Sold by Villages Realtors

[davem4616]

so, so disappointing that yet again "The Villages" real estate people had an open house across the street from us...and yet again, they left almost all the lights on in the house after they left

what's with these Villages Real Estate people....this is like the 5th time this has happened...seems like they just don't care...or maybe they are poorly trained

they want to be seen as professionals, yet they can't seem to turn off the lights before they close up the house after hosting an open house

come on....and they want 5 or 6 %

so once again, I've called the guy next door that has a key and once again he'll go in and shut off the lights. Hope the owner gives these sales people a piece of her mind.

[vintageogauge]

So it's only The Villages agents that leave the lights on? So because of that they don't deserve 5 or 6%?

[davem4616]

So it's only The Villages agents that leave the lights on? So because of that they don't deserve 5 or 6%?

yeah...she went with the Villages agents and they are the only ones that have EVER hosted the open houses that they have had so far. After EVERY showing the lights are left on. Never happens in between open houses....this house has been on the market for 3 months now

So you're saying that you're okay with a realtor showing your home and walking away without turning off the lights that they turned on to "show the house" and you think that that's worth paying top money for???

the owner isn't local...leaving the lights on costs her money...

you think this behavior is worth 5-6% when there's an alternative???

[Stu from NYC]

In my experience seems like realtors do not care since they dont pay the electric bill.

When our house was for sale in Va we were asked by various realtors if ok to show the house say 5-6 pm,

We would leave come back after and pretty much all the time a bunch of lights were left on.

Must have happened with at least 8 realtors who showed our house before it sold.

[manaboutown]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.

[Ladygolfer93]

yeah...she went with the Villages agents and they are the only ones that have EVER hosted the open houses that they have had so far. After EVERY showing the lights are left on. Never happens in between open houses....this house has been on the market for 3 months now

So you're saying that you're okay with a realtor showing your home and walking away without turning off the lights that they turned on to "show the house" and you think that that's worth paying top money for???

the owner isn't local...leaving the lights on costs her money...
you think this behavior is worth 5-6% when there's an alternative???

Such a good point you made and such a good neighbor YOU are since you don't have a key to do what the realty agent is being paid well for ! Some would not bother to go get another person to unlock the house and SAVE big time $$ for your absent neighbor. Give yourself a pat on the back.... and an extra cookie, you deserve it. That's what the "villages" is supposed to be. My personal experience in using a agency to sell a house was not good so I only did it once in four times. I had the lights left on ALL the time... they didn't really mind because it was not coming out of their money. I had my sprinkler system left running once, why shut it off, the agent was not paying for the water, and, I found out, she was in a hurry, was supposed to meet another agent for an early dinner, had cigarette butts crushed on my garage floor once ! Agent said people she was showing home to could never have done it ! She suggested perhaps one of my two grown sons may have come over AFTER the showing, and smoked while they were int he garage.... trouble was, neither of my sons lived in that state (Iowa) and neither smoke....LOL... so, "some" agent, who did NOT want to loose a sale, allowed a person going through my house to go to my garage and smoke, knowingly ! Again, good for you for standing up for your neighbor, an agent is not ever going to care as much as you do.

[J1ceasar]

A sales agent . as bad as car sales people???

[FromNY]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.
Was of the understanding they must pass the Realtor license of Florida to work there. This they are Realtors.

[rjn5656]

That seems to be the norm.

[bobm3]

Was of the understanding they must pass the Realtor license of Florida to work there. This they are Realtors.
Passing the exam makes them licensed real estate agents. Real estate agents who join the National Association of Realtors (allowing them to post listings on the "multilist") are Realtors.

[riley2011]

Was of the understanding they must pass the Realtor license of Florida to work there. This they are Realtors.

They are NOT realtors.

[Eg_cruz]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.
Smh.........

[Bay Kid]

Sorry for your loss of sleep. Realtor's nightmare, lights and locks.

