This all began when I contracted with RE/MAX Realty to list my home for sale. When I purchased my home the builder listed 2997 as the square footage. The MLS listing had my square footage listed as 2800. Even public records calculations had the square footage incorrect but it was more then 2800 sq ft. The outside measurement is always larger then the inside that is why an appraiser must measure the inside for the actual square footage. I was under the impression that a major part of the sale price was based on square footage, location and the condition of the house and my home is in excellent condition. Square footage in the area where I lived is priced at $100.00. The 155 sf discrepancy resulted in my house being priced at $15,500 less then it should be.
The MLS listing also stated that my home was not listed in the area where my home was actually located. The area where my home is located has very low taxes and a school system ranked among the best. RE/MAX had my home listed in a area where taxes were 3x as high as the correct area and in a less then desirable school system. The area is the 2-4 set of numbers separated by / located in the first row at the top of the MLS listing. When you tell your realtor where you want to live they convert that location into the area set of numbers. Since my realtor listed my home in the incorrect area it would not be on the list of homes in the area potential buyers might want to see. My home is located in one of the most sought after subdivisions in the city. Residents don't move out they move up to bigger homes in the subdivision.
When I advised my realtor Heidi Hines about the above two issues she started to screech and sneer that the house had been measured and smooshed over the incorrect area. The next day I called Heidi and advised her that I was canceling our contract due to her behavior the previous day. I also reminded her that my house was in foreclosure. Then Heidi became irate and sneered at me saying that if she had known my foreclosure date was so close she would not had listed the property. I was under the impression that prior to your signing a contract the realtor checked public records to make sure the property was yours to sell. Those public records would also document the date of the foreclosure sale. My realtor also told me that she spent $700-800 advertising my home and it was wasted money.
From where I sit the money was already wasted since the square footage and the area was incorrect from day one. I asked the realtor to remove the signs from my property and to remove the lock box from my front door. The realtor had one of her staff leave a listing withdrawal form in my mailbox for me to complete and then they would remove the signs and lock box. When I retrieved the listing withdrawal form from my mailbox it stated the reason "seller says she is in foreclosure)" as if it was not a fact but a ploy to get out of the contract. My realtor seemed to have overlooked the fact that her screeching, screaming, and sneering was the reason I was cancelling the listing.
Your saying to yourself I would never be in foreclosure. Neither did I or thousands of other homeowners. You have already reduced the price a second or even a third time and no one is making any offers. Then when it gets down to the ninth hour your realtor tells you there is a potential buyer that can close by the time you need to close. This buyer is making an offer that is lower then your reduced price. Your back is against the wall. You take the deal giving the buyer all of your equity and then some. The realtor gets paid twice once for your listing and another for listing it for your buyer who turns around and sells it to cash out your equity. This is hypothetically speaking of course.
Later that day Heidi called me with a sweet as pie attitude. Heidi advised me that out of the clear blue sky an investor that she did not know called her about my property and was interested in buying it. Heidi told me that the investor offered $250,000, my realtor told me that she told him she was not sure how much I owed on the house or what type of offer I would accept and that the offer had to be enough to include her commission. Heidi suggested the three of us get together and discuss the transaction. I did not utter one word. Heidi told me to think about it. The next morning Heidi woke me up at 8:00 to tell me that it would be a cash deal and to call her back when I was awake.
I did not call back. That same day five minutes after I returned home there was a knock on the door. There stood a man with a baby in a carrier. This man identified himself as the investor, before I could get ten words out of my mouth the predator I mean investor cut me off and told me he never pays list price for a property. The predator investor told me how lucky I was that he was interested in my property and how lucky I was that he was going to give me $6,000-$8,000 over the amount I owed on my home. The investor told me that he was going to sell the house. As the investor told me this he pulled a piece of paper out of thin air and handed it to me. The investor had already signed the paper, it listed how much he was going to pay and to whom (countrywide, me and my realtor). The amount he was going to pay my realtor did not come close to equaling her 3%-6% ($9,000-$18,000) commission.
A day or two ago she was sneering and screeching over $700-$800 and now she was willing to settle for the amount on this paper. Something just was not right then I realized that my realtor and the predator investor were a team. My realtor would be the listing agent when the investor resold the property. Of course the house would be listed with the correct square footage and in the correct area boosting the investors selling price to what my selling price should have been. The investors telephone numbers were on the piece of paper and he said to call him, which I did not. Why did Heidi send this strange man to my home? Once again I called Team Heidi's office in the morning about 8:20 and told them the foreclosure sale was today and to come and remove their signs and lock box from my door.
I was advised they could not do that without the Realtors permission. I laughed and said OK. While I was out running errands I sent a fax to the RE/MAX corporate office and to 30 other offices giving a detailed account of the events and people participating in this listing. I listed my Realtors name and her behavior, MLS listing and the two discrepancies, my foreclosure and the predator investors name/telephone number and how he became involved. I was foolish to think RE/MAX corporate would respond outraged that a client would be treated so shabbly. One of the Realtor offices I faxed the info to called and left a message stating they handle foreclosures all the time and if there was anything she could do let her know.
The same person I spoke to earlier from Team Heidi left a message at 8:32 just minutes after they had told me no they could not remove anything until the realtor gave her approval and I needed to sign the withdrawal agreement before they could remove the signs and lock box. Then around 2:00 there was another message. It was from the broker of the agency my realtor worked from. The broker identified himself and proceeded to tell me that they could no longer represent me since my house was in foreclosure and that the signs and the lock box were removed. The broker said he was sorry that things did not work out the way I wanted them to and I could give him a call if I wanted to. There was no mention of the Realtors unethical behavior, the incorrect listing details or the predator investor.
That call was the result of the faxes I sent to the RE/MAX corporate office and the 30 faxes I sent to other RE/MAX offices. I am still a little confused. My house was in foreclosure when I signed the listing agreement but now they can't represent me now that I am making them accountable for their actions. How and why did they represent me in the first place? My realtor listed me even if it was against RE/MAX policy because she had a plan B and plan B was the predator investor. Thank you for taking your valuable time to read this sad, unethical and disingenuous account of someone thinking I was dumb enough and desperate enough to go along with anything.
I don't think that a man would have been treated this way. But I am sure that a man would be less then pleased if this happened to his mother, significant other, sister, daughter, ex-wife, aunt or grandmother. I was lucky enough that my neighbor purchased my home. This deception happened before the wave of foreclosures. I can only imagine what business practices are considered business as usual in todays foreclosure market.
Sad but true
Las Vegas, Nevada
U.S.A.
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