[Phanatic Luvr]

EnglishJW,
I believe you are still a little confused in regards to your statement ... Our primary sales person is a licensed realtor.
If your Real Estate Agent works for The Villages, then they are indeed a licensed real estate agent with the state of Florida, however, they can not be called a REALTOR, since they are NOT part of the National Board of Realtors.
The Villages does NOT cooperate with outside Realtors from offices like Executive Tri-County, ReMax, FoxFire, etc... According to the Realtor code, they would have to allow ALL agents to sell their properties which The Villages does not. They only allow The Village AGENTS access to properties listed by The Villages and The Village agents are not allowed to show or sell homes listed by outside brokers.
Hoping that makes sense and you now understand.

[Bogie Shooter]

Example of hi-jacked thread.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by janetgilk@gmail.com

Does any one know of a great attorney pertaining to a purchase of a home with many problems not disclosed in contract in TV? Have lots of problems with house inside & out / had inspection but they say 'too bad / real estate agent says: too bad.

Need advice.

Where are you Janet?

[njbchbum]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Where are you Janet?

Probably left to get two more aspirin!

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by janetgilk@gmail.com

Does any one know of a great attorney pertaining to a purchase of a home with many problems not disclosed in contract in TV? Have lots of problems with house inside & out / had inspection but they say 'too bad / real estate agent says: too bad.

Originally Posted by ilovetv

If the listing is with The Villages, new or resale, the law firm of McLin & Burnsed is "the closing department". Their attorneys and paralegals deal with all aspects of closing and they are going to make sure the contract is legally carried out.

Also, to me, it is way off base to say that TV listing depends on "non-realtors" who are supposedly unlicensed. THAT is not the case either, because many of the TV sales reps AND assistants are licensed and TV dba Properties of The Villages (necessarily) holds their licenses. I know sales reps and assistants who are constantly renewing their licenses and doing coursework to prepare for the tests.

Excellent information from ilovetv.

Jane, I would first call McLin & Burnsed and talk to them to try and resolve your issues.

There are many members of TOTV who are retired Realtors who might comment on your situation.
However if you want input regarding the problems you are experiencing, you may want to list the problems.
It makes a huge difference if your issues are with cosmetic problems or structural/major issues.
Unfortunately, a Building Inspector's Report is usually for information only.
In most cases, any error/omissions are not his legal responsibility, and his report will state that.

[ricthemic]

Originally Posted by casita37

It's all well and good for your home inspector to say "too bad", but that doesn't make it so. Inspectors have to uncover defects for you and are bound to that. I would explore more into the inspectors liability.

Home inspectors, IMO and based on a dozen prior real estate purchases, are a joke and a waste of money.

[Bonanza]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Your post seems to say that agents for The Villages do not abide by ethical standards which most people here who have dealt with them would not agree with. Disclosure is based on law.


I wish the OP would clarify if the listing was with The Villages or an undisclosed MLS realtor.

Gracie: I cannot say that all Villages agents do not abide by certain ethics, but since they are not Realtors, many or most of them do not even know what the Code of Ethics is that are sanctioned by National Assn. of Realtors. These ethics are very strict and for most of the Villages agents, this is their first job. They don't know any better because they never were Realtors and never had those guidelines to follow. These guidelines are reinforced every couple of years with classes all Realtors must take.

I agree that most Villagers are happy with their buying experience, but in many cases what they don't know is very often the case. I'm not sure what you meant by "disclosure is based on law," but I will say again that any defects or problems with a house, the ground on which it sits, or even in the surrounding area, MUST be disclosed. Sinkholes are a case in point.

[Bonanza]

Originally Posted by casita37

It's all well and good for your home inspector to say "too bad", but that doesn't make it so. Inspectors have to uncover defects for you and are bound to that. I would explore more into the inspectors liability.

Certified home Inspection companies will give their customer a complete written report, usually within a day or two of the actual inspection.

However, in many cases, they can miss something. They always have a written disclaimer saying they cannot be held responsible if that happens. Perhaps that is what Janetgilk meant when she simply said she was told "too bad???"

[buggyone]

I still would like to see what undisclosed problems that the OP has with their home; new home or re-sale, and how long it has been since they purchased.

Maybe others have had the same problems and can advise better if they are known.

[Bonanza]

Originally Posted by ilovetv

If the listing is with The Villages, new or resale, the law firm of McLin & Burnsed is "the closing department". Their attorneys and paralegals deal with all aspects of closing and they are going to make sure the contract is legally carried out.

