I listed my mom's house in a probate sale with Coldwell Banker. The agent plopped a sign in my yard, then got a few bad offers from cash buyers for about 2 weeks. I couldn't figure out why no other brokers were bringing buyers to see the house. My agent told me he wasn't getting any offers except one low low cash offer, and he was sure he could get them to offer more.
Over the course of about a week, the cash buyer offered enough that I had to sell, because I thought nobody was going to buy this house. The agent drove to the cash buyer's business and picked up a check, showed me the check, then had me sign the sales agreement. But he refused to give me any other information than the buyer's name. No address, nothing.
The buyer had also changed his mind, and wanted a 5 day contingency to reconsider. The 5 days turned into 13 days, and then it started to smell fishy. I never saw a written offer and they told me it was in escrow, only I never remembered signing any escrow instructions.
I went to the Probate Court and they set it for a hearing to see if the escrow and sale was any good.in preparing for the hearing, I decided to see if I could track down the cash buyer. I knew he drove a silver Hummer. It didn't take me long since I knew what town and street to drive down.
The cash buyer was a realtor and his realtor wife, ex-Remax agents who own their own company, Real Estate Connection and Ortiz Investments. Ortizinvestmentsinc.com.
He had an unmarked door for his office, next to the sister-mortgage company he was running his loans thru. The receptionist gave me the business card. I went into his webpage and there was my house and address listed for $150,000 more than the MLS, and he was selling it as if I had listed it with him.
There were about 10 million dollars in properties all over Los Angeles, also listed with mine. I drove to one, and there on his big real estate sign, were flyers, with more houses for sale, and my house was on that list. Address and all. Ever since the first day I agreed to sell, this guy had been listing my house and hijacking my backup offers.
The Coldwell Agent knew he was selling to another realtor and never told me. I found out from reading up, it's called a double escrow, or even a triple escrow. I'll never know. When I told Coldwell, they hard-nosed it, claimed complete innocence, and they were extremely rude and refused to "fess up".
I did a telephone survey of realtors and asked them what they thought, and the answer was "it's common". The FBI and the IRS have been prosecuting realtors for it. The second seller was advertising my house for zero down, no credit, no paystub, ez terms and getting a Federally back loan to pay me off, then sell the loan to an unqualified straw buyer, who can't afford it and would end up in foreclosure.
When I tried to report it to HUD and FHA, I got absolutely nowhere. The phone system sent me around in a loop, and when I did get an operator, she really didn't take any report. The government is non-responsive. When I called the real estate board in California, they could care less, naturally, they're all realtors. It's a self-policing thing.
And speaking of the police: I went to the local police to report loan fraud, and the police said it's common and not illegal, because they know, because they all dabble in real estate flipping. How nice.
Coldwell won't kill the escrow. I have to have the Probate Judge kill it. They have a death grip on it, to the bitter end. I suppose the plan if you get caught, is to just play dumb and hope for the best. Never ever "fess up" and try to mitigate the damage.
So, if you hire a real estate agent, you run the risk of the agent involving you in a flipping scam, double escrow. You can read all about it on the FBI website on Financial Crimes.
I wouldn't hire a real estate agent ever, again. For anything. I'd rather go take the exam myself. I think realtors are a bunch of scam artists. Especially Coldwell Banker.
Shari
Covina, California
U.S.A.
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