realtors vs tv real estate brokers

[stadry]

understand tv real estate brokers are not Realtors but can/do they actively show non-tv broker/Realtor listings & facilitate sales of same ? know the reverse is true - Realtors can show/broker TV listings.......................... thanks in advance !

[Mosells]

Really, and I though, “ never the Twain shall meet”. How long they been doing this?

[retiredguy123]

The term Realtor is a private organization designation. It really has nothing to do with whether they can show houses to you. To sell houses in Florida, you need to be a licensed broker or agent with a Florida State license. In The Villages, you actually need to deal with two different licensed agents, a Villages agent an a non-Villages agent. The Villages agent can show you the new houses and the pre-owned houses listed by The Villages company. The non-Villages agent can only show you houses that are not listed by the Villages company. They cannot show you houses listed by the Villages company.

[Marathon Man]

understand tv real estate brokers are not Realtors but can/do they actively show non-tv broker/Realtor listings & facilitate sales of same ? know the reverse is true - Realtors can show/broker TV listings.......................... thanks in advance !

Why not call them and ask.

[Bjeanj]

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/villages-florida-general-discussion-73/realtor-referral-please-302185/?highlight=Realtor

[bagboy]

TV agents are just that. Agents of the developer that sell new construction, new spec homes, and they list and sell previously owned homes in The Villages thru their Villages Listing Service. They are not licensed Realtors, therefor they cannot participate in the sale of any broker listed home inside or out of The Villages. I have recently seem a few agents advertised as "licensed agents" I don't know what that means as they aren't using the trademarked Realtor designation.
Outside of The Villages, there are licensed real estate Brokers, who own their own office/company, and work representing buyers and sellers. There are also Brokers in Charge, licensed as a Broker but run an office/company for another party. And then, there are licensed Realtors who work for outside of The Villages agencies as sales reps and buyers agents.
Unless something has changed, these two groups are like oil and water. They don't mix, and they don't cooperate on transactions. Realtors don't sell new/used Villages inventory, and Villages agents work for the developer and in cooperation with other Villages agents

[BS Beef]

So I’m cringing at the replies to what may to some seems like a dumb question. But are you saying it’s best or at least not unusual to have 2 separate agents for buying in TV?

[bagboy]

So I’m cringing at the replies to what may to some seems like a dumb question. But are you saying it’s best or at least not unusual to have 2 separate agents for buying in TV?

It's not unusual or out of line to have both. In my mind, it's only right to tell each of them about each other. Remember, this life change and new/newer home purchase us about you, and what's best for you. Good luck!

[pqrstar]

So I’m cringing at the replies to what may to some seems like a dumb question. But are you saying it’s best or at least not unusual to have 2 separate agents for buying in TV?

Yes, you may need two agents if you are wanting to look at re-sale homes.
Re-sale homes can be listed with either a Villages representative or an outside real estate agent who is usually a member of the MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

However, if you are only considering a new home. You will have to use a Villages sales agent.

[champion6]

So I’m cringing at the replies to what may to some seems like a dumb question. But are you saying it’s best or at least not unusual to have 2 separate agents for buying in TV?If you want to buy only new, you need only a Villages rep.

If you want to buy preowned, you should have both a Villages rep and an MLS rep.

[logdog]

If you are looking for resales and want to see all that is on the market, you need two agents.

[Mleeja]

TV agents are just that. Agents of the developer that sell new construction, new spec homes, and they list and sell previously owned homes in The Villages thru their Villages Listing Service. They are not licensed Realtors, therefor they cannot participate in the sale of any broker listed home inside or out of The Villages. I have recently seem a few agents advertised as "licensed agents" I don't know what that means as they aren't using the trademarked Realtor designation.
Outside of The Villages, there are licensed real estate Brokers, who own their own office/company, and work representing buyers and sellers. There are also Brokers in Charge, licensed as a Broker but run an office/company for another party. And then, there are licensed Realtors who work for outside of The Villages agencies as sales reps and buyers agents.
Unless something has changed, these two groups are like oil and water. They don't mix, and they don't cooperate on transactions. Realtors don't sell new/used Villages inventory, and Villages agents work for the developer and in cooperation with other Villages agents

Realtors of The Villages are licensed. They do not cross sell with non-Villages Realtors, but they do cooperate with them. At least ours did. She recommended a non-Villages Realtor and facilitated the initial meeting.

