This was early 2017. I was first time home buyer. Young immigrant from India. I saw a house for sale in my neighborhood and I was interested in the house. But I didn't know how to go about it or the general process of buying a home. I needed guidance. I searched for realtors on Zillow and as soon as I put in my cell, I got phone calls from one guy. He was pretty eager to help me, and he worked for Keller Williams.
I schedule a meeting with him and drove to see him in his office. He was an older white guy, probably in his mid-60s. His office was covered with all the Trump University swags. He asked me few basic questions like my budget, if I was approved for a mortgage and all and what kind of house I was looking for - and he took all the notes on a Trump University notepad.
I brushed it aside, I wanted to be professional and didn't want to make this political. I answered all his questions - I was pre-approved for mortgage and I already knew the house I was interested in - it was in my neighborhood. I wanted him to help me make an offer - as I literally had no idea how to do any of these.
We check out the house together. The realtor is clearly not very interested. He doesn't do basic research such as what the comparable costs of the nearby houses, and how good is the neighborhood. I wanted data and he basically just said "this house is as good as you are gonna get."
The house was listed at $195, but it was a foreclosure. And it needed repair. Commonsense dictated me that I should make a low-ball offer of $165K because 1) the house has been on market for 6 months and I'm sure the bank doesn't want to keep paying the taxes and the HOA fees on it. and 2) if $165K is the starting point, my idea was to meet somewhere in the middle - may be $175K.
After checking the house, the realtor asked me what is my offer. Again, I needed more guidance in terms of what do these type of houses in this neighborhood usually go for, and how do I find out more details about the history of the house, etc. I got none of that information from him. When I told him my offer is $165K, he sounded really pissed. He was angry, almost yelling saying "oh that's a shit offer, young men like you don't know anything how things work here." I moved to the United States when I was a teen and I've been here for almost 20 years). He continued his verbal abuse, "You should raise your offer to $190K. $165K is a terrible offer. This is a good house and you won't get it any where less than $190K".
Frankly, I was stunned. I thought the realtor was supposed to help me, and not yell at me or be abusive. I fired his ass next day.
Found another realtor - this new realtor was much more professional. She was great. I explained the situation to her, and she understood. In our first meetings, she showed me "comparables" with the prices of similar houses in the neighborhood. She provided all the data I was looking for. Now, using her as the realtor, I finally made the offer for $165K for the house - and with a little back and forth, the bank was ready to settle for $175K - just like how I predicted earlier.
Unfortunately (or rather fortunately), the deal fell through and I didn't get the house. It had some title issues, and there were lawsuits on the house. Additionally, it had water damage and a litany of several structural issues.
Fast forward two months: I found a significantly better option couple months later and I am thankful the previous deal fell through.
And fast forward two years: I recently learned the bank finally sold that house after 2 years I made the offer. I guess the title or legal issues are finally settled. And it sold for $165K - my original offer price!"
I'm glad I fired the first realtor because he was an abusive, racist prick who has no business in being a realtor.
tl;dr Old white realtor, who was a Trump supporter, was racist, unhelpful, went on an angry rant on how "shitty" my first ever offer in my life for my first ever house was.