world of real estate as a new agent that I realized how flawed the entrenched system of real estate brokerage was.  Indeed, this realization could only have come after becoming an agent because the flaws of the system are not easily noticed from the outside. 

One such hard to see abuse is illustrated in "Freakonomics", by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner.  In "Chapter 2: How Is the Ku Klux Klan Like a Group of Real Estate Agents?" the authors explore one of the real estate industry's worst anti consumer practices, agents hoarding property information and using it to further their self-interests at the expense of their clients. 

So what's with the name of this blog?

"Realty Freak" will be part of my ongoing effort to help change the real estate industry for the better by exposing the less transparent practices of real estate agents and brokers.  (See definition 1 above).  Is doing so unusual for someone who makes their living as a real estate broker?  (See definition 2 above).