|
 |
 |
Philip Webb Spills The Beans “They drove these flashy cars…my dad said they got paid a lot and didn’t do much and that appealed to me.”
These observations are what attracted Philip Webb, one of Melbourne’s leading real estate agents, into the real estate industry. But Philip Webb’s interview raises more questions that it answers. In The Sunday Age weekend magazine Sunday Life, Steve Dow looks at the 5 least trusted jobs, including that of the real estate agent (Sunday Life, October 23, 2005 p.23). Philip Webb of Philip Webb Real Estate provides some insight into what motivates a person to take up a career in real estate, and attempts to explain away the poor public ranking of real estate agents. While Philip Webb mentions the stress involved in real estate, he does not open the door wide enough to let consumers see what it is that actually causes that stress. We’ll put our foot in the door, and force it open a little further. Philip Webb says that the “flash cars” driven by estate agents was a major factor in his becoming a real estate agent. Nothing much has changed when it comes to the cars driven by estate agents. For example, the Melbourne suburb of Croydon is an average Melbourne suburb of working and middle class families. The households of Croydon play host to 10 estate agencies in Croydon, plus an array of others (including Philip Webb Real Estate) that service the area from afar. Estate agents can be seen parking or cruising around the Croydon shopping strip in most of the luxury brands, including Mercedes, BMW and Lexus. We understand that the real estate industry is one of the mainstays of the luxury car market. The fact that estate agents get paid a lot and don’t do much also remains the norm. While estate agents will say that they are “hard working” (we have seen the Hocking Stuart Real Estate advertisements that say as much, and show an estate agent conducting auction while attached to an intravenous drip), or that they give red carpet treatment (Barry Plant Doherty Real Estate runs TV ads that show an estate agent passing soap to someone in the shower, in the expectation that consumers will intuitively understand that they are as useful when in comes to selling real estate), any hard work associated with the selling of real estate is actually unnecessary, and of the agent’s own making. Philip Webb does try to convince the reader that “Real estate agents are pretty hardworking people” but like the ads run by Hocking Stuart Real Estate and Barry Plant Doherty Real Estate, has difficulty in enunciating exactly what the “hard work” really is. However, Philip Webb gives us a hint when he observes, “selling a house is one of the most stressful times of life and anybody who is associated with it cops some of that stress.” We believe that Philip Webb could have been a little more revealing in his explanation, and we offer the following elaboration: “Selling a house is one of the most stressful times of life because consumers have little understanding of the processes involved and the forces that influence them. The massive amounts of money paid in commissions for the more-apparent-than-real services of real estate agents have a corrupting influence that results in desperate behaviour, lies and deceit. Vendors and purchasers are treated as no more than a means to an end by estate agents who drive flash cars and wear neat suits and cheesy smiles. Buyers and sellers are exposed to expensive risks and loss, all for the sake of a commission. When a person realises what the real estate industry is doing with them and their most valuable asset, they become stressed. They then turn on the industry that has hurt them; and anybody who is associated with it cops some of that stress.” Philip Webb also comments, “People are often annoyed or upset if they can’t get some real estate agent out late at night or at 8 a.m. on a Saturday but I don’t think they have the same expectations of their dentist or bank manager.” What Philip Webb fails to recognize is that consumers are forced to depend on the estate agent. It is standard practice for the estate agent to monopolise the property being sold, and everyone associated with it. The estate agent talks to the vendor and then talks to the purchaser. The estate agent never allows the two parties to come together. Why? Because to do otherwise would make the estate agent irrelevant. The estate agent has a role only if the parties can be kept separated, with all contact being channeled through the estate agent. It is in circumstances where a party’s only contact with the other party in a major transaction is through the estate agent that there arises an expectation that the estate agent will be “on the job” 24/7. If estate agents allowed the parties to have free contact with each other there would be no expectation that the estate agent be available at all hours. But then, there would be no need for the estate agent to be available at all. Finally, Philip Webb tells us that he has had “negative reactions at times” when he has told people what he does for a living, but that it’s normally from people who have missed out on a property at auction or because of something like “someone let the cat out during a property inspection”. Perhaps an article should be written about the 5 most common complaints about real estate agents. We feel sure that stories about missing out at auction and losing the cat are unlikely to make the list. To post your comment on this item, please return to
Legal Notice
|
||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
