Off market deal with potential realtor involved

[Jeffrey Brandt]

Hey all!

I am beginning my first wholesale transaction. This is an off market property that I sourced myself. The seller has NOT listed the house with an agent.

 I am supposed to look at the property tomorrow, the owner is an absentee, living somewhere else in Texas. I am in Fort Worth and so is the property. I have pulled comps etc and after my viewing tomorrow I think I will be ready to put him under contract, however I think I hit a snag.

The guy said "I have a friend of mine who is a realtor and I was planning on using her". He doesn't have the property under contract however, just considering using her.

My question is, how would you lock this down?

My thought was to tell him "look, there isn't enough margin, so if you bring a realtor in, I will have to take that out of your net."
Would you just throw a contract at him and fingers crossed he signs and we close the deal?

I imagine him bringing a realtor "friend" in would pretty much kill the deal because any equity we are making here would probably be disclosed to him and he would just take the deal off the table.

I'm a newbie, what can I say🤷‍♂️

Thanks for your any advice you can offer here. Really looking for the best way to take a hot lead and get him to the closing table.
Thanks again!

(Alex, if you're reading this, yes I copied and pasted my message to you here as well. My fingers are getting tired from all of typing 😁)

[Crandall Thomson]

I'd go the route that a Agent especially a Realtor(R) is used mostly to connect a buyer and a seller. You two have already connected so what you are paying a Realtor for has already been done. The other part that a Agent and or Realtor is used for is for the REPC and connections to title companies. I assume you already have a Texas REPC and a title company. The seller may want his own title company and attorney to look over the REPC. If that's the case do a price comparison for him. The Seller Always pays the Agent, even if the REPC changes the commission around it's still coming from the sell of the property and so always comes out of the seller more then the buyer. Show him a 6% commission verses a 3-5 hundred dollar attorney. The title is paid for in closing costs no matter what so you both negotiate to pay that regardless if a Realtor is involved. The point is the Main thing a Realtor give and is paid for is already done, connecting the buyer and seller. If he wants a Realtor or Agent "Friend" still offer to have the "Friend" be a transactional party only for a flat fee of around $300 to $1k depending on the size of the deal. I have done a lot of transactional deals as a Agent. They are easy and dam near free money in situations like this. If his "friend" is not willing to act as one then the seller needs to revaluate his Friendship with this Agent/Realtor. Just Saying.