Real estate agent again

[Wongo]

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/...?oneclick=true

Sef Gonzelas murdered his entire family in their house and a real estate agent has managed to sell the haunted house. Knowing that the buyers would regret it when they find out the story of the house. Knowing that it is morally wrong but yet they still did it. Are they really that bad? :mad: :mad:

I have 2 questions for you.
1. What do you think of the real estate agent?
2. Would you be brave enough to live in that house?

Personally I would never ever trust a real estate agent. They are dishonest and greedy. I reckon scientist should stop using mice for scientific experiment because real estate agent seems to be a better alternative.

There is no way I would move in that house. It is just too much and I would not be sleeping well at night.

[Grunt]

1. Mostly they are slime but I've met a few that are reasonably straight up and down.
2. Not a problem. I don't believe in ghosts.

[Wood Borer]

What do I think of that Real Estate Agent? The answer is in the question - a Real Estate Agent. They are mostly slime.

My cousin is one, I left a message on his answering machine 26 years ago and the @#$%* still hasn't returned the call. Back then we didn't have 2 bob to rub together so I suspect he didn't see any personal advantage calling me back. Genuine friendship seems foreign to these scum.

Would I live in the house? Not by choice but then perhaps our block of land or house was a massacre place years ago but we don't know about it. What about Europe and Asia and Africa where millions of people have died in wars. People must be living on that land. I am not sure they are aware of it though.

[silentC]

I agree that the new buyers certainly had a right to know before they bought the house. I don't think that what the agent did was illegal in any way, so maybe their only recourse is to sue on the grounds of the shock they got when they found out. Not a lawyer, so can't say. The agent was probably unethical in concealing it but that wouldn't surprise too many people.

The thing is, there is nothing physically wrong with the house. If you didn't know about what happened there, it would make no difference. It's something that lives only in the concience of the people who know about it: the agent, the vendor, the neighbours etc. Unless you believe in ghosts that is.

From the vendor's point of view, do they have the right to get a fair price for the house and land, or should they accept the fact that it will never sell for what it's worth? Not a very good situation for them.

Would I live there? It probably wouldn't bother me too much. Friends of ours bought a house once. A policeman friend told us that the previous owner had hung himself in the lounge room - he knew this because he had attended the scene. Neither of us told our friends - would you? They were blissfully ignorant and never found out. We stayed one night and my wife says she heard noises. I wonder if she would have heard them if she didn't know.

Assuming you didn't build your house, do you know what has happened in it in the past? I've lived in some pretty old houses in Sydney - who know's what went on between those walls?

[craigb]

While I agree with all of the above sentiments, I wonder what would be the purchasers reaction if the vendor said "Righto, because of what's occurred in this house we'll sell it to you for $200k less than its market value."

Call me a cynic but I reckon that the fear of ghosts would suddenly diminish somewhat.

[Wongo]

I am not a religious person nor do I believe in ghost and evil spirit. I just feel uncomfortable after knowing the murder case and seeing the images of the family from the media.

Silent, I agree with you 100%. I don’t think they have done anything wrong by the book. But not everything by the book is morally right.

Craig, unfortunately the vendor did not tell "what’s occurred in the house" and the couple did say that they would not move in even if it was free.

[jackiew]

some places and some physical things can give me the heebie jeebies ... was given quite a nice ear-ring that gives me the creeps ... you couldn't pay me to wear it ... presumably the purchasers of the house had good feelings about the house.

Just because someone dies badly somewhere doesn't mean to say they are going to hang around and persecute the next occupants.

I found out after I'd paid the deposit on my house that a big apartment block was planned for the bottom of my garden ( but no plans had been submitted to council so my due diligence ( which obviously wasn't diligent enough ) didn't show it up ). The owners definately knew as they'd been shown the plans ( this has been confirmed by the neighbours). The Agent probably knew.

If it ever gets built ( lets hope the land owner goes belly up first from paying interest on the land when there is no market for apartments at the moment) I'm up for 2 years of 6 days a week noise from 7am. Would I have bought the house if I'd known. maybe. but I'd certainly not have paid as much for it. So I can quite understand the new owners feeling aggrieved.

Morally they should have been told. Legally - another matter entirely.

[craigb]

I am not a religious person nor do I believe in ghost and evil spirit. I just feel uncomfortable after knowing the murder case and seeing the images of the family from the media.

Silent, I agree with you 100%. I don’t think they have done anything wrong by the book. But not everything by the book is morally right.

Craig, unfortunately the vendor did not tell "what’s occurred in the house" and the couple did say that they would not move in even if it was free.

