Real Estate | Guard against bluffing

Aspiring landlords will soon start shopping as they currently have to decide whether or not to renew their lease. In this real estate jungle that we illustrated so well at the last Bye, how can you guard against bluffing? Expert advice.

Marie-Christine* found the condo of her dreams in the neighborhood she wanted. A 650 sq. ft. apartment² listed at $350,000. First visitor and without a broker to represent her, she notices that the premises are empty and immediately makes an offer to the broker representing the seller.

The professional is convinced that she is making a good offer by announcing that she can move next month and that she will pay in cash. She gives the seller 24 hours to respond.

“I offered $330,000,” says this reader of The Press on the phone. I started lower, because I was sure there would be a negotiation and I would have to add more money. »

However, two hours before the end of the deadline, the broker tells him that the seller has received another offer and specifies that it is higher. “I know he has no right to say that to me, but I don’t blame him, because I absolutely wanted the condo. The broker also told me that he wanted me to buy it, because the other offer came from a buyer with a broker and he would have had to split the commission. »

“Because this possibility of another buyer, she says, put psychological pressure on me to accept the seller’s counter-offer, which was $372,000, an amount higher than the list price. »

“Is there a way to know the truth?” she asks.

Is the truth accessible?

If the current Real Estate Brokerage Act prohibits real estate brokers from disclosing the amount and conditions of other offers to purchase, there is no system that makes it possible to know before the transaction whether there has indeed been another offer.

However, the real estate broker has a code of ethics which obliges him to collaborate and to give truthful information.

Among the rules of practice, there is one which indicates that a broker must not commit any act derogatory to the honor and dignity of the profession, specifies Denis Joanis, president and chief executive officer for the Association des courtiers real estate in Quebec.

Real estate broker Pascal Saumure, at RE/MAX Signature, points out that it is professionally undesirable for the credibility of a broker to use the bluff, because the evidence is accessible.

“In our practice, the confirmation of the existence of an offer to purchase by another party is made by the Immo-contact system, which is a texting system managed by our real estate board, the APCIQ, explains. -he. The APCIQ keeps as proof all messages received and sent by Immo-contact between real estate brokers. »

Ways to find out the truth

“In case of doubt about the existence of any other promise to purchase presented to the seller, the buyer may refer to the manager of the agency, supports by email the Organisme d’autoréglementation du courtage immobilier au Québec (OACIQ) . The latter has an important role in protecting the public. In particular, he must supervise the professional activities of license holders acting within the agency. »

If the buyer does not get a response from the agency manager, he can file a request for assistance with the OACIQ.

“An analyst will assess the request to verify whether the licensee has breached their ethical obligations. The process could lead to a complaint before the OACIQ Discipline Committee or to compensation for the aggrieved consumer,” the organization explains by email.

In the context of an investigation, the syndic of the OACIQ could contact the agency manager to obtain documents. Collaborating with the OACIQ during an inspection or investigation is one of the obligations of license holders.

“Once the deed of sale has been signed at the notary’s, it is possible to find out the sale price of a property using the Quebec Land Register,” says the OACIQ. However, it is not possible to know the price of the other promises to purchase refused by the seller. »

For or against bluffing

Once upon a time, in a buyer’s market, nothing stopped them from blithely bluffing sellers by claiming to have had another crush on a cheaper, renovated and better located house.

The current situation, as we know, is quite different with a sixth consecutive annual drop in listings of properties for sale on Centris.

Even in agglomerations located outside metropolitan areas, the market has reversed over the past two years in favor of sellers.

Make believe that there is another person interested in the good to be sold, isn’t it a traditional technique of sale widespread to avoid the negotiation?

According to the professor of business ethics at the School of Management Sciences of the University of Quebec in Montreal Dominic Martin, the negotiation is however very healthy during a deed of sale. The seller tries to get the best price and the buyer the lowest price.

“The fact that there is competition between buyers fulfills a function which is to establish the right price and this is not an ethical problem,” he maintains. But from the moment we bluff, it is more difficult to justify in the sale. »

The ethics professor points out that it is no more acceptable to make people believe that several people are interested in a good that is sold on Kijiji or Marketplace.

“We can’t protect ourselves against the bluff, says Martin Desfossés, coach and spokesperson for DuProprio, because the only way to determine whether the person is lying or not is to have written proof. »

As one cannot have access to the seller’s thoughts, the coach advises buyers to deal with the facts.

“The buyer should not make an offer based on what he is told, but on his needs, his real interest in acquiring the property and his budget. When we make the decision by ourselves and without pressure, we are better able to assume our decision, because it is ours. »

As for sellers who display their property on DuProprio, Martin Desfossés specifies that they may or may not disclose the other promises to purchase, the amount and the conditions.

* The first name of this reader who wrote to us has been changed so as not to interfere with the finalization of her real estate transaction.