[Girlcopper]

yeah...she went with the Villages agents and they are the only ones that have EVER hosted the open houses that they have had so far. After EVERY showing the lights are left on. Never happens in between open houses....this house has been on the market for 3 months now

So you're saying that you're okay with a realtor showing your home and walking away without turning off the lights that they turned on to "show the house" and you think that that's worth paying top money for???

the owner isn't local...leaving the lights on costs her money...

you think this behavior is worth 5-6% when there's an alternative???
Unless the owner has asked you to watch their house, its not your business. You say this happens alot? Well, shame on the owners for continuing to use these realtors

[Bellj30]

It’s not just the villages, I had REALTY EXECUTIVES they left doors unlocked, lights on, and sliding door open. She also put a extra lock box on the garage so it was not track able. She was the nastiest Realitor, she talked about us to the neighbors and the buyer saying nasty things. I would never recommend them to anyone.

[davem4616]

And this concerns you how?


let me think....oh, because they're wasting her money

and what else could they have left on, that could start a fire

[La lamy]

I think you're a good neighbour for looking out for their money not being wasted unnecessarily. I'm saddened by so many people on here who are saying you should not care. :ohdear:

[Leadbone1]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.

Technically you’re absolutely correct. Most people however don’t realize the distinction. As a former Realtor, It cost me about $1000 a year to have that “R” on my card. In fairness, I had to pass a national test to qualify along with state test. Also could do referrals all over the country with other Realtors, which Villages sales agents cannot do. I bought my home here using a Villages sales agent. Must admit she did a great job! So, in the end it’s really more about the competency of the person.

[villageuser]

Unless the owner has asked you to watch their house, its not your business. You say this happens alot? Well, shame on the owners for continuing to use these realtors

It is none of his business? Oh, my gosh. What about being a Good Samaritan, and a good neighbor? I would definitely want the original writer to be a neighbor of mine. Because that is how I am. I help in taking care of people. When selling my parent’s house, a package full of insulin I later found out, was left inside the house. How hard would it have been for a realtor, any of the 8 realtors who had been there during that time period, to have looked at the address, and walked it next door. By the time I saw the package and took it over to him, the insulin was no longer any good. That’s what happens when people don’t believe in taking the extra step to help each other out.

[wayner1]

Why even use a realtor unless you have moved or out of town. ? I would much rather sell by owner then to pay 5 or 6 % to someone who has very little to do in order to sell.

[Leadbone1]

Was of the understanding they must pass the Realtor license of Florida to work there. This they are Realtors.

Wrong. Yes they do have to take the Florida state test to become sales agents for the villages. Thus they are real estate agents but they are not Realtors. To become a Realtor you have to pass a national test and then you have the privilege of paying about $1000 a year to join the national board of Realtors, the state board of Realtors, and the local board of Realtors! The consensus being that Realtors have more education and require more training! In fairness I worked with a Villages sales agent to buy my home, and she did a great job.

[Croakn12]

I've had my ac turned down to 68 and left on , lights left on and they looked in my fridge

[msilagy]

Village realtors only make 1% on pre owned homes and 1.5% on new homes - the rest goes to the villages. Yes many are poorly trained, but when you think about it it's not the villages that should teach them that as they should be courteous, caring and diligent and shut off the lights!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[jerry van]

OP must be from the Midwest.

[jbrown132]

It is none of his business? Oh, my gosh. What about being a Good Samaritan, and a good neighbor? I would definitely want the original writer to be a neighbor of mine. Because that is how I am. I help in taking care of people. When selling my parent’s house, a package full of insulin I later found out, was left inside the house. How hard would it have been for a realtor, any of the 8 realtors who had been there during that time period, to have looked at the address, and walked it next door. By the time I saw the package and took it over to him, the insulin was no longer any good. That’s what happens when people don’t believe in taking the extra step to help each other out.
Maybe the owner asked the realtor to leave the lights on?

