Got a call from direct mail, but the house is listed with an agent.

[Danny Colacicco]

Hey everyone,

We did a direct mail campaign to out of state owners, and we got a call from someone who has had their house listed with an agent for 5 months. It was originally listed for 275K and now is it at 225K. My first biggest concern is that since it is listed with a realtor that I loose the bargaining chip of being able to close with no fees. My second concern is though they said it is in good shape for an 1850's house (new floors/paint ect) that they may think that my being able to purchase "as is" is not that big of a bonus. Nonetheless, assuming they are motivated, how should approach this? They game me the contact info of the listing agent. Should I call him to set up an appt and explain to him that one of my partners will be purchasing the property and assure that the contract used is assignable?

Thanks in advance for the advice!

Maryland Properties 2020

[Dev Horn]

Originally posted by @Danny Colacicco:

As a follow up question, we arent able to just do the deal ourselves and go around the agent are we?

No - that's bad business. You'd be legally OK but they would be in violation of their listing agreement. And the agent would curse your name if given the chance. If it's listed, it's listed. We play by the rules and reward the hard work of RE agents (even if we found the house via OUR marketing efforts).

Of course, we prefer to deal with properties that are NOT listed, but just because it's listed that doesn't take it out of play. If the house has been on the market for a long time, the seller may be willing to take a "wholesale" price AND pay their commission. Depends on their motivation and equity position.