Curbing Fake Bidding Wars in Ontario

In such a hot Seller's market, it seems that some Sellers' agents are encouraging Buyers to bid up the price of a property by pretending to have other offers on the property.  I haven't yet experienced the worst of the phantom offers yet, because in the case of multiple offers I always ensure to be physically present; in all bidding situations I've been involved in I have seen the other agents.  RECO plans to make it harder for agents to fabricate bids by requiring listing agents to keep copies of all offers received on file for at least a year.

In July, Ontario's regulator of real estate agents RECO (the Real Estate Council of Ontario) will be introducing new rules for how agents must handle multiple offer situations.  First, let me say that I like these rules - not that I think they're necessary, but they're a good business practice that any professional and ethical realtor should already be following.  I always keep all offers that I receive on a property because that's just a good business practice in case anything pops up later in relation to the transaction.

Some inexperinced realtors may have bought into the media hype of the super heated market and the horror stories of Buyers losing dozens of bids due to bidding wars.  In my opinion this would only happen in the case where an inexperienced agent doesn't know how to properly value a property.  If you know what a property is worth and only offer that much, plus a small premium to win the bid, the offer presentation isn't that difficult.  Otherwise the agent may have you overpay due to a lack of knowledge - or worse, just to get your deal done and collect a commission cheque.

In a hot market where mistakes can be made and easily exploited by someone who has more knowledge than you, it's best to have an experienced professional in your corner.  You may still lose some bids due to people with either deep pockets or poor representation out bidding you, but you will waste less time with counter offers and waiting around to see what happens.  You might even skip some properties that aren't worth your time.

The new rules won't really change much in my opinion, because the good agents are already following the mandated practices to some degree at least and unscrupulous agents who fabricate offers could still get a third party to tender offers that they have no intention of following through on.  However, I do think that the new rules are good to have, because it brings awareness to the situation and now people will have to go one step further if they really want to exploit the system unfairly - meaning that there's a better chance that unscrupulous agents will get caught.

Want to Learn About Real Estate? Just Ask!

It's 2015, a new year and new possibilities await our choosing.  In my 10 plus years of working as a Realtor® and even longer tenure as a property manager I've had many experiences that have brought me to where I am today.  I've had many good experiences and some bad ones as well; however, I'm still here in the same industry because all of them have been positive experiences.  Positive because although some may have been stressful, you can always learn something from a bad experience so that you don't make the same mistake again and you improve your processes for the future.  When everything goes well, you rarely have an opportunity to learn.

"You can always learn something from a bad experience..."

 

I've had many learning opportunities over the years and I use this knowledge that I've acquired to help my clients so that they can have the best experience possible when buying or selling their home.  Of course I've learned from my mistakes, but an even more valuable resource that I've been able to learn from has been my father, Guy Steer, who has been in the business for over 40 years.  He's helped many different people in difficult situations to  become homeowners and amass wealth over the years.  I've been able to ask him for guidance when dealing with new situations and uncharted territory and he has always guided me straight.

I've had many questions asked of me when people find out that I've been working in real estate for so long.  Of course when working with a client they often have a number of questions that I have to be prepared to answer so that I can help them to make the best decision for themselves.  As a Realtor® I don't make choices for my client, I empower them with information so that they can make the best decision for themselves.  After all who knows better what one wants and needs than oneself?

"I'm... not asked certain questions often... whose answers would hold [better] information"

 

Over the years I have found that oftentimes I do get asked the same question.  More interestingly though, I also find that during conversations I'm also not asked certain questions often either.  Questions whose answers would hold information that would better serve the inquiry.  So, in light of this I've decided that now, in 2015 I'm going to share my knowledge with a wider audience.  I'm going to start sharing information here on my blog so that if I don't have the privilege to work with you, you can still become more educated when making your real estate decisions.

Hopefully you'll find something in these pages that will open your eyes to seeing real estate in a new light; if not just ask and I'll be glad to help!  Here's to achieving your goals and achieving your potential in real estate!  Feel free to drop me a line and ask any questions that you may have.

Happy New Year!

Tyrone