[Croakn12]

Do not feel like it is The friendly Villagers making these terrible comments. There are a lot of non Villagers on this thread that are angry they can not be here. The vast majority of actual people who live in The Villages are great people.

[GOLFER54]

When I was selling a home using The Villages realtors, the Real Estate agent left the windows open in lanai and after a rainstorm the entire area was flooded.

[Singerlady]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.
A littlfe knitpicky? We all knew what the OP meant.

[manaboutown]

Was of the understanding they must pass the Realtor license of Florida to work there. This they are Realtors.

They may pass the state licensing exam and become licensed by the state but they do not join NAR and are therefore not Realtors. Realtor is a trademark. www.nar.realtor (https://www.nar.realtor)

[manaboutown]

A littlfe knitpicky? We all knew what the OP meant.

"Nit-picky is an informal way to describe someone who is overly focused on tiny, unimportant details, especially when criticizing something. It can also be used to describe such criticism. Nitpick (or nit-pick) is a verb meaning to point out the very minor flaws or mistakes in something, or to criticize it in this way." from dictionary.com

Realtor is a trademark. Trademarks can be significant and valuable intellectual property.

"While a generic term cannot become a trademark, a trademark can become generic. Ironically, the more successful the trademark owner, the more likely it is that a trademark will become generic, causing the trademark owner to lose its exclusive right to use and protect the trademark. A trademark can become “genericized” if the mark becomes identified with a type of product or service in the public's mind, rather than a particular brand.

Aspirin, yo-yos, and cellophane became generic through consumer misuse of the trademarks to refer to these products. Their owners (respectively Bayer AG, Dupont Cellophane Co., and Duncan Toys Co.) lost their trademark rights in spite of their efforts to police the use of the marks.

Xerox is frequently used as an example of a trademark that was once threatened with becoming generic because of misuse. Xerox needed to advertise and encourage consumers to use “photocopying” rather than “Xeroxing” in order to stop misuse of its mark, and at least for now it remains a trademark."

Generic Terms Under U.S. Trademark Law | Justia (https://www.justia.com/intellectual-property/trademarks/strength-of-marks/generic-terms/)

[davem4616]

OP must be from the Midwest.


Nope, this OP is from Massachusetts....we have values and integrity there too

As strange as it apparently seems to the folks that are 'jumping all over' my post, everyone on our cul de sac actually does give a damn about each other...

the neighbor with the key went right over and turned off the lights...it's not a big deal
...it's about neighbors taking care of neighbors...same thing we 'signed up for' when we trained in CPR and formed an AED group....and we do ask each other to keep an eye on our homes when we are away

as the old saying goes...if you have integrity nothing else matters, if you don't have integrity nothing else matters

[justjim]

If this is something you’re really worried about the world really is coming to an end.

Why shoot the messenger? OP was just remarking that the real estate person should have the courtesy to leave the house, after a “showing”, the way they found it. That seems reasonable to me. It’s not the end of the world but it’s also not very professional either.

[greenflash245]

not their house so they care. irresponsible

[Stu from NYC]

Unless the owner has asked you to watch their house, its not your business. You say this happens alot? Well, shame on the owners for continuing to use these realtors

You criticize him for trying to be a good neighbor? I sure would want my neighbors watching out for us.

[Heyitsrick]

I've read quite a few responses along the lines of "mind your own business" on this thread.

I'm just wondering where people draw the line between this issue of real estate agents leaving lights on (and the like) and, say, someone breaking into your unattended neighbor's home. There's a big range of activities/events that fall in between my examples of wasted electricity and a criminal act, of course.

Yes, there's the obvious, like flooding on the property, etc. But I'm just curious what would be a tipping point for you, as a neighbor, to care/intervene about your absent neighbor's property? When leaving lights on doesn't pass the bar, what passes the "I should get involved" threshold?

That said, what would you like your neighbors to do if you were away and noticed this kind of issue that the OP described? Would it be just something like "oh well, my tough luck", or would it be "I'm glad my neighbor helped out"?

