Over the years, I have received a lot of what I call “second-hand business.” That’s not a slight in any way, so don’t confuse the term with some sort of play on used clothing that’s somehow less desirable, but rather I have worked with many buyers and sellers who have already been through a real estate agent….or two.
Truth be told, there’s nothing “wrong” with parting ways with a real estate agent, and I’d be lying if I said that I’d never been on the receiving end of this either.
But time and time again, whether I’m answering the phone, or receiving an email, so many introductions start with some form of, “We were working with an agent, but here’s the thing…”
Ah, yes! The thing.
There’s always a thing, and it’s never a good thing.
Toronto is a very expensive city in which to live and the real estate market has been hot for over twenty years. Factor in the general public’s obsession with real estate and the non-stop media coverage, and it goes without saying that having a bad experience in the market wouldn’t be uncommon.
Hence, “The thing.” So many of my phone calls start like that.
“Here’s the thing,” a prospective buyer might tell me. “Our agent was nice, and all that, but she was never available! She would tell us to go to weekend open houses, in lieu of meeting us at the property on a weeknight, but some of these houses would get ‘bully offers’ and sell before the open house! Then when we did go to open houses on the weekend, we were like, why are we here alone?”
I’ve heard this one before many times. It’s a very common “thing.”
“I’ve known my agent for years,” another prospective buyer told me recently. “But here’s the thing: he doesn’t seem to have any idea what these properties are going to sell for. We’d see a house that’s listed for $999,000 and tell him we wanted to bid $1,050,000, and he would be like, ‘okay, sure.’ But then it would sell for $1,300,000 and we felt so stupid. So, like, what’s his deal? Does he know anything? Or is he just agreeing with us? Where’s the experience and knowledge here?”
That’s a verbatim conversation with a buyer who had made seven offers on houses and never came close to prevailing in multiple offer scenarios. And that buyer asked me, “Would you be able to represent us from now on?”
Looking for help buying your next home? Download our Buyer’s Guide right here to get started.
How Can You Get Out of a Contract?
I have long maintained that I’m not actively looking to work with somebody else’s clients, nor would I ever get involved with buyers or sellers who are under contract or on the fence about what to do. Even when I’m asked for a “second opinion” by a buyer or seller who is thinking about making a switch, I prefer not to converse. It’s just not who I am, or who we are at Toronto Realty Group.
But can a buyer or seller get out of a contract?
Sort of.
If you’re thinking about buying a home in the near future, here are a few homebuying blogs to help you on your journey.
- What NOT to Do Before Buying a House
- When is the Best Time to Buy a Home in Toronto?
- Is It Better to Buy First or Sell First?
When a seller signs a Listing Agreement, there is a contract duration specified therein. If the contract is for three months, and the seller wants to “get out” of the contract, there are two forms that can be signed.
The first is the “Suspension of Listing.” This only requires the seller to sign, but the listing is merely suspended and removed from the MLS system, and the seller is not free to re-list with another real estate agent until the contract is over.
The second is the “Cancelation of Listing.” This requires both the seller and the listing brokerage to sign, and that would terminate the agency relationship, meaning the seller is free to re-list with another agent or brokerage.
In the second case, as you might assume, the listing brokerage has to agree. If they don’t, then the seller can revert back to the “Suspension of Listing,” but that really doesn’t do them any good.
Many listing agents and/or brokerages will refuse to cancel a listing, and while there might be genuine reasons for that, I always figure that if a seller isn’t happy, then what’s the point of forcing that seller to remain in a contract?
A Few Real-World Stories
In January of 2024, I wrote the following blog post: Breaking Up Is Hard To Do
This was a post about a seller who was seriously taken advantage of by his listing agent, and who wanted to end the contract, only to have the listing agent try everything not to let that happen.
It was pitiful. And embarrassing. It represents all that I loathe about the industry that I love.
But it’s not uncommon, and unfortunately, it can happen on the buy-side as well.
In September of 2023, I wrote the following two-part blog post:
- How Far Will You Go To Protect Your Principles?
- How Far Will You Go To Protect Your Principles? (pt2)
This was a post about a buyer who learned he was being screwed over by his buyer agent, and who wanted out of the contract. But the buyer agent wouldn’t let him out, nor would the buyer agent’s broker.
Neither of those stories represents “good business” let alone professionalism.
And yet both stories detail clients that we worked with and satisfied after they had previously endured poor experiences with licensed real estate agents.
Now to be fair, these are hardly the norm. Both of these experiences were so out-of-this-world that I turned them into blog stories!
Why You Might Need to Fire Your Agent
But there are all kinds of reasons why a buyer or seller might be looking for new representation, to put it kindly, or why a buyer or seller would want to FIRE their real estate agent, to put it more bluntly.
For sellers, it’s usually because the property isn’t selling. Easy-peasy. But every seller has his or her reasons or thoughts as to what the listing agent did wrong, from pricing, to strategy, to marketing, to negotiating, and even if the listing agent wasn’t wrong, some sellers simply want to try something (or someone) different.
For buyers, there’s a much greater variety of reasons why a change of representation is desired, but the commonality is usually a lack of experience or success on behalf of their soon-to-be former agent.
I’ve had a lot of buyers come to me after working with their friend or family member who works outside the central core. It’s a nice thought to have your uncle from Niagara Falls help you with your downtown condo search, but is that practical?
Read more homebuying blogs here:
- Can You Still Find Cheap Real Estate in Toronto?
- How to Choose the Right Type of Mortgage
- New Construction vs. Resale: What’s Best For Me?
It’s one thing to be a good friend and attend your buddy’s “pop-up restaurant” outside the city, but it’s another thing entirely make the largest purchase decision of your life with a potentially unqualified individual representing your best interests.
Many of our second-hand or second-round buyers come to us after consistently making losing bids. More often than not, their agent was either a “yes-man” and didn’t have the confidence or ability to provide tough-love, but sometimes it’s simply a lack of experience, market knowledge, and ability to transact in a frenetic market.
And there’s really something to be said for availability as well. I consider this a 24/7 occupation, and with respect, anybody who got into this business thinking it was part-time or part-of-the-time should look in the mirror. When buyers tell me that their agent wasn’t available for five straight days to show a property, I cringe.
Switching agents is not uncommon.
“Firing” agents speaks to the emotion and disappointment that comes with the Toronto market.
But whether you’re a buyer or a seller, you always have options.
Do you have questions about the market? Or are you looking for a real estate team to help with your next purchase or sale? Reach out at any time by calling 416.642.2660 or emailing admin@torontorealtygroup.com. We’re always happy to chat!
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