[vintageogauge]

When we were planning on moving down here I sent a list of our requirements to both The Villages and to a popular MLS agent. Both said they had many homes lined up to show us. When we arrived the MLS agent did not have a single home for us to look at with the requirements I sent to him but The Villages agent, Beth Pope, had quite a few, some of the ones we were interested in were already sold but she still had some that met our criteria to show us, we had interest in two of them. The next day she asked if we would like to see new homes in Fenney which was just starting so we drove down and bought a new spec. home within an hour, there was such a huge price difference when comparing apples to apples that we could not pass it up. It will be 3 years in early May and we are very happy living down here.

[BS Beef]

When we were planning on moving down here I sent a list of our requirements to both The Villages and to a popular MLS agent. Both said they had many homes lined up to show us. When we arrived the MLS agent did not have a single home for us to look at with the requirements I sent to him but The Villages agent, Beth Pope, had quite a few, some of the ones we were interested in were already sold but she still had some that met our criteria to show us, we had interest in two of them. The next day she asked if we would like to see new homes in Fenney which was just starting so we drove down and bought a new spec. home within an hour, there was such a huge price difference when comparing apples to apples that we could not pass it up. It will be 3 years in early May and we are very happy living down here.
That’s great. Thanks for the thoughtful reply! :coolsmiley:

[gsovas]

Really, and I though, “ never the Twain shall meet”. How long they been doing this?

Ever since Moby Dick was a Guppy!
I was misled by a TV sales person saying she was a licensed broker when we were looking here in 2015. The whole time she knew we were real estate sales people from a different State and we had a very open conversation. However after two days of showing us homes and then we put an offer on one home, we decided to back out because we realized that this sales person was not working for us as a real estate agent does. So we went home, sold our home first, spent the summer up north at the same time looking on line at different properties offered by outside Real Estate professionals. Do you know what we found? The same properties listed for $50,000 leass!

[Leadbone1]

I was a realtor in Ohio for 12 years before I came here last year. I checked it out. The villages real estate people are not Realtors. They are sales people, but they do have a Florida real estate license. They cannot show multiple-listing homes like from Realty executives or Century 21. Conversely actual Realtors cannot show the Villages listings. Hope that clears it up

[redboat]

Not true TV sales associates can only show new and resales listed with TV and are not multiple listing members. In addition sales associates push buyers towards new construction. Resale through multiple listing Realtors is the best.

[stadry]

even i knew this part but thought it apparent to all & just confirmed in this thread,,, 'Realtors' of The Villages do NOT exist as they are NOT 'Realtors'l ( copyrighted word which can be used by only members of the Natl Assoc. of Realtors ),,, tv re brokers are licensed by the state as real estate brokers & sales reps but are not 'Realtors'
i wasn't asking for myself for for a friend who's selling her rental in tv & has a tv broker living next door.
understand re sales have plummeted in tv - they have too up here in atl
THANKS FOR THE CLARIFICATION - APPRECIATE YOUR HELP ! ! !

[Carolynphelps]

The Village realtors are licensed by the State. Please check your facts.

[ladyarwen3]

So I’m cringing at the replies to what may to some seems like a dumb question. But are you saying it’s best or at least not unusual to have 2 separate agents for buying in TV?

That's what I did. I had a Villages agent and a multilist agent. Ended up buying through the multilist. If you want a new home however, you MUST use TV agent.

[mikeritz53]

Well said, but in addition the Village Sales people are just that. They are a Marketing staff employed by The Developer so they do not have to be and are not licensed. A Realtor has to take courses and a test to get Licensed, comply with a firm set of Ethics rules and take Continuing Education courses annually to maintain their License.

[retiredguy123]

The Village realtors are licensed by the State. Please check your facts.
Can you please clarify? Are you referring to the agents who work for The Villages company? Because, when I search the "Find a Realtor" website, I cannot identify any of the well known Villages agents on the National Association of Realtors list. The term "Realtor" is not a generic term. It is a label provided by the NAR, which is a trade association, and they do not license people to sell houses. That is done by the State. You don't need to be a Realtor to sell houses in Florida, but you do need a Florida license.

[SnowflakeinDeLaVista]

It is my understanding that many of the people that show pre-owned homes for The Villages are called marketing agents or something like that. There are actual licensed realtors-and sometimes they do show houses- but the marketing agents are in effect representing licensed real estate agents when they show a house. At least that is what we were told a few years ago. It may have changed since then.