[Dlbonivich]

It is not right that the sales agent leaves the lights on. When I show MLS properties I always ask the sellers agent if they want lights left on or turn them off, I try to get them all. Lamps do sometimes get left on. If lamps are on, usually the owner is still in the house. I leave a business card also.

[Stu from NYC]

Maybe the owners have asked the realtors to leave some lights on, so the house doesn't look empty. I can't believe you sat down and wrote a letter about this, makes me wonder if you were fishing for a pat on the back for your good deed.

I would think that if the owner wanted some lights on they would be on all the time.

The OP did a good deed and if he was my neighbor would be thankful and do the same for him.

[Toymeister]

I ran the numbers. 40 LED bulbs and four florescent tubes left on for one month, it is 89.24.

Now call me the cheap but but I want to use my 89.24 for something else.

[davem4616]

I ran the numbers. 40 LED bulbs and four florescent tubes left on for one month, it is 89.24.

Now call me the cheap but but I want to use my 89.24 for something else.


exactly my point....thanks for running the numbers

the woman has no husband, cash is limited and she's a nice person

[merrymini]

I think it is wonderful for you to look out for your neighbor and I would do the same thing. Do not listen to the nasty people who wish to provoke you. I have a house for sale in NJ and have found realtors or real estate agents to be a sorry lot. Not considerate or conscientious. It depends on the individual and you cannot know ahead of time who is or who isn’t. Continue your good deeds. My neighbors look out for my house and I am grateful for it.

[richard cammerron]

That's why some people (myself included) will never do business with the Villages folks again. They only use an open house to get customers to see what you have to offer and then explain that they can get everything you have for less with one of their new homes.

[charlieo1126@gmail.com]

I personally don’t want a neighbor coming into my house to shut lights off , especially in the times we are living in , also I’ve seen the complaints on here , I’m sure there all true lol , but I’ve sold 4 homes through the villages and never had a problem , I also got top dollar including the last 2 that because of the setup of the house and the furniture it was priced more then the assessed value , so buyers paid cash . My village Realter held his ground , buyer walked away last time twice . And yes I could sell my house myself and I’ve done that a couple of times , but I don’t want to be bothered with it anymore

[OhioBuckeye]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.

What difference what they’re called, if they turn them on why can’t they turn them off, how long would that take. After all the are making several thousands of dollars to do sell a house. They do work for the seller (owner) not the electric company! We had an outside Realtor (Agent) sell our house & she always turned the lights out for us, plus she was nice enough to take less of a fee!

[KRM0614]

Dear manabouttown

The promotion folks you refer to as sales people could not function in real estate. They know little about the functioning of the homes, little about bukt selling legal side or the area where house sits. Imagine if they had to sell or list in a diverse large geographical area ?

[Kilmacowen]

so, so disappointing that yet again "The Villages" real estate people had an open house across the street from us...and yet again, they left almost all the lights on in the house after they left

what's with these Villages Real Estate people....this is like the 5th time this has happened...seems like they just don't care...or maybe they are poorly trained

they want to be seen as professionals, yet they can't seem to turn off the lights before they close up the house after hosting an open house

come on....and they want 5 or 6 %

so once again, I've called the guy next door that has a key and once again he'll go in and shut off the lights. Hope the owner gives these sales people a piece of her mind.

This doesn't hold water! In the first place only the LISTING agent holds open houses. She/he is responsible and works closely with the seller. They do a check before closing the house, lights and door locks. This is routine and not forgotten several times.

If what you say is true, your neighbor with a key should have reported to the owner and she should have told her agent.

This is just another sad attempt to discredit villages agents who are licenced by the state and usually have years of experience.

In another post in this thread, a poster said that MLS agents are Realtors. Not true, they are ASSOCIATES not Realtors. The owner of the firm is the Realtor/broker.

