First step is to revoke the trademark on the word “Realtor.”
The only way to use that word is to be a member of the National Association of Realtors, which is a private lobby that spends most of its money governments, people, and companies that if you aren’t a realtor you aren’t a real estate agent.
Houses for sale usually have locks on the front to let agents access the home, but those Sentrilocks are only accessible to realtors. So the NAR essentially has a monopoly on home sales, and monopolies increase prices.
I am all for that, but like I said, for now, as far as I can tell, the options are a realtor or you sell it yourself. I would love to hear other options (especially in Indiana) because we will be selling our house next year.
There are Real Estate Agents that aren’t realtors. But they’re rare because of issues like the lock boxes that prevent buyers agents from being able to show a house if they aren’t a realtor.
I suppose you could just make them a copy of your keys. But this isn’t a very populous place (less than 100,000 people in the metro area), so I’m not hopeful of there even being an independent real estate agent here. Worth looking for though, thanks.
I don’t disagree, but what other options are there?
First step is to revoke the trademark on the word “Realtor.”
The only way to use that word is to be a member of the National Association of Realtors, which is a private lobby that spends most of its money governments, people, and companies that if you aren’t a realtor you aren’t a real estate agent.
Houses for sale usually have locks on the front to let agents access the home, but those Sentrilocks are only accessible to realtors. So the NAR essentially has a monopoly on home sales, and monopolies increase prices.
I can buy a keypad lock box on Amazon right now…
I’d be more inclined to look at state licensing and paperwork standards if you’re looking for barriers to entry.
I am all for that, but like I said, for now, as far as I can tell, the options are a realtor or you sell it yourself. I would love to hear other options (especially in Indiana) because we will be selling our house next year.
There are Real Estate Agents that aren’t realtors. But they’re rare because of issues like the lock boxes that prevent buyers agents from being able to show a house if they aren’t a realtor.
I suppose you could just make them a copy of your keys. But this isn’t a very populous place (less than 100,000 people in the metro area), so I’m not hopeful of there even being an independent real estate agent here. Worth looking for though, thanks.
Exactly. Finding one is difficult because of barriers to entry caused by the realtor lobby.
Well, thanks for the info anyway. It’s definitely worth checking out, so I appreciate it.
I know someone who became a licensed realtor so he could sell his own house and take/save the commission.
Yeah, it seems like people are pretty locked in.