[merrymini]

When we looked, we had a villages rep and an outside realtor because they do not overlap and we wanted to see the entire market. We bought a resale, although through the villages. When we sold after buying a new house through the villages, we listed with the villages and were very disappointed. We eventually sold with Remax and an agent who was terrific. A lot of experiences have to do with the real estate PERSON you deal with. I would not list with the villages because their focus is on selling new properties.

[jonathanb]

I am a retired Villages real estate representative. We are all licensed Florida real estate agents. Because Properties of The Villages does not co broke with outside brokerages we cannot sell their pre owned listings and they cannot sell Properties of The Villages pre owned listings. Also, Outside brokers cannot sell new homes. Only Properties of The Villages reps can sell them. We are not realtors because our broker does not require us to be Being a realtor just means you paid dues to belong to the national association of realtors. It is not an added license. I know I was a realtor in Pa.

[jonathanb]

So I’m cringing at the replies to what may to some seems like a dumb question. But are you saying it’s best or at least not unusual to have 2 separate agents for buying in TV?
Bottom line is The Villages reps are licensed by the state but The Villages does not co broke with MLS brokers. If you want to see a greater number of pre owned homes you will need to agents. One Villages agent and an outside agent. But for new construction only a Villages rep can show and sell them.

[Bobzlla]

We worked with a TV sales agent a couple months ago who showed us several new and previously owned homes from their inventory. We had
also viewed a few non- TV listings when there were open houses. As we had a good relationship with our TV agent, we approached him about seeing some other homes listed by outside agents. He advised he was happy to take us around and arrange appointments, however he receives no compensation if we do proceed with a purchase of one. There is no arrangement obviously to have shared commission.

[tophcfa]

We specifically wanted a pre-owned home with a private back yard, either a pool or room to build one, little to no remaining bond balance, and under a certain price point. We used both a VIllages Real Estate Agent as well as a Liscenced Independent Realator, with access to the Multiple Listing Service. This allowed us to search ALL pre-owned homes on the market (except for sale by owners) that appeared to fit our criteria. Our search criteria resulted almost exclusively in homes north of 466, which was our preference anyways. We were careful to select a Villages Real Estate Agent that was previously a licensed real estate agent, so we knew we would be working with someone who had prior experience working for buyers as well as sellers (Villages Real Estate Agents do not work for buyers). We made it very clear to our Villages agent we were not interested in a new home and she never once tried to push us in that direction. We must have looked at 50 houses, about 30 Villages listings and about 20 Multiple Listings by independent Realators. During our home showings we insisted on walking around each home before wasting everyone’s time going through the house. We walked away from about half the showings after seeing that despite the back yard having enough room to build a pool, there would be little to no privacy.

We really liked both our agents, but were hoping to buy a home through the independent Licensed Agent, who represented us. At the end, the home we decided on was a Villages listing. Five years later we have no regrets with our choice. T & D built us an incredible pool/birdcage in our back yard that abuts a beautiful preserve with fantastic sunsets, we came in just under our budget after building a brand new pool, our home has no bond, and we love living right between LSL and Spanish Springs. Hope things work out for the OP as well as it did for us.

[vintageogauge]

Not true TV sales associates can only show new and resales listed with TV and are not multiple listing members. In addition sales associates push buyers towards new construction. Resale through multiple listing Realtors is the best.

That's not true either. We were not pushed towards buying new construction, after looking at used homes we were down to deciding between 2, our realtor asked (not pushed) if we were interested in seeing the new section of Fenney at the time and we said we would like to see it. She did not have to push us, we realized the huge savings that were available down here and bought a new spec. home immediately. We are very thankful to our Sales Agent Beth Pope.

[vintageogauge]

When we looked, we had a villages rep and an outside realtor because they do not overlap and we wanted to see the entire market. We bought a resale, although through the villages. When we sold after buying a new house through the villages, we listed with the villages and were very disappointed. We eventually sold with Remax and an agent who was terrific. A lot of experiences have to do with the real estate PERSON you deal with. I would not list with the villages because their focus is on selling new properties.

The Villages sells just about as many re-sale homes as all of the MLS companies combined. I'm not saying which way is better but numbers don't lie. Picking the right agent is more important than which way you go. With MLS agents there are top listers and top sellers if listing to sell I think you know which ranking to go with.

[Stu from NYC]

We moved into the villages 2 months ago.
Were working with an MLS broker but we were not satisfied with the houses she had to show us and hooked up with a Villages realtor and found our house.
The two groups definitely do not play together at all.

[retiredguy123]

If you are buying a house, I recommend using an experienced Villages agent who will refer you to an outside agent for the MLS listings that you may want to view. That way, you have access to all available houses, and you will not create a conflict. A good Villages agent will be happy to suggest an outside agent. If they won't, I would find another Villages agent who will.

