I don't think unlicensed assistants should be directly involved in any phase of selling a listing....

I don't answer feedback questions about pricing, whether from a licensed or unlicensed assistant or the listing agent.

Carla,

Here in California you cannot quote a price unless you have license to anyone inquiring, whether they walk in or call....That does not mean that if one is unlicensed and not employed in a real estate company that  they cannot talk about the price.  The public at large talks about what house are priced at, they read them on line, and in the media.   A

I have no issue giving feedback about a property.  I don't agree that an unlicensed assist should ask this question.  I won'r discuss prices with other agents. 

I do provide as well as ask for, feedback on showings.  Never do I participate in discussions about price though.  And no, an Assistant should not be involved. 
I do think as a Buyer's Agent, I can help with questions about floorplan, views, privacy, etc  just as I like to receive the same when I'm the listing agent.  Sellers are curious as to why their home has not had an offer, why it didn't suit that Buyer. It isn't always price.

   Ditto.   If I show your Listing, that means that I represent the Buyer.  It would be a violation of my fiduciary to tell you "how the Buyer felt about the property" or anything else.

Carla,

This boils down to two questions: Unlicensed assistant and feedback.

On the unlicensed assistant, there is no problem with them requesting this information.  They are not engaging in selling the home to an individual.  They are not violating any laws/regs.

As to asking "what do you think about the price" that IS a very VALID question to ask and in no way a breach of duty!  You can look at the comps and price a house perfectly within the comps, but if the buyers aren't willing to pay the price it doesn't matter how good of a job you did pricing it! 

COMPS determine list price.

BUYERS determine the actual value.

I just ignore these types of requests and move on.

Feedback, for the most part, is useless and asking about a listing price regardless of who is asking always strikes me as desperate.   

A buyer agent is not going to say it is priced right even if it is, because the agent wants to get the lowest  price for the buyer. 

I don't like it when agents (or their assistants) ask about pricing. It shows me they don't know the market. 

Carla Muss-Jacobs, Principal Broker (503) 810-7192 Illegal in my State to practice real estate without a license.

If I'm not mistaken there is to be no discussion of price by anyone that's not licensed. 

I am aware of your desire not to give feedback from your past posts. We have an opt out policy that many BA's use in our area.

In my area, we rarely have unlicensed asst. I don't want an unlicensed anyone - helping with anything to do with real estate in most cases.

Unlicensed assistants should not have anything to do with pricing a listing.

IMO Unlicensed assitants shouldn't be asking questions of others or offering information other than setting appointments and follow ups

 I think unlicensed workers/employees must be very careful for many reasons, Carla Muss-Jacobs, Principal Broker (503) 810-7192 ... as should their employers.  I see this being dangerous territory from their position as well as those they are questioning ...

Gene

A price discussion is out of the scoop of an unlicensed professional, along with any price negotiation. 

Nowhere on this official list from the State of Florida of permissible activities of unlicensed assistants does it state they can make such a call.  Check here to see what is permissible in your state.

Personally, I've always thought that unless the listing agent intends to pay me a portion of their commission for providing my opinion on list price or feedback about their listing after a showing, I won't respond to requests for feedback.  I have yet to come across an agent willing to compensate other agents for their feedback (and I don't mean the "chance" to win a gift certificate at a broker's open).  Do your job, do it well and you (or your assistant) won't need to hound showing agents for feedback.

No.  Our brokerage has a very detail policy on what an unlcensed assistant can do.

ATTENTION K-Mart Shoppers. There is a Blue-Light Special starting on aisle 9 in 5 minutes.  

We must have a valid license to discuss price. Unlicensed assistants have no business calling agents and asking for that kind of feedback. Period. 

This is why I would hire a licensed assistant to avoid any questions like the ones above. I am legal.

Follow the rules in your state.

No, no and no it is illegal here

Great points!!!  Great read!

Ron and Alexandra Seigel nailed this one!

 In Washington state an unlicensed assistant is not supposed to talk of price or other  listing details ...

The assistants around here are not to get involved with Real Estate, other than giving addresses and directions, unless they are licensed, then they can do everything and agent does, as long as they keep up their license and dues.

