Our prime renting season started a week ago - the UVa Medical Center residents were matched and they are now looking for area rental housing. Military JAG families have been renting for over a month for homes available this summer and many rent directly sight unseen from my website.
I post a selection of my available properties on a rotation basis early in the AM on Craigslist. I actually have a spreadsheet that charts out what posts when during the month and I post them early since many prospects are in the Near or Far East on military assignment.
Somehow these prospects are in contact with local Realtors who are calling me on these rental homes. Since I only feature vacant properties on lockbox on our Realtor MLS, either the Realtor or would-be client is viewing these other properties on CL.
Having had 3 phone calls in the last week from Realtors wanting to preview occupied homes (no prospects in tow), I have finally advised them that I am not offering my $250 referral fee for these properties and they should be previewed online. Two Realtors did not understand that my referral fee offer is made in my MLS listing and that just because we are both Realtors, it does not mean that all of my rental listings will pay the referral fee.
I'm curious how other property managers handle referral fee and working with Realtors who do nothing but pick up the phone and expect a referral.
Wallace S. Gibson, CPM * GIBSON MANAGEMENT GROUP, Ltd.
View our available rental homes online with photos and floor plans
"...to be a Virginian, either by Birth, Marriage, Adoption, or even on one's Mother's side, is an Introduction to any State in the Union, a Passport to any Foreign Country, and a Benediction from the Almighty God...." Anonymous
Glad you brought this up Wallace! I too am bombarded by REALTORS seeking payments for sending their "mysterious clients". Because we are able to fill our vacancies ourselves, we do not need to pay an agent (periodically we use our own licensed REALTORS), but it's up to them if they want to make a buck or two and not mandatory. Our website, marketing, and tenant base yields enough coverage.
In a few cases, we will list a hard to rent rental property on the mls for owners wishing to offer a commission, and in those cases, the rental criteria is spelled out up front.
Diane
Diane - times must be really tough for Realtors who want to scrounge for $250...luckily, I've never had a commission only income stream - I guess I am too high maintenance.
In the "olden days", Realtors would HELP clients find a rental in the hopes of selling them a home down the road...I guess those days are gone too.
.... speaking of the topic... just 2 minutes ago we received a call from a Realtor asking if we would pay them for their "special" client.... This one had a voucher which our owner will not agree to because the government doesn't pay enough to cover his mortgage.
And yes, these times are so that "renters" are opportunities for agents to make a little gas money. I once let an agent know that the owner will not paying a finder's fee, and even though her client wanted the house we had (which the tenant found ON HER OWN without the agent's help) she said, "I'm NOT working for FREE" and dragged her disappointed client away kicking and screaming! LOL!
Diane - what is in the water? I just had prospect call me telling me their Realtor said a property of mine NOT on MLS had been rented and it is still on my website AND I posted it to CL this morning...their Realtor LIED to them to keep control and possibly get a referral fee elsewhere.
LOL with Wallace! This is what these days are bringing
Wallace and Diane - We do not have an active MLS here for Rentals however we do offer a referral fee if a Realtor brings us a qualified tenant on a qualified property. For a property to qualify the owner must have agreed to pay our leasing commission which we started on all new management about 2 years ago. We are in the process now of updating our management agreements so that it will be offered on all properties we manage. This has allowed us to broaden the pool of people out bringing in tenants. I too am glad that I'm not limited to income derived from the sale of houses in todays market! I like my monthly 'just about the same' set income. :-)
Betty - our MLS has degraded it's rental section with sales agents listing houses for rent that they can't sell in a 'first one that happens gets the house' which I have NEVER done...I now STRESS that the homes I offer are investor owned and are not for sale....
It's all about staying competitive, lowering expenses and raising income!!!