Realtor Was a Family Connection… and the Experience Was Awful
My wife and I live in Nassau County, New York with our two kids. After 14 years in our starter home, we finally reached a point where we were ready to upgrade and find a larger home for our family.
One of the biggest mistakes I made during this process was hiring my best friend’s aunt as our realtor. She’s a veteran agent who has been in real estate for over 35 years, and I had known of her since I was a kid, although I hadn’t seen her in many years. I also knew she had been very successful in the business. When my wife and I bought our current home back in 2012, we were newly married and purchased it privately at a very good price, so this was really our first experience navigating the traditional real estate process.
When we first reached out to her, she walked us through everything and made a fantastic impression. My wife and I were genuinely impressed by her energy, confidence, and deep knowledge of the Nassau County market. We signed a listing agreement with her, and she advised us on several cosmetic improvements to make before putting the house on the market.
She held one two hour open house, and after that, she essentially disappeared. We did get a buyer for our home, but the buyer came from an another realtor through Zillow even though it was technically her listing. Since then, communication has been almost nonexistent. I honestly haven’t seen or heard much from her in over a month but she will be making a hefty commission from us.
Maybe my expectations were too high, but I assumed there would be more guidance and involvement throughout the process …especially because we were first-time traditional sellers and because she was my best friend’s aunt. I wasn’t expecting constant hand-holding, but I also wasn’t expecting this level of absence and lack of communication. I wouldn’t say anything to my friend because I don’t want to ruin our friendship, but I am very disappointed with how little she did.
Is this common behavior?