Carla Muss-Jacobs, Principal Broker (503) 810-7192 - working as buyer's agent, the only feedback I give the listing agent is - if my buyers are going to buy the property or not. (I know I do not need to do that - it's just a habit!)

And that email goes as soon as I hear from my buyers - no need to wait for the request from feedback - either from listing agent or from his/her unlicensed assistant!

Depends on your states' licencing laws.  

No, that is breaking all the rules, isn't it?

Well I think you have vented well here   The feedback has been interesting and supportive however 

There are agents in my area that use their assistants for these type solicitations. I If caught on the phone I just play nice and vague.

I don't think the non-license agent should be asking those questions.

I will give feedback on properties my clients are not interested in

Who cares if they are licensed, its just an opinion and not likely to make any difference.

I think that it is silly to ask the buyer or their agent the question in the first place.

If they dont know then they probably should not be listing it to start with.

I don't like it but they can do it...It has a funny flavor to it. Why would a professional want to have lively discussion with a layman pretending to be?

No, absolutely not!  However, here our MLS mandates that we provide feedback; however only about 1/2 of the agents actually do!  I recently saw a stat that about 75% of our showings are agents acting as sub-agents of the sellers so, those agents should ALWAYS provide feedback to the sellers, without fail.

Wow, so much anger in this thread simply for asking for feedback from cooperating agents.  While each state may have specific rules on what an Unlicensed Assistant can and can't do, I don't see any violation with an unlicensed person asking a LICENSED person their opinion on a property that they just showed.  The assistant isn't asking for themself, they are asking as part of their job and on behalf of their employing Licensed Agent or Broker.  They are not performing real estate services since their communication is with their own employer and not the seller, buyer or member of the public.

Feedback is requested not required.  Sometimes honest feedback from buyer agents is helpful in communicating with a seller.  If I receive feedback from 5 buyer agents that showed the property this week that the house isn't attractive because it is cluttered and dirty, then it is much easier for me to approach the seller with evidence that their housekeeping is effecting their sale.  

It's the same for the price.  They most likely aren't looking for a value estimate from you, they want to hear "yeah, it's priced in the right ballpark, but my buyer is looking for something a little more updated" or "This is way overpriced for this neighborhood."  Again, we shouldn't assume the agent doesn't know how to price their own listing or doesn't know how to do a CMA.  Most likely if it's overpriced, the listing agent has already communicated that to the seller and the seller either doesn't belive them or is still testing the market.  If the agent now has feedback, they can present the feedback to the seller.  "Mr &Mrs Seller, when we discussed pricing your home originally, I recommended $YYY as our list price and you wanted to start higher at $ZZZ.  It's been two weeks, and we've had 5 showings and the feedback from all 5 agents has been that the home is overpriced.  This is the reason we haven't received any offers.  I suggest we revisit the original CMA and come up with a new pricing strategy so we can get your home sold and you on your way to your new home."

On the other hand, if you are the feedback requester and I give you honest feedback that your listing is overpriced, don't respond back to me that I'm wrong or that my buyer must be a low baller.  If you want feedback, I'm happy to give it, but be prepared to hear the bad along with the good.  

I frequently give feedback except the question about price is always left blank. 

Ron and Alexandra Seigel are correct about unlicensed people quoting prices to inquirers.  I've been to, and assisted with, Open Houses whereas the Listing Agent wasn't present.  So, when people inquired about the price, we simply provided them the flyer on the property and addressed them to contact the listing agent with any additional questions on the property.  The real estate agents understood this, but we would sometimes explain to the consumers why we couldn't provide much further information on the property, other than providing them the flyer.

No I do not think unlicensed people should be discussing the listings at all. there are some real problems with one of the big franchise companies and teams with unlicensed assistants that cross the line on this matter. we do not participate.

Interesting question Carla.

A good listing agent knows the shortcomings of a property including the list price. That what makes them a good agent.

Sometimes shortcomings cannot be resolved or significantly mitigated. Had one like that once where virtually all of the buyers wanted a waterview or golf course view. The condo never sold since it had a preserve view.

I don't solicit buyer feedback when acting as a listing agent. However, if they offer, I listen and thank them.

Never been queried by an unlicensed assistant as a buyer's agent. Have been by the listing agent and I simply tell the truth with my buyer's permission.

$ matter should not be discussed other than buyer or listing agents.....