[manaboutown]

This doesn't hold water! In the first place only the LISTING agent holds open houses. She/he is responsible and works closely with the seller. They do a check before closing the house, lights and door locks. This is routine and not forgotten several times.

If what you say is true, your neighbor with a key should have reported to the owner and she should have told her agent.

This is just another sad attempt to discredit villages agents who are licenced by the state and usually have years of experience.

In another post in this thread, a poster said that MLS agents are Realtors. Not true, they are ASSOCIATES not Realtors. The owner of the firm is the Realtor/broker.

"A real estate agent is a REALTOR® when he or she becomes a member of the National Association of REALTORS®, The Voice for Real Estate®, the world's largest professional association."

When Is a Real Estate Agent a REALTOR(R)? | www.nar.realtor (https://www.nar.realtor/about-nar/when-is-a-real-estate-agent-a-realtor)

[donfey]

yeah...she went with the Villages agents and they are the only ones that have EVER hosted the open houses that they have had so far. After EVERY showing the lights are left on. Never happens in between open houses....this house has been on the market for 3 months now

So you're saying that you're okay with a realtor showing your home and walking away without turning off the lights that they turned on to "show the house" and you think that that's worth paying top money for???

the owner isn't local...leaving the lights on costs her money...

you think this behavior is worth 5-6% when there's an alternative???

When listing with The Villages, the listing DOES NOT appear on MLS, and "outside" realtors cannot sell them. The Villages Realtors do come with other benefits, however, and are worth every penny of the 5 or 6 percent.

[Kilmacowen]

"A real estate agent is a REALTOR® when he or she becomes a member of the National Association of REALTORS®, The Voice for Real Estate®, the world's largest professional association."

When Is a Real Estate Agent a REALTOR(R)? | www.nar.realtor (https://www.nar.realtor/about-nar/when-is-a-real-estate-agent-a-realtor)

True, but as a Realtor they would have to spend a lot of money and education to get a broker's licence. Plus several hundred in yearly fees to be a member. This is only necessary for the owner of the firm. Agents do not need that to sell and a broker's licence is of little value unless they are opening their own business. So they are ASSOCIATES not Realtors

And the so called "code of ethics " is a joke. The are out for themselves, not the seller. They work both sides of the fence to make the sale.

[vintageogauge]

yeah...she went with the Villages agents and they are the only ones that have EVER hosted the open houses that they have had so far. After EVERY showing the lights are left on. Never happens in between open houses....this house has been on the market for 3 months now

So you're saying that you're okay with a realtor showing your home and walking away without turning off the lights that they turned on to "show the house" and you think that that's worth paying top money for???

the owner isn't local...leaving the lights on costs her money...

you think this behavior is worth 5-6% when there's an alternative???
I wouldn't make a big issue out of it and it sure would not be a deal breaker, let the person who is watching their home take care of it.

[vintageogauge]

That’s a snarky comment. No neighbor should have to “clean up” after an agent!
It happens all too frequently that you see or experience a service agent screw up because they weren’t trained properly or just don’t care.

But singling out The Villages charging 5 or 6% is ridiculous, they all charge a commission and most of them leave the lights on be it The Villages or MLS agents. It's been going on for decades, this is not newsworthy.

[manaboutown]

True, but as a Realtor they would have to spend a lot of money and education to get a broker's licence. Plus several hundred in yearly fees to be a member. This is only necessary for the owner of the firm. Agents do not need that to sell and a broker's licence is of little value unless they are opening their own business.

Not only the Principal, Designated, Managing and Qualifying Broker, but every licensed agent working for an MLS member company as an Associate (sales person/agent or broker) must be a Realtor.

Understanding Real Estate Agents vs. Brokers vs. Realtors (https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/101314/what-are-differences-among-real-estate-agent-broker-and-realtor.asp)

[Mumbles]

And this concerns you how?

This concerns her because, like ANY good citizen, she takes an interest in her fellow person and is willing to walk in their shoes. I can't think of ANYBODY I know who would hesitate to be a good neighbor. 'Nough said.

