You're asking great questions. Yes, it's probably good to learn all you can about all the scams out there, such as undisclosed dual agency. I'm a wholesaler and I prefer not to work in cash-buyer hot-spots because the never-ending sucker supply attracts sharks. Environments that rely on the greater fool theory I find corrupting. I prefer to work in a stable bread and butter market with people like teachers and government workers who we assume passed a background check and are drug-free. People with major hobbies, intact families, religious affiliation and other non-money-centered things in their life I tend to trust more. I prefer people who are collaborative by nature, and show a win-win philosophy in how they communicate. Men are more likely to be the primary wage earner, so they might be under more pressure to cheat than women. I have seen women try to pull things, but in both instances it was a male supervisor orchestrating it. I find it is rarely worth working with a man if you can avoid it. It gets easy to hear when people are lieing, hiding their cards or up to something when you've been burned a few times but it's so much better to learn from the bad experiences of others. I think it is important to confront people early, have high standards and not hesitate to move on when they are not met. So, to answer your question, if you ask someone how they got into the business, what their personal philosophy is, and what their long term goals are, the right answers are helping clients, their children, others, etc. and less money, ego and self-focussed. But a bad, dishonest person will be much quicker to call himself good and honest than a good and honest one will. And he will probably believe it.
