Are they blameless in this real estate debacle?
I find it interesting that real estate agents seemed to have dodged any significant regulation as a result of the meltdown in Real Estate. While lenders and appraisers have had massive changes in how they are allowed to do business (see related blog postings), almost no new regulation is aimed at the real estate agent.
The only real change I can think of is that real estate agents now are required to show their real estate license number on all of their publications, cards, emails and other points of public contact. This rule seems to be reasonable, very much like what’s been required for general (building) contractors.
The real estate license number actually does give information to the sophisticated consumer, if they know what to look for. It might tell you how long this person has had a real estate license. If the licensee has 00___ as the first two digits, the agent has been licensed in California for at least 20 years. If their number starts with 009, it’s about 20+ years
- If their number starts with 007__, it’s 30+ years, and so on
- I’d estimate a 012___ would be about 10 years
- A newer agent appears to be a 018___ at this time.
While time in the industry is not everything, it can give the consumer a feel for how long this person has been a real estate agent in California.
The lack of new regulation for real estate agents suggest one of the following:
- Real estate agents are regulated enough, and they did not significantly contribute to the current problems in the industry.
- The National Association of Realtors (not all real estate agents are Realtors) has one of the strongest lobbying organizations in the nation, possibly stopping any new regulation.
Perhaps both of these could be true. There are over one million Realtors in the nation, all paying annual dues, making ample funding able to assert their influence.
Also, while agents always try to get the seller the highest price, it’s the lending industry that supported the rapid appreciation in the years leading up to the bubble popping.
I’m curious of what other people think about this, whether they feel that real estate agents were a part of the problems that happened to the real estate industry. Did they help inflate home values, and should their activities be monitored? Based on the amount of regulation that was imposed on lending and appraising, it appears this is where most of the blame is being focused by the powers that be. It seems to me that the real culprits of this economic meltdown; the mortgage syndicators, the credit-rating agencies and the greedy investors (demanding fabulous returns) have mostly avoided the blame (and regulation) so far. What do you think caused real estate’s rapid decline?
