TechWife Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 I am regretting our choice of realtor for the home we are in the process of building. The permit process has been incredibly slow and my gut is telling me that the builder is delaying intentionally. The foundation was supposed to be started in January and we don't even have a permit yet, so we are four months behind schedule. We (stupidly) agreed to leaving the closing date blank until after our permit was issued. Our realtor simply hasn't kept on top of this - she doesn't call for updates unless I ask her to. Then, to top it all off, today I get an email from her "assistant" asking if we are to the drywall stage yet and do we want to schedule an inspection. I am so very irritated. Apparently these people don't talk to each other at all! It isn't as if we will change our plans - yet, but it things don't get rolling soon, we will have to start re-evaluating our plans. We didn't turn over the earnest money for nothing, you know? We only have a buyers agreement for her to represent us for the purchase of this house. I am now hesitating on whether or not we should engage her when it comes to the sale of our current house. I don't know that it will really matter - we live in a hot area and most houses sell very quickly after the listing goes live. But then, what if we need her help negotiating with a buyer over inspection issues that might arise? Can I count on her or should I plan to talk to other agents before I engage her as the listing agent for our house? We won't be listing this house until after we move out of it, so I have several months to ponder this decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 if you are having hesitations/regrets over using her to purchase - I would absolutely NOT use her for your sale. is she the one who is supposed to be pushing the builder to get going and she's just not doing anything? I would also start calling the builder at least once a week, and asking where the permit process is. be a pain, they'll be more likely to do something. is it too late to cancel? can you cancel for their breach of contract for how slow everything is? have they even submitted the permit application? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 27 minutes ago, TechWife said: I am regretting our choice of realtor for the home we are in the process of building. The permit process has been incredibly slow and my gut is telling me that the builder is delaying intentionally. The foundation was supposed to be started in January and we don't even have a permit yet, so we are four months behind schedule. We (stupidly) agreed to leaving the closing date blank until after our permit was issued. Our realtor simply hasn't kept on top of this - she doesn't call for updates unless I ask her to. Then, to top it all off, today I get an email from her "assistant" asking if we are to the drywall stage yet and do we want to schedule an inspection. I am so very irritated. Apparently these people don't talk to each other at all! It isn't as if we will change our plans - yet, but it things don't get rolling soon, we will have to start re-evaluating our plans. We didn't turn over the earnest money for nothing, you know? We only have a buyers agreement for her to represent us for the purchase of this house. I am now hesitating on whether or not we should engage her when it comes to the sale of our current house. I don't know that it will really matter - we live in a hot area and most houses sell very quickly after the listing goes live. But then, what if we need her help negotiating with a buyer over inspection issues that might arise? Can I count on her or should I plan to talk to other agents before I engage her as the listing agent for our house? We won't be listing this house until after we move out of it, so I have several months to ponder this decision. Why would the builder be delaying intentionally? I absolutely would NOT use this realtor for the sale of your current home. In fact, can't you fire her now? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted April 23, 2019 Author Share Posted April 23, 2019 1 minute ago, Scarlett said: Why would the builder be delaying intentionally? I absolutely would NOT use this realtor for the sale of your current home. In fact, can't you fire her now? The builder could be delaying intentionally for financial reasons. He has to secure a construction loan and pay workers. He is building other houses in the neighborhood that he is closer to closing on and could be giving them priority. No, I can’t fire her for the purchase - we have a contract on a house and she is named as the realtor of record. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selkie Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 I'd be calling the builder every day until they got so sick of me that they just got the permit and started work to shut me up.🙂 If it's your realtor's responsibility to keep things moving, I'd be calling her every day. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 8 minutes ago, TechWife said: The builder could be delaying intentionally for financial reasons. He has to secure a construction loan and pay workers. He is building other houses in the neighborhood that he is closer to closing on and could be giving them priority. No, I can’t fire her for the purchase - we have a contract on a house and she is named as the realtor of record. Wow. If the builder is having financial issues that may be the bigger concern. Maybe she IS trying to get him to get going or maybe she knows what the deal is (money) and so she doesn't bother. Still seems like you could get out of the deal completely for breach of contract. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 I’m be talking to other agents for the listing of your current home. We bought our first home from a very experienced developer and the developer had a checklist of phases of building work and estimated deadlines. The developer was rather close to their estimates for work completion stages. My immediate neighbor is selling her home and their realtor who is experienced in selling in this area is doing all the staging and open house work very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 2 hours ago, TechWife said: The builder could be delaying intentionally for financial reasons. He has to secure a construction loan and pay workers. He is building other houses in the neighborhood that he is closer to closing on and could be giving them priority. No, I can’t fire her for the purchase - we have a contract on a house and she is named as the realtor of record. Is this a small, local builder or a larger, national builder? IME, building delays because of financial reasons are much more likely to come toward the end of the building process. For many builders, the last part of construction is expensive and when they are most likely to have run out of money for the project due to cost overruns. If you are concerned that the company is not starting the project because of financial reasons, I would begin looking into the financial stability of the company and the likelihood that they will finish the project. The realtor will not really have any control over the financial problems of the builder. Do you have any idea of what the permit process is like in your area? We lived in a town where the permitting process was notoriously slow and arbitrary. I had heard horror stories and then had the opportunity to attend a permit meeting and it really was amazing, there was no rhyme or reason to who was getting permits and when. If you do, however, have any reservations about the realtor, I would suggest looking for another realtor for selling your house. You don't want to be working with someone you have doubts about for such an important transaction. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 The realtor not staying on top of things is a big red flag. Whether it’s the builder’s fault or the locale’s fault that there is no progress, this should not be news to the realtor. I would definitely find a different one for the sale of your current home, and at this point I would be thinking seriously about whether and how to withdraw from the purchase contract. The last thing you want is to move into a home that you are not sure was built properly, and that might be where you are headed if the builder is at fault for the delays. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 Have you expressed frustration to the realtor about the delay with the builder? Have you asked the realtor to get a firm date from the builder for permitting? This is a realtor's peak business season (for the next two months). If she has an assistant, I'd get their contact information and move on. In all likelihood, if she is a high volume realtor, she is likely working 12-18 hour days right now. You're likely at the bottom of the food chain because there isn't much going on right now (you're not in inspections, you're not about to close, etc.) I suspect your real problem isn't with the realtor, it's with the builder. So, take on the builder. (And if you want out of the contract, ask your realtor about options for that.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storygirl Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 I would be so frustrated with that, and I'm sorry it's happening to you. We have only built a home once, and it was already started as a spec home by the time we put a contract on it, so our situation was different. However, the only thing our realtor did for us was handle the paperwork. Any communication with the builder came directly from us. So first, I am wondering if there is a disconnect between what you are expecting from your realtor and what she thinks her job is. Perhaps she is used to buyers communicating with their builders directly? I think I'd be inclined to ask for a meeting with the realtor to hash this out, so that, going forward, all parties have a clear picture of who is doing what. Unless you specifically arranged for her to be the point person with the builder, perhaps she does not consider that part of her job. We did do some negotiating with a (different) builder who was developing a neighborhood. We never signed a contract with them, but we were told we would be assigned a project manager, who would be our point person for all of our questions. Do you have a project manager assigned to you? If so, I would just contact them directly. If not, I would ask the builder who is in charge of your project. Also, you don't have to use the same realtor to sell your current home that you use to buy the new one. If you decide you don't want to use this realtor for selling your home, you can hire someone else; you don't have to go it alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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