Ontheboatout

If anyone has been looking to purchase a house in Nova Scotia (and elsewhere in Canada) they will have come across the unusual difference of Realtors being able to show any properties no matter who is listing them. So you find the Realtor you like in an area and stick with them to help you - we wondered why they were getting cross when we kept switching to whoever had the house listed!

Talking to our local agent here on the North Shore I've learnt that they have to be professionally trained and are, in effect, contract lawyers and liable for any mistakes that our solicitors would normally be responsible for and do all the sale and purchase co-ordination. It had irked me the commission is higher than in the UK (often 6% on a sale) but I can see why. Lawyers fees seem less so I guess it evens out.

They seem to be kept in higher regard here. Anyone else noticed any differences between estate agents in the UK and in Canada?

Almost Canadian

Unless Realtors are massively different over there to how they are in Alberta, this is very misleading. Realtors in Alberta are liable for similar issues as in the UK (misrepresentation etc) but it is the lawyer that deals with the transfer of the land and any "legal issues" arising from the sale. Whilst the realtors are responsible for the purchase contract, it is a standard form and most intelligent people would be able to work their way through a run of the mill transaction without any difficulties at all.

Having said all that, I find the vast majority of realtors over here to be way more helpful and involved in the house selling/purchase transaction than their lazy, database operators in the UK

Jay Bird

Ditto for Ontario.

Poppy2

Well you would be more involved than the databased UK estate agents, if they sell you a house they havent listed, they get a finders fee. Sell a house that they have listed and they get the full 6%.

I sold our last house in NZ in this system and though a great way to buy houses because you get all that attention, the seller however can get given indicators that they have to sell fast and low......the difference of $50,000 in a house sale price is a huge amount to a vendor, but very little to a Realtor. They make a sale and get $15-20,000+.

Their job is to sell you houses, they no more care if it is the right house for you or that you sell at a good price as long as they get houses listed and sales. I personally prefer the English system, at least houses sold themselves to a greater extent and there were no real Salesmen techniques.

Its only a 3 weeks course, so I understand, to get your Real estate papers, and though I know you can be seriously in trouble if you are misleading in the information you give, I do know that the contract is usually a standard one and any monkey can work it out.

Do I sound embittered??

club_biscuit

I've bought and sold in the UK and in Canada (toronto and area) a few times now - I think it boils down to the person you hire. There are good doctors and bad doctors; there are good realtors and bad realtors!

I started out with a bad realtor and didn't know it until I found a good one - and I didn't pay him anything at first because I was the buyer!! He's a brit too and he made a huge difference to me in getting me familiar with the areas and the value of properties in different places etc...and in showing me where my way of thinking was different to that of canada! made it easier for me, anyway and would recommend him to anyone.

Helen Parnell

[QUOTE=Ontheboatout;5912314]If anyone has been looking to purchase a house in Nova Scotia (and elsewhere in Canada) they will have come across the unusual difference of Realtors being able to show any properties no matter who is listing them. So you find the Realtor you like in an area and stick with them to help you - we wondered why they were getting cross when we kept switching to whoever had the house listed!

Talking to our local agent here on the North Shore I've learnt that they have to be professionally trained and are, in effect, contract lawyers and liable for any mistakes that our solicitors would normally be responsible for and do all the sale and purchase co-ordination. It had irked me the commission is higher than in the UK (often 6% on a sale) but I can see why. Lawyers fees seem less so I guess it evens out.

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Unless Realtors are massively different over there to how they are in Alberta, this is very misleading. Realtors in Alberta are liable for similar issues as in the UK (misrepresentation etc) but it is the lawyer that deals with the transfer of the land and any "legal issues" arising from the sale. Whilst the realtors are responsible for the purchase contract, it is a standard form and most intelligent people would be able to work their way through a run of the mill transaction without any difficulties at all.




Thankyou 'ontheboatout' for your kind words about Realtors. In Alberta we are also professionally trained, we also have to be police checked and finger printed. We are not to be made bankrupt in the past or future and have to continue on compulsory courses whilst we are still licensed.

We can cetainly be sued if we give any misrepresentation or advice on the property which was incorrect whether we knew about it or not. Yes the forms are standard forms but you have to know what the forms means to be able to explain it to anyone who has not come accross them before. Plus as we all know as a society some people can not fill in forms correctly or even know what they are signing.

Zap0ne

Hi,

Wow!, what can you say? I guess that you will need to go through the courses take the exams and get started as a Realtor to really understand.

Many transactions can be very straight forward and pedestrian to handle. But, there are also many that are complex. Your agent is there to protect your interests and if it is a simple transaction then how can you get bitter about having to pay? I am sure if your own transactions turned complicated you would not have the same opinion.

Poppy2

well having recently had to pay $16,500 to a realtor (and that was at the NZ 4%), I feel bitter about it because I dont know how they get to charge what they do. Its absolute daylight robbery. They get that commission if the house was easy or hard to sell. And thats ok?

I understand that very nice people work as Realtors, please dont think that I am suggesting that all Realtors are unprofessional or unlikeable, not so. But it is to me an odd, commission driven process, that muddies the already stressful process of selling the biggest asset you are ever likely to own. At least with the UK set up there is a small commission involved of course, but not the huge amount that an individual realtor can make.

I am a midwife, I deliver babies...............I can be in that family's life for 10 months, of which I am very lucky indeed. I dont get tens of 1000's when the deal is finished and I discharge them.

Odd comparison I know, but I struggle with that whole sale's person thing, because that is what it boils down to. And how genuine is that advice, how real is that warmth and understanding?

I digress. I am glad to be the one in the position of buying in the coming year or so, and I hope to not have to sell again for a very long time.

Sorry about the hyjack

Poppy2

And just out of interest............complicated transactions? I would love to have a snap shot of exactly what one of those is, given I am strongly of the opinion that a realtor is NOT a legal expert or responsible for the total conveyancing in the process. Sales is a tricky gig. So is selling snake oil sometimes.

R I C H

The property I purchased included a business premises, 3 types of zoning, farmland, various easements, water licences, machinery etc etc. I employed PWH to ensure the correct taxes on each element were in order, a solicitor to enable the transaction, and the selling realtor. It was plenty complicated enough for me to want someone reliable and professional to handle the purchase.

Ultimately the realtor holds a great deal of responsibility/liability for the sale, and I know of 2 people that have successfully sued their realtor for non-disclosure of relevant facts pertaining to the properties they purchased.

If I appoint a realtor to help me sell my business and property, the fee is likely to come close to 6 figures in commission, but it could take several years to sell - that's a lot of advertising and leg work, and potentially, if another realtor sells it, a 50% cut in income. I'm not especially happy about the prospect of a realtor taking such a large cut, but if they do the job well I can see how it's justified.

Poppy2

Fair comment.

I am clearly bitter because of my experience. We were under tremendous pressure to sell at $125,000 less than the original valuation of our house (in NZ). We did sell, we saw no option and we needed to go. But the people we were dealing with were a married couple who were both realtors and the person acting on behalf of our buyers was the husband of the couple, and HE was the one that negociated the contract with me......now whose interests was he acting on behalf of, clearly not mine. And for $16,500 split between them, us getting significantly less is only a matter of a couple of thousand to them. Nevermind. I hope that I find some faith in realtors when they are acting on my behalf when we next buy. I hope so.

Zap0ne

Sounds very suspicious. Seems like your estate agent divulged your motivations for selling to the buyer. Multiple representation is such thin ice in my opinion.

I do hope that you have a better Realtor experience.