Wongo,

Don't get me wrong, I agree with you. They should have been told. Would they have used the information as a negotiating tool? Perhaps not but maybe they would have if they'd known up front.

Would I want to live there? No but not only because of what's occured there but because it's a really ugly house IMO.

Cheers

Craig

[LineLefty]

forget lawyers, real estate agents - general - are duplicitous and sleazfy by nature. The few that aren't must get frustrated at stories like this.

Why anyone would want to do that job is beyond me. No way I'd be wearing a suit on sundays.

As a case in point, have a look at this geezer, he's head of Ray White WA and his face is plastered over the West Australian on saturdays:

Would you trust this man?

[simon c]

I like to compare real estate agents and used car salesmen.

I have a lot more respect for used car salesmen because they take the risk. They buy a car from one person and sell it to another. Any profit is entirely at their risk, if they buy a lemon, then they are stuck with it. Whereas real estate agents just take a commission with no risk. If a property doesn't sell or goes for a cut down price, then they just make a smaller profit rather than facing a potential loss.

Having said that, I have only bought one house in Australia and the agent ws great. Very honest, told both sides what the deal was and negotiated a price that was in both sides interests. The property had been passed in a few months earlier and we were the only interetsed partyy. I would be happy to recommend him and in fact I will: Alan Bramich from Fletchers in the Melbourne Eastern Suburbs.

[jackiew]

its interesting comparing the approach ( and costs ) of real estate agents in uk against here.

selling a house in uk about 2 years ago ... didn't pay for advertising (advertising included house being on internet, in the window of the real estate agent with interior and exterior shots, in local paper a few times ) ... agent showed people round as I had to come back here before it sold ( normally the householder shows people round ) ... no open for inspections ... inspection by appointment only fee was 1% - no sale no fee

when you want to buy you go round registering your details with lots of agents .. they give you sheets on what they've got at the moment .. and if you live in another town will send you regular info on new properties. If you've no house to sell then you are welcomed with open arms because it means there is no "chain" below you. In Uk you end up with a chain of buyers all having to exchange contracts on the same day. It took my sister 9 months to sell her house to someone because that person wasn't at the bottom of the chain and her buyers kept dropping out.

buying a house here ( before everything softened) was a very frustrating experience. Could I get an agent to actually take my details .... no way, "we don't do that". Not even when they'd seen me bid at auction was an agent interested in taking my details or letting me know about their other properties. Whole onus is on you to run round trying to find what is on the market.

Can't make the open for inspection time?.... tough luck ... agents aren't prepared to ring the vendor and ask for a private inspection.

Want to put an offer in on a house? The Agent can refuse to pass the offer on to the vendor ( several weeks later the agent rang me back and said "they'll accept your offer" .... my answer "sorry mate what offer, I've just bought another house"). I always thought that you put an offer in and the vendor says yes or no and if they say no you either up your offer or walk away. According to the real estate institute of victoria ( I know because I rang up and asked ) the agent has no obligation to pass on offers to vendors!!!!

I'm sure there are plenty of real estate agents who do try and do a good job but I'm also sure that there are plenty who were rolling in money and treating both buyers and sellers with contempt when the market was on the up but I reckon they are going to suffer now the market is on the way down.

[Ben from Vic.]

From the vendor's point of view, do they have the right to get a fair price for the house and land, or should they accept the fact that it will never sell for what it's worth? Not a very good situation for them.

Ah, the vendor's are dead, so no, it's not a very good situation for them. :eek:

It's a bit creepy though.

Not sure either way, but if it was a bargin, I don't think I'd pass it up.


Ben.

[echnidna]

If its real cheap I would buy it.

[Sturdee]

I have 2 questions for you.
1. What do you think of the real estate agent?
2. Would you be brave enough to live in that house?

1. That agent did his job very well. He is hired by the seller to sell the house and he has no right, legally or morally, to say anything that could hurt the sellers prospects in a sale. In fact if he had told the buyer the seller could sue him. The property market, like everything else, is buyer beware. If the buyer had been diligent they would have known. It is their own fault if now the purchaser pulls out and loose their deposit.

2. Yes, just because people died, however badly, in that house,it is not haunted. Most older houses have had people dying in it. FYI I bought my house from my parents. In our bedroom firstly my father died and then later my mother and no doubt at some stage me. This did not make it haunted and we don't have any problems sleeping.


Peter.

[LineLefty]

Sturdee,

you're not a real estate agent are you?

I understand where you're coming from but sheesh, it's still dishonest in most peoples eyes