Is it illegal for Realtors to IGNORE flat fee MLS listings and refuse to show to their clients? BLACKBALL?

Question

We have had our home on the market for a while and have had 4 very serious parties/2nd looks. When our contract came to a close we decided to try flat fee mls and lower the price by $20k. Our house in in excellent condition and we were told it was priced right (by our realtor and those who saw it) before the $20k reduction but we wanted to sell this year. We had a good number of showings and good interest and now that we have it by owner on the mls we have not had ONE showing! Do realtors choose not to show homes that are flat fee mls and is that illegal and a breach of their code of conduct as realtors?

Answer 1

You are trying to sidestep paying a full commission. There are technicalities in this that a registered agent may be aware of, but logic says you are trying to cut an agent's commission. If your listing agent was able to generate serious interest I don't know why you'd choose to cut him out now, when there is action in your market. My thought is to sign with a reputable broker with a proven track record and clean your place up for maximum curb appeal.

Answer 2

What an outstanding query.

This specific query is mandatory data in all courses for licensees.

The answer is, it all depends.

IF a buyer hires a "buyer's agent" and the stipulations are

a house in your area, at your price, with your home's specs,

it must be made available to be shown to a buyer.

ON the other hand, since 95% of all Realtors [i used to be one]

are SELLER's agents [and they may legally be dual agents-

reping the buyer and seller which is the dumbest thing

in RE legal circles!]

--they have no obligation whatever to help tell anyone your

house is for sale.  Way too many agents want both ends

of the commission and they risk everything by doing so........

a flat fee is not feasible to most of them.

--thus, my suggestion is to either list the house with a top

agency who has a good rep and price it as high as possible

so that you can come down,

and if in 90 days you get no action [ONLY accept

an exclusive agency listing, NEVER an exclusive right to sell

and for more than 90 days]

or

sell it for no money down  and I can show you how to

cover your situation as a gift.

Answer 3

I do not know what state you are in and what the others are speaking of but in my Metro area this would be a type of "steering" and it is illegal.  If a property is listed on an MLS and in the price/location a client wants to be in and the Agent does not show it because they will not get the same amount of money as another is breaching the Realtor code of ethics.