I used to really admire Warren Buffet...now I'm wondering if he made all of his money owning businesses that rip off their customers?
I am a real estate investor who has bought and sold hundreds of properties in my lifetime. I have been involved in almost every single type of transaction, both as a buyer and a seller, using a realtor and also doing private transactions.
I own a portfolio of rental properties in St Louis, MO and was approached by a realtor at this Berkshire office who wanted to list the entire portfolio.
The agent seemed like a trustworthy, hard working guy, so I gave him the listing. We agreed to a specific listing commission as a % of the sales price, to be split evenly between buyer's agent and listing agent.
The listing agent let me know about 2 weeks after being listed that a buyer was interested in just 1 of the properties. Being that this property was the "worst" in the entire portfolio, I decided to sell that as a stand alone property (originally I had indicated to the listing agent that I wanted to sell the entire package and not break it up).
The problem was that being that I was willing to dump the property for $4500, Berkshire wasn't happy with the commission as a percentage of the sales price. It wasn't enough money for them.
Here are my specific problems with that:
1. We had an AGREEMENT, in WRITING, for a specific commission (a % of the sales price). When Berkshire felt they weren't going to make enough money on this deal, they arbitrarily increased the commission to a flat fee. When I objected, they basically told me that they would torpedo the deal and kill it...effectively holding me hostage to close and pay their increased commission amount.
2. I indicated to my agent that I wanted to close at my preferred escrow company, Vision Title (side note: they are AWESOME! Ask for Jenny and she will take great care of you). My agent tells me that I can close "my side" at Vision, but the buyer side would be closed at Select Title Group. I assumed, (mistakenly), that the buyer had requested to use Select Title. I later found out that the AGENT chose this escrow company, even though I had requested to use my escrow company (Vision).
2. According to my agent, the buyer came in from Zillow, and my agent "wasn't representing the buyer, just me" which made it even more strange that even, as HIS client, I had requested a specific title company, he forced us to use Select on the "buyer side", even though he "wasn't representing the buyer, just me". When I saw the fees and closing costs from Select Title, it was starting to make sense...
3. Even though my agent "wasn't representing" the buyer (remember, they came in from Zillow), they wanted to treat that buyer as their customer and charge more fees
3. The buyer was a little less sophisticated, and didn't understand that he had to pay closing costs. In order to get the deal closed, I just said that I would pay for the buyer side closing costs. To my SHOCK, I found out that Berkshire had the audacity to charge a $295 "processing fee" to the buyer...to someone, that according to them, they were not representing.
In closing, Berkshire held me hostage over fees that were not in writing. They basically told me they would kill the deal unless I paid their fees.
Also, if you are considering using Berkshire to help you FIND a home to BUY, you will be paying them a $295 processing fee. The standard commission that the buyer's agent earns isn't enough for Berkshire...they will squeeze you for an additional $295.
Ask around, I have NEVER, EVER paid a "processing fee" on the buy side of a real estate transaction.
The bottom line is that between junk fees, going against what was in writing between myself and Berkshire, and their bully tactics and forcing me to use escrow companies that I didn't want (even though I footed the entire bill), the entire experience with Berkshire has been awful.
I would strongly encourage you to work with a different brokerage who doesn't rip off their customers, charge junk fees, or make you use an escrow company that they own a part of so they can continue to charge their exorbitant junk fees.
If you get approached by an agent from this company, RUN, don't walk away, unless you enjoy paying junk fees and being held hostage. read more