I opened Alex’s (name changed for privacy reasons) email and read:

“I’ve found a house … its perfect … and a bargain. I’ve even offered Rent to Buy terms and they seem open. I just don’t know how to move forward now … please help.”

Alex left his mobile number so I gave him a call to have a chat. Here’s a brief run down of our conversation:

My first question to Alex was “Is there a real estate agent involved?” Alex replied “Well, yes there is, but they are a friend of mine so I’m sure that there won’t be a problem …”

Flashing red lights were already going off in my mind and it was only the beginning of our conversation. When it comes to real estate agents and Rent to Buy terms, the two generally don’t mix well.

I suggested to Alex that what he needed to do next was further qualify the agent with a couple of questions. He needed to get the agent to ask her boss if he would allow a Rent to Buy transaction to go through his office.  Alex also needed to ask the agent if he could have direct access to speak with the seller to discuss the Rent to Buy terms.

The deal came to a quick dead end upon the asking of these questions. The real estate agent instantly disqualified herself and the sellers out of the deal (which by the way is fine). You don’t need to waste your time with real estate agents in your hunt for a Rent to Buy deal. You will quickly become disheartened and discouraged when dealing with them, as you will hear no after no. Dealing directly with the seller is where your greatest success will come, as you will hear far more yes’ then no’s!

Here’s a few reasons why its best to avoid the good old real estate agent.

Agents are not trained in Rent to Buy systems, so most of them do not have a clue how these systems work.

One of the real estate agents major concerns in regards to Rent to Buy is how will they receive their commissions, especially due to the fact that in most Rent to Buy deal types, settlement is delayed for anywhere between 2 to 7 years.

Some agents have had a bad experience with a Rent to Buy deal going sour so they have vowed to never allow another transaction like that to go through their office again. Unless the agent that you are dealing with actually owns the agency, all other real estate agents that are employed by that office will have to present your Rent to Buy proposal to their boss for approval for it to be allowed to go through the office.

We’ve heard agents tell us to our face that the vendor will never go for something like that, so there’s no way they’ll be putting our offer forward. Other agents have told us that they shouldn’t even be talking to us about this (Rent to Buy), because it’s illegal – which it is not …

Having a real estate agent caught up in the middle of a Rent to Buy transaction prevents you from speaking directly to the seller. You need this direct communication to set up your own Rent to Buy house purchase safely and successfully. Having to go through a middleman complicates the communication amd muddies the waters … especially if the agent does not understand how Rent to Buy works.

It makes life so much more simple to remove the middleman and deal directly with the seller. Your lines of communication will not get crossed and everything discussed will not have to go through a third party. Real estate agents generally only act for their own interests – in real estate transactions they are the party who always receive what they want (their commissions), whilst the buyer and the seller either win or lose from the transaction.

Rent to Buy systems are not complicated … in fact, they are relatively simple. Because they are not tradtional, it often takes a little while for people to get their head around the concepts, but once understood, they bring life saving answers to both buyers and sellers real estate troubles.

The real estate marketplace here in Aus is NOT owned by real estate agents. You are actually free to go ahead and deal directly with a seller WITHOUT a real estate agents involvement. Of course they won’t like it. But that’s ok. You’ll be keeping control of one of the biggest commitments that you’ll ever make in your life, not giving away that control away to a total stranger who more then likely has his or her own interests in mind.

Rent to Buy is really a marketing system. Once you have marketed directly to sellers in the area that you want to live, your phone will start to ring. You will then further qualify those sellers until you find the deal that is going to work for you. Most of the qualifying process is done over the phone – BEFORE you even go to look at the property. This is great, as no one’s time gets wasted.

The DIY Rent to Buy manual has both the above mentioned marketing and qualifying systems documented in it. The manual was written with you in mind, to enable you to step out and implement these systems for yourself, without needing a real estate agent or a Rent to Buy investor.

To order your very own copy of the DIY Rent to Buy manual, or to find out more, please visit:

http://www.diyrenttobuyhouses.com.au

To purchase the DIY Rent to Buy manual at the discounted price of $297 (instead of $497), all you need to do is put the words “no real estate agents” in the special discount code at the bottom of the order form of the link above.