[MEbner2805]

That’s actually untrue! Caldwell banker can show villages realty properties but if a sale occurs by their client, they can’t get the commission. A villages realtor will usually be at their listed house to help show it to the outside realtor and their client buyer.

[larcha]

Having two agents if you are looking to buy, one from TV and one using MLS, is advisable in order to see the full range of properties available. But what if you are selling? Other than one or the other not willing to participate in a dual listing wouldn't I want the most exposure for my property by listing both with TV and on MLS?

[MEbner2805]

No realtor will allow you to duel list your home for sale and split the commission!!! That makes no sense and you are signing a contract with the realty agent to put it on the market and that means they have sole sale rights! No such thing as dual listing a home for sale. Where did you get that idea? ������*♀️

[pcacace]

Excellent explanation!

[Mosells]

Two different agents showing you houses. When you find a house you like the agent that showed you the house will consummate the deal.

[mowdie]

Zillow. For years it seemed like almost all MLS listings were north of 466. Zillow, the last six months have so many more all the way down to 44.
On TV preowned listings it looks like they have less than before.
Here is my question, when selling using MLS can the commission be negotiated below 6%?

[retiredguy123]

Zillow. For years it seemed like almost all MLS listings were north of 466. Zillow, the last six months have so many more all the way down to 44.
On TV preowned listings it looks like they have less than before.
Here is my question, when selling using MLS can the commission be negotiated below 6%?
The commission can definitely be negotiated, especially the listing agent's part. Some agents even advertise a 4 percent commission, with 3 percent going to the selling agent.

[WinnieHa]

Remember, The Villages is an anomaly.....different. The replies that I have read are correct. You need two realtors if you want too see the whole universe of what is available for sale in The Villages. This is unique. If you are coming in on the Life Style plan, you might feel a loyalty to the Villages rep that takes you around and that is natural. We just bought in July 2019 and it took us a minute to understand the situation. Your Villages Rep will likely not tell you this. We had to figure it out. We ended up with two realtors; a Village Rep and a non- Village Rep. It was a bit awkward but we did make sure we gave full disclosure as they both were spending valuable time with us. The Village Rep only legally represents the interests of the seller, not the buyer but works with the buyer to facilitate the sale. Ours was very helpful and accommodating but we understood that he was primarily looking out for the buyer. They will only show you Villages new construction and Villages resale listings. Those re-sales where the owner chooses to list with someone other than the Villages, will not be shown to you by the Villages Rep. You can look at Zillow and see those homes listed by non-Villages companies/agents. You can contact the listing agent directly if you choose to see the property. Generally Villages listed homes are only on the Villages website and not Zillow or other such listing apps. It is definitely a challenge if you want to perform an exhaustive search and it is in your best interest to look at all that is available.

[WinnieHa]

Correction: I meant the Villages Rep was looking out for seller not buyer....whoops

[manaboutown]

It is quite simple.

A Villages agent can show you new spec homes, lots to have new houses built upon them as well as resales listed by The Villages Listing Service (VLS). BTW, Villages agents are NOT Realtors although I understand they are licensed by the State of Florida as real estate agents. Caveat: Be sure your Villages agent is willing to show you resales if you are considering buying a resale. My original Villages agent was clearly not as he evaded showing me any.

A Realtor can show you resales listed in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), but not the VLS.

If you are looking for a resale it is wise to have both a VLS agent and an MLS Realtor as the two services do not cooperate.

[bagboy]

The commission can definitely be negotiated, especially the listing agent's part. Some agents even advertise a 4 percent commission, with 3 percent going to the selling agent.

I've seen those ads by agents for 4% & 5% commission. At 4%, that doesn't give much room for the listing agent to spend time and money on marketing a particular property. And I might add, do you really want to put your trust and faith in someone who so willingly cuts their commission just to get the listing?

[retiredguy123]

I've seen those ads by agents for 4% & 5% commission. At 4%, that doesn't give much room for the listing agent to spend time and money on marketing a particular property. And I might add, do you really want to put your trust and faith in someone who so willingly cuts their commission just to get the listing?
Well, some people say that you get what you pay for. But, there are also agents who will charge a 6 percent commission to list a property and still won't really do much to sell it. I would never agree to pay a 6 percent commission without a written marketing plan from the listing agent. The internet plays a much more important role in selling houses than it used to. When I have listed houses, most of the time another agent finds the buyer before the listing agent does. Also, most houses are eventually sold for less than the asking price. If you get a low offer, you can always renegotiate the commission as part of accepting a lower offer. The commission in the listing agreement only applies if they bring you a full price offer.

