Getting your player ready...
How do you spell recovery?
Hint: The synonym for the economic recovery also begins with the letter R.
“The recovery story is written with a “R.” You’re the the “R” as Realtors,” was the message delivered by Oliver Frascona, one of prominent real estate lawyers in the Denver area, as he kicked off today’s Realtor Rally attended by an estimated 1,500 people in the Colorado Convention Center. Frascona is a shareholder in the Boulder law firm Frascona, Joiner, Goodman and Greenstein P.C.
Later, Gov. John Hickenlooper and other speakers, conveyed a similar message.
NAR: Sleeping Giant
Frascona, who has been a dues-paying member of the National Association of Realtors for more than 40 years, even though he doesn’t sell real estate, said that Realtors often aren’t appreciated by the general public, and especially in this tough housing environment, they are betting beat up by all sides for their commission.
But they perform an integral function in bringing together buyers and sellers. He said the vast majority of all Realtors follow their rigid code of ethics, and if everyone did, many of the problems as far as real estate fraud of recent years, would have been avoided.
“The reason the general public is able to write off their mortgage interest rate on their taxes, is not a Democratic or Republican issue, but because of Realtors,” Frascona said. He added that if the write-off is protected at a time when politicians are trying to find ways of reducing the budget deficit, it also will be because of Realtors, that is, real estate brokers who are members of the NAR.
But Realtors, members of one of the largest associations in the U.S., do not flex their political muscles enough, he said. “Even AARP has us beat,” as far as lobbying, he said. “We’re a sleeping giant,” he said.
Realtors to the rescue
He gave several examples where if homeowners had contacted Realtors earlier in the process, they would not have lost their homes to foreclosures. He said that one way that Realtors can accelerate the economic recovery, is by finding homes for people who have lost their previous houses to foreclosure or short sales, in which the lender accepts less than the mortgage amount.
Frascona many people have a mistaken belief that if they have a foreclosure or short sale on their record, they are doomed to be a renter for the next three to seven years. However, he said Realtors can creatively put together deals between buyers and sellers. In many cases, the buyer’s new mortgage is less or the same as they would pay in rent, with the advantage of building equity and tax deductions, he said. “A buyer can’t find these deals on the Internet,” Frascona said. “What they can find is you, the Realtor, on the Internet.”
Commission cuts routine
Yet, whenever a deal is in jeopardy, the Realtor is the first to give up his commission. “And we fight each other tooth and nail for the listing, and then the first thing we do is give the other Realtor a big piece of our commission. Whatever business does that? No one.” Indeed, he said that more commercial real estate brokers should become Realtors. Many commercial real estate brokers, unlike residential Realtors, do not cooperate with each other and insist on handling both sides of the transaction. Also, Frascona noted the whole concept of a buyer broker was born in Colorado
Realtors crucial to short sales
Yet, lenders routinely insist that Realtors surrender part of their their commission to make a short-sale work, he said.. “Why? Did the Realtor make the loan? Did the Realtor service the loan? No.” Quite the opposite, he said, as Realtors are the ones who keep short sales together, as the lenders lose paperwork and buyers and sellers lose patience. Rather than giving back some of their commissions, Realtors should ask the banker his salary, and ask him to take a 20 percent cut.
Frascona said that Realtors play a more important role in getting things done members of his own profession.”You are “do” people. Lawyers are “don’t” people,” Frascona said.
Hick high on Realtors
About two hours later, Hickenlooper also heaped praise on Realtors. Although some people bash Realtors as being greedy and caring only about their commission, Hickenlooper said that in his mind, Realtors carry a great deal of credibility. He noted that when he was looking to buy a home, he depended and believed the information about the market that came from his Realtor.
Hickenlooper also noted when he first ran for mayor of Denver, the first group to endorse him was the Denver Board of Realtors. “It’s probably fair to say I would not be here if it was not for Realtors,” the governor said.
John Rebchook can be reached at JRCHOOK@gmail.com.
