[AndreCA]

Northern California

This is for a 1 year lease on a home. Broker is only being used for finding a tenant, not management.

I am 22 and live with my slightly older sister and her boyfriend. The two of them have very stable long term jobs and surpass the needed monthly income without including me! I have had a very successful life so far, and am starting my second business with no income but savings. I'm going to call my sister, her boyfriend and myself WE for clarity.

WE have lived in our current place for four years and have being looking for a better place for the last two, this should make it clear how much we want this place. WE found a house in the same town with a monthly rent increase of 35%. I viewed the home with the broker, and later that day WE filled the application and mailed it to the broker. He ran the credit as well as our references and left a message saying my sister and her boyfriend had average credit with great references and that I had above average credit but that we were YOUNG, and that was the only problem.

Saturday, WE, the broker and the owner met at the home to have an introductory. The owner wanted to meet us before a deal was made, and I wanted to do the same as I would be dealing with this owner for the minimum of a year. WE were incredibly happy as the owner is very kind and honest. This meeting went fine meeting, ignoring the constant interruptions from the broker. It also became evident that the broker had given me false information about some details of the home the day I had met him alone, which luckily the owner resolved. The owner had a friend with whom my sister talked with and it was mentioned that a later move in date would be mutually beneficial. We left, feeling confident and everyone agreed that a decision would be made Monday.

The broker called me the same night (Saturday) with news that we had gotten the place, and I got the feeling that he had pushed the owner to make a decision perhaps using us as an excuse. I told the broker that I'd like to negotiate a mutual move in date with the owner. Because the requested date was later than June 1st, the broker lost his head and called me young, and naïve, and angrily told me that the move in date was non-negotiable. I had the feeling he was making up all the answers to the questions so I directly asked him if that is what the owner said. He kept avoiding the questions, and this supported the idea that he was speaking for himself, and not for the owner. I did not want to ask for the owner’s number out of courtesy, so I firmly requested the broker to have the owner come to the Sunday meeting for the $500 deposit, or call me prior. The broker promised I would get a call Sunday 9am-9:30.

Sunday morning at 9:10am the broker called my sister instead of myself, leaving a three minute message stating that I was asking immature questions, and the owner didn’t want to deal with me anymore because of my age – repeated through the message. He wanted to deal with someone older (sister or her boyfriend). He called three times and left two messages within ten minutes on my sister’s cell phone, and never called me. This upset her as it was very unprofessional and degrading, and made her very uncomfortable – enough so that she was ready to give up the house. I called the broker back for her and told him that I need to talk to the owner.

The owner called me and we seemed to have similar problems with the broker, and it seems all problems started with the broker directly. The owner had no problem negotiating the move in date, and did not seem to mind dealing with me. He stated that he was using the broker to protect both us and himself, and this gave me the impression that this was his first time renting out – he has never used this broker before. He indirectly asked me if I could deal with the broker until the final contract was signed on the move-in date and assured me that we would directly be dealing with him after that date. I am not going to ask the owner to fire the broker as the broker introduced us, and that would be an ethic misstep.

I then met the broker that Sunday evening with the $500 money order written to him and signed a holding agreement saying that this was a non-refundable deposit and on the move-in date I would pay rent for June 15th through July 31st plus the security deposit minus the holding deposit I was handing over now. What worried me is this whole amount is supposed to be written out to the broker, including the security deposit. I made sure this meeting was fast, and we were done within five minutes. Two quick as the owner’s wife called me ten minutes after wondering where we were as they thought we were meeting! She was very sweet and said she wanted to check in as she understood the two of us were having some problems. I thanked her for the call.

It seems this is the owner's first time renting so would like to meddle as little as possible, but it's clear this broker who's been in business 15 years is horrible and just pushing to get his commission. He's talked down to me and treated me like dirt solely based on my age, and I have 3 voice mails documenting this.

QUESTIONS:
Is it common to write the deposit and first month’s rent plus security deposit to the broker if we are only dealing with him this one time? He is not the property manager. I feel a bit uneasy about handing him such a large cashier's check. I understand that his commission is half of the first month’s rent but is this how this goes?

I feel that the broker has done this before, and therefore thought he could get away with inconsistencies and talking down to me because of my age. I know for a fact if this had happened to my sister she would have felt insecure.

There are many details I did not mention, such as the broker’s seemingly agenda (getting paid) and constant repeating what he said to me, as if I am a moron and easily forget. These things are simply nuisances.

What are my options?

[AltaVista]

This 'broker' is acting a little strangely. Is this person a licensed Real Estate Broker? Can you verify this fact? Because it would be illegal in most states to represent any parties in a real estate transaction if the person isn't licensed. There doesn't seem to be any reason to have this 'broker' involved in the deal. Stay in close communication with the owners - otherwise your money could disappear.
You might want to have a lawyer represent you, or a real estate agent - they will know if this broker is on the level or not. As well as protecting your interests.

[AndreCA]

Thank you for reading my post!

I checked the state's website and he is indeed a licensed Broker.

I'd rather collect as much information as I can before I bring anything up with the broker or the owners. I now know that in California there is no such thing as a non-refundable deposit, so his 15 years doesn't mean much. I also really like this place and the owner seems like a guy who doesn't like a lot of bull. I'd hate to start our relationship screaming "broker is scum!". But it's also not worth the large amount of money at stake if this guy has no clue what he's doing!

I would very much like a lawyer or real estate agent, but I don't have any lawyer friends and I'm sure an out of office representation would be over a few hundred.

[AndreCA]

My main concern is if it's common for a broker to have the tenant pay him the deposit plus first months rent? It seems the broker's job is done at this point and he should collect his fee from the owner.

[Fr_Chuck]

It is what ever the agreement between the broker and the owner is,
Some will, many do, not all.

Actually the really "odd" part at least for real estate brokers here, is them finding the rental at all, unless they were managing it,
But it seems that the broker was trying to set firm agreements and the owner should have merely let the broker do what the broker was hired for, make the deal. This sounds like a inexperienced owner who will learn to not make as many deals down the road, Most likely what the broker was trying to protect him from. The ower was wrong in that if he was going to use the broker they should have allowed the broker to do it.

[ScottGem]

I would just make sure everything is documented. Don't worry about who you pay money to as long as you have proof that you paid them and what it was for.

Get the deal over with and move in. then you can see about file a complaint about the broker with the state licensing bureau.

[AndreCA]

I will just follow through with my mouth shut for now. Once this is over and I'm in what departments do I complain to?

[ScottGem]

Whatever dept or agency licenses real estate brokers.

[Cvillecpm]

The 'Broker' has an agreement with the owner to perform certain real estate activities i.e. - leasing the owner's property. Making checks payable to the broker is custom. Keep the carbon copy of your money order in your lease document file.