How to deal with unresponsive agent?

Part rant and part looking for advice.

I've been very frustrated for the past week and a bit, I've been looking at a property. The agent has been incredibly hard to get a hold of. He doesn't pick up the phone, doesn't return calls or messages. Couldn't set a time for an inspection. Didn't have his email address listed on the ad. I ended up calling the agency who also couldn't tell me his email.

First time I got in contact with him was at the first open home. He said he'd text me his email, which took hours to arrive. When I was finally able to email him an offer I stupidly forgot to put in a time limit for the offer.

Now I've been stuck trying to get in contact for the last 2 days to see whether the offer was successful or not.

I'm very tempted to just email a withdrawal of offer and resubmit it with a time limit.

In my admittedly little experience dealing with agents, I've never met anyone who almost didn't want to sell me a house. The property ticks the right boxes but for all the hassle I've been through, I'm considering just letting it go.

How have you guys dealt with unresponsive agents?

 

Decide what you're willing to offer and offer it.

Lazy agents, or those just testing how desperate you are, in my experience wont get back to you unless you are very near to the sale price. They are happy for you to feel frustrated and keep coming back to them.

It's an unpleasant way to do business IMO but it's common.

On the up side when they do get back to you it shows you are likely near a deal.

Finally, Always be prepared to walk.

 

If you think the REA is not passing on your offer, you could find the vendor's solicitors details on the contract and contact them to let them know you have placed an offer but that the agent is being unresponsive, let them know that you are about to make an offer on another property but would like to confirm if the original offer has been rejected first?

 

Those are the "good" agents. @Player once told us, they are great, because if they are behaving this way with you, they are likely dong the same to other potential buyers.

Keep persisting!!

 

Not sure where you have submitted your offer but in Melbourne if you have used the standard REIV contract of sale your offer is only valid for 3 days unless otherwise specified.

With a REA not being responsive my guess is you are not close to the vendors expectations.

Either contact the office, solicitors or just walk away.

 

Thanks all, I walked from this one. My offer was 8% over asking price too, guess it wasn't good enough and sounded like the vendors were waiting for another open home in hopes of a better offer.

Good learning experience too, first time I've dealt with this type of agent.

 

Leave a voice mail saying if you don't get back to me by COB today I'm doing a title search so I can go to the vendors directly.

Guaranteed to call you in 30 mins.

 

Unresponsive agents aren't uncommon in a sellers market, where they're waiting for deals to walk in through the door, rather than chasing buyers. If we have no joy with the lister, we seek out another agent in the same office and, pending this, then submit offer in writing to the vendor's solicitor. That usually elicits a rapid and timely response

 

Jacque, how do you find out who the solicitor is? that's assuming, the unresponsive agent has given you a copy of the contract?

 

I'm interested in this as well. I'm in QLD and I'm not entirely sure about the gazumping laws, but the agent asked for offers to be emailed to him and he would then present them all at once (several days worth of offers) to the vendor. Is this common practice?

 

I'm sure that would get things moving..

 

Our practice is to request contracts of sale on any property we are interested in on behalf of a client. The office receptionist can do this in most cases (if agent isn't responding) and it is in their best interests to provide to any interested purchaser.

If, as has happened on the very rare occasion, they refuse to provide, then we have no qualms in dropping a friendly note directly to the vendor explaining the lack of contact/response from their selling agent. Stick to the facts, make it polite and you may be surprised at how quickly things can turn around here. Best of luck with making it happen

 

Haha the DaveM approach