Also, to me, it is way off base to say that TV listing depends on "non-realtors" who are supposedly unlicensed. THAT is not the case either, because many of the TV sales reps AND assistants are licensed and TV dba Properties of The Villages (necessarily) holds their licenses. I know sales reps and assistants who are constantly renewing their licenses and doing coursework to prepare for the tests.

I believe the original poster to this thread did not mean that the contract was not carried out. The contract is usually pretty cut and dry.

Nothing was ever said that Villages agents are not licensed. There is no question they all are, but licensing is only a Florida state license. They still are not members of any board of Realtors, they are not members of the National Assn. of Realtors and they do not cooperate with other (outside) brokers.

[janmcn]

Originally Posted by Bonanza

I believe the original poster to this thread did not mean that the contract was not carried out. The contract is usually pretty cut and dry.

Nothing was ever said that Villages agents are not licensed. There is no question they all are, but licensing is only a Florida state license. They still are not members of any board of Realtors, they are not members of the National Assn. of Realtors and they do not cooperate with other (outside) brokers.

The OP's original question was about finding an attorney, not about real estate salespeople or inspectors. A good attorney will explain all of this to their client.

[Bonanza]

Originally Posted by gerryann

It's been my understanding that TV sales people are NOT lisenced realtors. Am I wrong with this info?

You are correct. They are licensed in the State of Florida, but they are not Realtors; they are agents only.

[Bonanza]

Originally Posted by EnglishJW

I believe that TV Sales people do not have to be licensed realtors but many of them are licensed. We will be closing on a resale home through TV in just under two weeks. Everything that was described above happened just as was described (e.g., disclosure statement, document to sign verifying that we had received and read the disclosure statement, home inspection with written report, etc.). Our primary sales person is a licensed realtor.

All TV agents must be licensed and I am positive they are. I assume you purchased your home through a non-Villages agent because you mentioned that the person was a Realtor (BTW -- always capitalized; it is a registered trademark).

[graciegirl]

I LIKE everything about the way The Villages sales staff work. They don't pressure, they don't hound you, they don't really have to sell you. They won't call back unless you ASK them to call back. They get back to you with answers although if you are not used to the fact that there is NO negotiation on new homes prices or anything about new homes, some folks sometimes are skeptical. The villages sales staff are not in competition with each other and don't say anything negative about other realtors.

There is a bit of a negative climate among some MLS realtors locally in my opinion, because they aren't allowed to participate in new home sales from the developer.

Sorry Bonanza, given a choice any day of the week, I like the way The Villages sales staff work over most REALTORS I have dealt with. Not ALL.




NOW JANET.....What was the problem exactly?

[Bonanza]

[QUOTE=graciegirl;892324]I LIKE everything about the way The Villages sales staff work. They don't pressure, they don't hound you, they don't really have to sell you. They won't call back unless you ASK them to call back. They get back to you with answers although if you are not used to the fact that there is NO negotiation on new homes prices or anything about new homes, some folks sometimes are skeptical. The villages sales staff are not in competition with each other and don't say anything negative about other realtors.

There is a bit of a negative climate among some MLS realtors locally in my opinion, because they aren't allowed to participate in new home sales from the developer.

Sorry Bonanza, given a choice any day of the week, I like the way The Villages sales staff work over most REALTORS I have dealt with. Not ALL.
QUOTE]

Gracie, we personally, did not have any problem whatsoever in all the looking and finally, with the purchase of our home. We didn't have any problems with our agent. However, as with any type of business, not everyone is good.

You were lucky that all your experiences were good ones, but to say that what you experienced is what everyone experiences is not so. I have a neighbor that would disagree on all counts to every plus you've said about TV agents. They had a terrible experience from start to finish. I have read and heard about people who have switched agents because of one problem or another. I wish all agents were perfect because many of the ones that aren't are an embarrassment to the profession.

If there is one thing that is really irritating among real estate offices, it is when one will refuse to cooperate. The reasons offices refuse to cooperate with other brokers is because of greed (they don't want to share in the commision with anyone else) and because they don't want to pay the dues and fees to belong to their local board of Realtors or the Natl. Assn. of Realtors. They are the main reasons, but not the only ones. There is no other reason for not belonging or participating. period. BTW, that type of office (a non-participating one) is few and far between. In working in the real estate field since 1984, I have only come in contact with one other non-participating office in all those years. That should be an indication of something to the unknowing public. Interestingly, TV used to welcome other brokers, but no longer do.

Insofar as TV sales people not being in competetion with other sales people, just go to a few open houses on the premise of looking for a house to buy. Yes, they all are in competetion with one another!