[bagboy]

Well, some people say that you get what you pay for. But, there are also agents who will charge a 6 percent commission to list a property and still won't really do much to sell it. I would never agree to pay a 6 percent commission without a written marketing plan from the listing agent. The internet plays a much more important role in selling houses than it used to. When I have listed houses, most of the time another agent finds the buyer before the listing agent does. Also, most houses are eventually sold for less than the asking price. If you get a low offer, you can always renegotiate the commission as part of accepting a lower offer. The commission in the listing agreement only applies if they bring you a full price offer.

I don't disagree with anything you just posted. Heck, I've seen agents list for 8% and sit on their hands until another agency brought a offer/buyer.

[NavyNJ]

TV agents are just that. Agents of the developer that sell new construction, new spec homes, and they list and sell previously owned homes in The Villages thru their Villages Listing Service. They are not licensed Realtors, therefor they cannot participate in the sale of any broker listed home inside or out of The Villages. I have recently seem a few agents advertised as "licensed agents" I don't know what that means as they aren't using the trademarked Realtor designation.
Outside of The Villages, there are licensed real estate Brokers, who own their own office/company, and work representing buyers and sellers. There are also Brokers in Charge, licensed as a Broker but run an office/company for another party. And then, there are licensed Realtors who work for outside of The Villages agencies as sales reps and buyers agents.
Unless something has changed, these two groups are like oil and water. They don't mix, and they don't cooperate on transactions. Realtors don't sell new/used Villages inventory, and Villages agents work for the developer and in cooperation with other Villages agents

Not sure what part of the bolded passage you can't absorb?? ALL persons selling Real Estate in the State of Florida are required to meet the SAME licensing guidlines, both for education/classroom time, AND passing the SAME State Exam. Once they do that, regardless who they choose to work for (Properties of TV, ReMax, Century 21, etc.), they do so as Licensed Real Estate AGENTS. For anyone working for a Broker/Firm that is a Member of the Nat'l Assoc. of REALTORS, once they pay their dues to join that group, they can use the designation and trademarked logo of "Realtor" on their cards, letters, etc.

That's about all there is to it! Don't make it more confusing than it needs to be. Others have explained adequately who can show/sell what properties, so I'm staying away from that. Hope that helps a little.....:)

[427dave]

When we recently began the search for a used home we ended up with a Villages agent to show us the ones listed with the Villages and a Realtor that could show us the rest of the houses listed by real estate companies. Sort of a rotten deal because who ever you buy from the other one gets the shaft.

Years ago the Villages was a MLS realtor with a broker and they shared listings, then they closed all their Real Estate offices and went to agents and dropped MLS and refuse to work with the other real estate companies. Someone said the Villages did not like having to pay commissions to outside realtors.

We listed our old house with the Villages to begin with, they used it to sell new homes, if they showed it they were telling the customer that they could buy a new one for the same price. After the listing expired we listed with a local Realtor and they sold it with in two weeks.

[bagboy]

Not sure what part of the bolded passage you can't absorb?? ALL persons selling Real Estate in the State of Florida are required to meet the SAME licensing guidlines, both for education/classroom time, AND passing the SAME State Exam. Once they do that, regardless who they choose to work for (Properties of TV, ReMax, Century 21, etc.), they do so as Licensed Real Estate AGENTS. For anyone working for a Broker/Firm that is a Member of the Nat'l Assoc. of REALTORS, once they pay their dues to join that group, they can use the designation and trademarked logo of "Realtor" on their cards, letters, etc.

That's about all there is to it! Don't make it more confusing than it needs to be. Others have explained adequately who can show/sell what properties, so I'm staying away from that. Hope that helps a little.....:)

Snarkiness must be common where you are from. And with that, my reply to you will probably be deleted. Just so you know, I have decades of real estate experience, buying, selling, acting as an investor, and also as a licensed agent. I held the Realtor designation honorably, and was a member of my local, my state, and the National Board of Realtors.
I have had hour upon hour of licensing instructions, and again, years of practical experience. You are not understanding my statement. My point was I have seen The Villages advertise some of their agents as licensed. And my thought was Why highlight a few as licensed? Are they possibly trying to portray them as Realtors? I don't know what the intention was.
IF you are a veteran, thank you for your service.