[dnobles]

Funny you should post this about leaving the lights on. I noticed one this morning on Ridgewood path, same thing several lights on. Owner is not here. I thought the same power bill!

[Mumbles]

I think you're a good neighbour for looking out for their money not being wasted unnecessarily. I'm saddened by so many people on here who are saying you should not care. :ohdear:

PERFECTLY SAID. I'd have YOU as a neighbor ANY day!:coolsmiley:

[WEM7310]

The reason is the COVID protocols. The less touching the better. I’m selling my house and I turn them on , leave, and turn them off.

[rogerk]

The title of this thread is meaningless as there is no such thing as a Villages Realtor. Their in-house agents are not Realtors.

Like most of the other Real Estate agents, The Villages Real Estate sales people are ALL licensed REAL RSTATE AGENTS.

[Mumbles]

well apparently it helped by giving you an opportunity to come off the sidelines and express your own negativity

just saying....

I wonder if most of us understand how TotV could be beneficial to people OTHER THAN ourselves. Here's an idea! Let's all decide to a) Read a post, and b) say how we would act/react if the event being discussed happened to us. Instead of making ourselves sound so darn superior that anybody in the forum must be beneath our acceptance of their reasons for writing.

What could this sound like....hmm... Oh! Something like:
The OP SEEMS to be writing a negative report. If it were me, I would just ignore it. See how simple that is? And it would not CREATE or fire off a series of rebuttals, although, in THIS case, the positive responders outnumber the negative-sounding ones.
Mumbles

[Sherry8bal]

Maybe so but YOU knew what he meant!!!!!!!!!

[bpascani]

Villages sales reps cannot cooperate with other listing agents, so only other Villages reps can show a "Villages" listings. SO, when you are buying, you need to have a Villages rep, and one other (doesn't matter which) MLS trained/certified agent, if you want to see all listings. All of the MLS agents cooperate with each other (i.e. RealtySouth can show Susan Love, etc properties, and vice versa, but not The Villages listings.

[davem4616]

This doesn't hold water! In the first place only the LISTING agent holds open houses. She/he is responsible and works closely with the seller. They do a check before closing the house, lights and door locks. This is routine and not forgotten several times.

If what you say is true, your neighbor with a key should have reported to the owner and she should have told her agent.

This is just another sad attempt to discredit villages agents who are licenced by the state and usually have years of experience.

In another post in this thread, a poster said that MLS agents are Realtors. Not true, they are ASSOCIATES not Realtors. The owner of the firm is the Realtor/broker.


I just love the 'arm chair' know it all's...somehow they believe that they have omniscient vision, can always make the correct call, sight unseen and are never wrong

So only the listing agent is able to host an open house for TV Realty (or whatever their name is) huh? NOT!
Last week it was a guy who hosted the open house, I know it was a guy because I actually spoke with him, he was a lot bigger than the gal that ran it this week...he had on a pair of dress slacks, she was dressed in a skirt, so it was easy to tell from a distance that it was someone else...and unless the gal that hosted it previously somehow shed 20+ years and a lot of weight, I'd bet the farm that those two gals are not the same sales person either...so that false claim is 'busted'

Yeah, I bet they do a check that the lights are all turned off before they leave....it must be that those devilish lights wait until the sales person leaves before turning themselves back on, or maybe there's an elf living under the sink that's doing it. Not the first time the neighbor with the key has gone in later to turn off the lights.....'busted again'

And what makes you think that this hasn't been relayed to the owner (more than once)? Busted again, it has been conveyed and she's not happy....so you're 0 for 3...not too good at holding water, to use your analogy. But you can go ahead and basically call me a liar while you hide behind a fake identity if you'd like...I'm a veteran, I served so that you would continue to have that freedom of speech amendment right.

I applaud professionals that choose to differentiate themselves by obtaining credentials in their field.
That said....please, turn off the lights when you're finished.