Robot or Real

Robot or Real

This didn’t take long to come up. I feel I have to put in my 2 cents on this subject.

Are you communicating with a real Agent or a computer? That is one of the questions I want to address. The new wave in Real Estate uses computer robots to communicate with customers on the Internet. Computer programs look at an email or correspondence a customer sends from the Internet. The computer program uses software to analyze the correspondence it receives and attempts to answer questions.

The reason I have to put in my 2 cents here is because I just read a question on the Internet about using this latest technology. An agent wants to know if they can collect a commission from a Buyer because that Buyer was sent information over the Internet using the latest technology. I didn’t think it would come to this. But this poses a threat to everyone involved. This has not been tested in court, but if the question does go to court, it will create a headache for everyone involved.

Imagine clicking on one of those CONTACT buttons you see all over the Internet. You are interested in a house. Of course you want to see the house in real life. Instead someone, a computer sends you a virtual tour. You don’t care about that virtual tour. You want to hit the road and walk through the property. The CONTACT form on the website collected your name, phone number, and email address. You figure out you are not receiving the personal service you expect and deserve. So you go onto the next agent and make a phone call, set up a showing appointment, sign and Offer to Purchase, and eventually go to a closing. After all that waiting, filling out forms, sending all that paperwork to the right people, getting your loan approved, and taking all the right steps, you finally sit down to sign the final papers and get the house of your dreams. Then the closing agent takes out a piece of paper and tells you some agent wants you to pay them for services. What services? After some thought you remember trying to contact an agent on some site, and a virtual tour popped up. You dumped that avenue and went with an agent who knows how to answer their phone and do their job. Everything looked fine, but this problem came up at the last minute. Just when you thought you were out of the woods, technology rears its ugly head. It sounds like a scam, but that other party had you click all kinds of agreements you didn’t bother to open and read.

This hasn’t happened yet, but we all know scammers have been using hidden agreements to make money for years. Phone companies use agreements that protect their interests and take away all your rights. Other companies use the same tactics to ensure payment and leave you without a leg to stand on when you seek arbitration or other means to resolve the issue. In short, people and companies use technology to make sure the deck is stacked against you.

What can you do to protect yourself? Number one, deal with a real Agent, not a computer. Never check any type of agreement on any website. Especially without reading it. It’s best to talk with a real Agent on the phone. They should have questions for you. They should know how to find what you are looking for, offer options, and know all the steps involved in buying a house.

Computers are great for helping us to do our work. Computers have lists of homes and property. Computers can filter properties down to a short list that fits your needs. Computers help us to get paperwork done faster, and filed where we can find it when we need it. Computers do a lot of things for us. But when we try to get a computer to do all our work and communicate for us, it spells disaster. I can’t imagine an Agent who wants a computer to speak for them, but it is happening today. It’s up to you to choose who you want to work with, a computer or a real person. Which do you prefer and deserve?