I was chatting with some very successful Redfin agents recently and I learned just how important strong vendor and lender relationships are.
As most people know, Redfin agents do not work for commission, but instead get paid a salary and bonuses based primarily on “customer satisfaction.”
Customer satisfaction is measured by the results of an elaborate survey sent to every Redfin client after a transaction closes. And, this is where it gets interesting.
Even when the Redfin agents perform all of their tasks to perfection, the surveys often come back with negative reviews when the lender performs poorly. This happens even when the buyers used a lender that Redfin agents encouraged them NOT to use.
In other words, agents are often blamed for events and issues they have no control over, and they’re often blamed even when they provided explicit advice (use another lender) that would have prevented the problems in the first place.
I was told about a particular incident involving a large credit union that a buyer insisted on using b/c of a long-standing relationship. Our friends at Redfin aggressively encouraged the buyers to use another lender, knowing that the credit union was unlikely to perform. And sure enough – when the buyers got into contract, the credit union went completely dark for weeks at a time – with no communication at all.
Needless to say, the transaction was delayed, and… the agent was blamed for the delays.
This is just another reminder that the lenders and vendors you work with on every transaction are a reflection of you – probably more than you realize.
Jay Voorhees
Founder/Broker | JVM Lending
(855) 855-4491 | DRE# 1197176, NMLS# 310167