Well, watching “The Block” over the last few weeks has been a regular event in our household …

http://homes.ninemsn.com.au/theblock/

My kids have loved it … but what a devastating let down the last nights auction was for the 4 properties and renovators involved … a fine example of how real estate can let people down BIG time! A prime example of one of real estates “worst case scenarios!” Lucky for the renovators that this was a competition and that they had no need to invest any of their own hard earned money into the properties (even though they invested 8 weeks of their precious time). Even luckier for the renovaters of the properties that were not sold, that there is no underlying mortgage for them to carry while waiting for the listing real estate agents to bring a buyer to the table. Funny that, that 25,000 people trampled through these homes on the “Open Home” inspection day, but on the night of the auction, only one buyer was forthcoming!

Here’s what Today Tonight and Neil Jenman had to say about it:

http://au.news.yahoo.com/today-tonight/consumer/article/-/10087250/blocks-secrets-revealed

I can’t help but totally agree!

As I sat with my kids watching the failure to produce a result at auction, I couldn’t help but feel that “the crowd” weren’t prepared to play the game of committing themselves to an overpriced purchase all for the sake of a “reality” tv show. As the property bubble here in Australia continues to deflate, I just wonder how much longer these reality tv shows are going to last.

I’m not at all surprised by the end result I saw on The Block. Pushy real estate agents trying to get someone else to commit to an over priced property. 3 out of the 4 properties not selling. I actually feel really proud of “the crowd” for not falling for it – only a greater fool would put their neck on the chopping block for a reality tv show!

I’ve been thinking off and on lately about what it is that prevents people who are caught up in the rental trap from stepping out and implementing Rent to Buy systems for themselves. I know that there are many reasons because I only have to take myself back 10 or so years ago to remember how I felt when I was just starting out and Rent to Buy was a whole new world to me. My comfort zone was pretty much blown away to kingdom come when my husband and I were exposed to the “out of the box” opportunity of Rent to Buy which we’ve used now for over 10 years. I mean, could these systems really work?

I remember that Rent to Buy systems seemed to be so out of the box that I felt daunted about trying to implement them – after all – there really has been only one way that Australians have been brain washed with to buy and sell property – the traditional way with the local real estate agent, qualifying for bank finance and all that. If you happened to be non-bank conforming – well you are just stuck with renting.

I will never forget the day that my husband said to me that I’m on my own now with taking calls from sellers who were responding to a letterbox drop that we had just done while on the hunt for Rent to Buy opportunities. My confidence was low, I felt like I lacked knowledge, I was afraid, scared, nervous and excited all at the same time as I was stepping out into new territory, doing something that I had never done before – really what I had was an exciting opportunity to grow while changing my future.

To my surprise, the more the phone rang, the more confident I became. The more I found myself talking to sellers, the more my thinking changed and the more I found I knew about Rent to Buy. I heard one comment over and over again from dissatisfied sellers – how their local real estate agent had let them down and brought no answers to the table for their real estate troubles.

Rent to Buy provided a system for me that I could follow, bringing answers for both the seller and myself that traditional real estate just couldn’t bring to the table. There are sellers everywhere, in every suburb, who have not found answers to their real estate needs through the traditional method of selling using real estate agents and the banking system.

I remember other times when my husband and I sat across the table from friends telling us that their accountant told them that what we were doing was “illegal” and that “we can’t do that.” I remember hearing real estate agents and solicitors telling us the same. But we did “do that” and it worked beautifully (and it was, and still is, legal).

I’ve seen the Rent to Buy market before it was flooded with “want a be” Rent to Buy investors, out to make a big buck for themselves from hard working, innocent families looking for a way into home ownership. I’ve sadly watched bad press come out about Rent to Buy due to greedy, inexperienced cowboys ripping families off with Rent to Buy.

So … if you are ready to step over the line, gather up your courage and do something a little different, without relying on someone else to do it for you (we call this living large and in charge) … why don’t you take us up on our end of financial year offer for the DIY Rent to Buy manual?

The manual covers everything above – it shows you how to directly market to sellers in YOUR area who will be happy to sell to you directly on Rent to Buy terms (that’s right – no real estate agents or Rent to Buy investors involved)! The manual shows you how to qualify sellers over the phone BEFORE you step foot outside the door to go and look at their property. Plus heaps, heaps more.

Still unsure about the DIY Rent to Buy manual? Read a testimonial here:

http://www.diyrenttobuyhouses.com.au/webuysellrent.html

Need more info about the DIY Rent to Buy manual? Read more here:

http://www.diyrenttobuyhouses.com.au

Want to know more about us, our company and Rent to Buy systems? There’s plenty of free info here:

http://www.webuyhomes.com.au