[KathieI]

STAY AWAY FROM VILLAGES REAL ESTATE PEOPLE!!!

OK, glad I got that out. Obviously I have very strong feelings about this. Listed my home overlooking a pond, Lantana, in 2014, about the time Pine Ridge was selling. Listed it in March, had a contingent offer on May 1, which I accepted but asked the realtor to continue showing it since it was a contingency. He refused. May 30, Listing fell out of escrow, buyer backed out, TV sales person didn't even know, the Water company told me. Fired him, got another TV sales person, poor guy became ill, so nothing was done with the house. Bottom Line: House was listed for ONE FULL YEAR, I carried 2 houses lost a ton of money. I even followed TV agents taking viewers from my house over to Pine Ridge to look at new places. Contract finally expired, I hired Realty Execs in Feb. 2015. House sold in one month. Excellent service and expertise by that company.

[Knighterrant]

I just sold my house using TV. I personally think it is the best option at this time.

I think it is difficult selling FSBO now due to the season and pandemic related issues. I have a neighbor listing his house FSBO, and he has not had a single scheduled showing in almost 3 months. He is engaging TV now after the sale of my house.

I think the vast majority of sales in TV are facilitated by TV (buyers have to purchase new homes through them). Our buyer was considering both new and used properties. So they purchased utilizing TV.

TV does not share commissions with outside Realtors. So Realtors aren’t going to show TV listings, and TV doesn’t proactively show homes listed with outside Realtors. So you almost have to choose one or the other when listing. Listing with a Realtor may get you more exposure with buyers contemplating central FL as a destination. But I think listing with TV gets you more exposure with buyers who know they want to buy in TV. Which I viewed as more important.

[kathyspear]

Originally Posted by msilagy

Keeping 1/2 of a $1000 deposit doesn't sound right to me - I think that is not accurate.

No, it is accurate. We sold our previous home through TV and it is stated in the listing contract that if a deal falls through they get 50% of any forfeited deposit. Hubs wasn't thrilled with that, especially in cases where the deposit is many thousands of dollars.

There are other differences in how the two listing services deal with issues found during the inspection.

That said, our TV agent (Gail Evans) was great. Our house (which was atypical and needed a buyer with special requirements) was under contract in a month. We had it listed with an MLS agent for 90 days prior to the TV listing. I think she did a good job, too -- brought lots of people through, etc. -- but just didn't find the right person.

kathy

[merrymini]

I sold a house through the Villages. The buyer gave a $15,000 deposit and then decided they could not go through with it and pulled out. The Villages kept half of the deposit. We read the contract thoroughly and saw nothing in it but, after all, it is written by their lawyers and it was buried in there. Would never list with them. Relisted with Remax and Tammy Freilich and her son took the most beautiful pictures of any house and it sold In about three weeks. I think the developer is more interested in selling the new stuff. That is where their money is.

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by merrymini

I sold a house through the Villages. The buyer gave a $15,000 deposit and then decided they could not go through with it and pulled out. The Villages kept half of the deposit. We read the contract thoroughly and saw nothing in it but, after all, it is written by their lawyers and it was buried in there. Would never list with them. Relisted with Remax and Tammy Freilich and her son took the most beautiful pictures of any house and it sold In about three weeks. I think the developer is more interested in selling the new stuff. That is where their money is.

In today's world one of the best things a seller can do is get great professional photos taken of their home, inside, outside and any views. People shop for homes on the internet and that particularly applies to a community such as The Villages where people are moving in from distant locations.

My daughter moved from CA to MD and bought her house sight unseen from photos of it she saw on the Internet. She did make her purchase contract subject to her local Realtor going through the home which she did while videoing it with her iPhone so my daughter could virtually go through it with her. My daughter of course put the usual subject tos into her contract for inspections and so on.

The last two sentences of the quoted post are so true. Village agents are motivated to move the developer's new product over resales in my experience. After all, that is how the developer, who does a fantastic job of building, stays in business.

[donfey]

Originally Posted by Imagine701

Looking to list our house for sale in Fernandina. Has anyone used The Villages realtor to sell house and if so why? Villages wants 6% vs. 5% for outside realtor. Any suggestions would be helpful.

I just bought a house in TV after using both outside realtors to see homes I researched myself, and a Villages Agent that has been showing me houses for 3 1/2 years. So, from a buyers perspective, I'd say use Properties of The Villages. My realtor took ALL the unknowns out of the equation for me, making dealing with TV seamless. This ain't my first rodeo, either - bought and sold 5 others. I don't know that an outside realtor can do that, perhaps they can, but I am totally satisfied, and glad I used TV.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by merrymini

I sold a house through the Villages. The buyer gave a $15,000 deposit and then decided they could not go through with it and pulled out. The Villages kept half of the deposit. We read the contract thoroughly and saw nothing in it but, after all, it is written by their lawyers and it was buried in there. Would never list with them. Relisted with Remax and Tammy Freilich and her son took the most beautiful pictures of any house and it sold In about three weeks. I think the developer is more interested in selling the new stuff. That is where their money is.

Had no idea TV would keep half of the deposit? The seller is the one who is mostly inconvenienced.

[C-Pet]

Originally Posted by Imagine701

Looking to list our house for sale in Fernandina. Has anyone used The Villages realtor to sell house and if so why? Villages wants 6% vs. 5% for outside realtor. Any suggestions would be helpful.

The sales people who work for The Villages are NOT Realtors. Realtors are a member of the Board of Realty and subscribe to their code of ethics. They work for you. The people who work for The Villages are licensed Sales Agents who work for the Developer. Whose interest do you think they put first? The Developer makes a lot more money selling you a new house than a resale.

[beckyallen]

We bought our pre-owned home from Mitzi Terry, who has years of experience with The Villages Realty and she showed us both new and pre-owned homes. We had our offer accepted the next day and it closed in less than 30 days. She really listens to what you want. Would highly recommend her!

[Marathon Man]

We sold our house in three days with Properties of The Villages. We got our asking price, which was $6,000 above what I hoped to get because that is what the sales agent recommended. Profesional pictures were taken. Advertising was great, although as it turned out, not needed. Lots of traffic during those three days. Did not even need an open house.

That is the result of hiring a "team".

I absolutely recommend them.

[stadry]

' the realtor call and the deal fell thru. ' the villages' sales force are NOT Realtors - they are licensed real estate brokers &, as such, are licensed by the state of fl. obviously not all licensed brokers are Realtors !

another point - some real estate sales people do not have to be licensed if they are a straight employee working for a state licensed real estate broker.