Tag: Joan Herlong

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Joan Herlong: Buyer (Agent) Beware

Joan Herlong of Herlong Sotheby's International Realty

A lot of people mistakenly think sellers base buyer-agent fees on what kind of offer they get for their home.

“It matters because sellers are no longer obligated to pay anything to the buyer agent,” Herlong says. “Most of my sellers, for example, aren’t committing to a set fee, or percentage, any longer. They’re instead opting to negotiate buyer-agent fees as part of the final sales contract.”

This is tied to a change in National Association of Realtor rules that took effect in August related to guaranteed compensation for buyer agents.

“As of August, listing agents cannot recommend, imply or expect sellers to offer compensation to buyer agents,” Herlong says.

As a result, Herlong says, sellers are beginning to base buyer-agent compensation on whether the buyer agent is bringing any value to the transaction.

“Are they facilitating the transaction or just throwing up roadblocks?” Herlong says. “Because too many buyer agents simply parrot the buyer’s concerns and that doesn’t bring value. It only adds static and difficulty.”

This doesn’t mean a buyer must cater to the seller, but it does mean that buyers’ agents should ask intelligent, informed questions on behalf of the buyers.

A recent transaction underscores Herlong’s point.

“The buyer agent simply relayed her buyer’s concerns over and over again, making us wonder if she was not relaying our answers back to them, or whether the buyers were not listening,” Herlong recalls. “Either way, it gave the seller pause, and they went with an offer from another agent.”

This article originally ran in The Greenville Journal

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We’ve Rebranded!

Herlong Sotheby's International Realty

With an eye toward the future growth of the company, Joan Herlong announced the rebranding of one of the Upstate’s premier real estate companies Wednesday morning.

Herlong Sotheby’s International Realty will be the new name and brand for the agency that has been one of the top producing real estate firms in the region since its inception in 2011. Joan Herlong, the company’s founder and CEO, said a new brand was needed in order to take the company to the next level.

“We have developed an amazing group of Associates and want to attract more, and we want to create a brokerage that goes beyond just being my name out front,” she said. “We already have been heading in that direction, and this brand change signifies this new direction.”

Herlong stressed the new name did not signify a change in ownership or her taking a permanent step back from selling and listing, but added that was the ultimate goal for the company in the next 10 years.

“We remain a woman-owned business, but this change frees us up to be so much more,” Herlong said. “This change further empowers our Associates to build their own brands and identities. My goal is to strengthen them by being their leader and mentor.” 

In choosing a new brand name, Herlong praised working with Sotheby’s International Realty as a resource. The Sotheby’s International Realty affiliation is one of the few that puts the local owner’s name and brand first, which helps show buyers they are working with someone who knows the market.

The company has tripled in sales and the number of staffing since affiliating with Sotheby’s International Realty in 2017, she said.  It also has led to many of the company’s successes in the past few years including David Vandeputte setting a new Upstate record for a single-home sales price earlier this year and the numerous business accolades it has earned.

“This is an exciting new era for us and for me,” Herlong said. 

Herlong Sotheby's International Realty
Herlong Sotheby’s International Realty

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An Inspection Doesn’t Equal Home Renovation

Originally Posted by Joan Herlong on Forbes.com on February 5, 2024. (Original Article)

Without a professional inspection, no seller knows the exact condition of every aspect of their home. If something troublesome (think termites) turns up, the seller gets to address it in good time.

If a seller foregoes the cost of an inspection and lets the buyer’s inspector undercover something scary, the seller loses any advantage. He or she has to make decisions about repairs and costs under threat that the buyer is about to back out.

However, inspection reports can be the size of a book by Herman Melville once submitted. The best way to demonstrate an utter lack of discernment to the seller is to request/expect the seller to “do” everything that shows up on the inspection report. That turns the listing from a home repair project to a home renovation and strains everyone’s nerves.

What are the differences, and how can you handle them?

  • Electrical. Fixing a couple of dead outlets is a repair. Rewiring the entire house is a renovation. That is easy for a person to realize, but the tipping comes down to cost and time. If the electrical repairs are going over 10% of the total cost of the house, then it becomes a renovation.
  • It’s not HGTV. Since many buyers watch many DIY shows, they believe that massive projects can be done in less than 45 minutes by someone who is wearing bronzer and a lot of hair gel. That’s not the case. The solution is to be upfront about the time a project will take. Repairing some molding? Not that long? Adding a third story to a house? That’s a problem.
  • Governmental oversight. The minute a project needs to get a permit from the local government, it has moved past the home repair stage and is a renovation. Some unscrupulous real estate folks don’t believe in doing the required work. I’m not one of them.

The Best Deals Are “AS IS” Deals

In my company’s listings, “AS IS” means the seller has the property professionally inspected before anyone darkens the door. There’s no sniping about whether something is a repair and no posturing about how a repair should be done properly. There’s no whining about keeping customers happy.

Prospective buyers are fully informed about what “AS IS” is. The buyer has the right to do their own inspections or rely on the seller’s inspections and receipts. The seller’s repair terms are already set.

While I’ve never avoided confrontation when my seller gets pushed around, the “AS IS” approach is calmer and easier. It eliminates the hoopla often accompanying “normal” inspections and repair negotiations.

The deal then boils down to price, and isn’t that a nice thing? This keeps you from going on the arduous trek from home repair to home renovation.

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Serving the community

Herlong Sotheby's International Realty $10 million

Several Joan Herlong & Associates Sotheby’s leadership team members have been named to statewide boards overseeing the real estate industry, and a valued Associate has been named to a local one.

Patrick Furman has been appointed to the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors’ MLS Committee, for a three-year term. Furman previously served on the Ethics/Grievance Committee for the GGAR.

In addition, company CEO, Joan Herlong, as well Chief Operating Officer and Broker-in-Charge of the Greenville office, William Herlong, have been named to the Professional Standards Committee for South Carolina Realtors (SCR). This committee is a key part of upholding SCR’s commitment to upholding and enforcing the Code of Ethics on a statewide level. Jackson Herlong, the company’s Chief Strategy Officer and Broker-in-Charge of The Clemson/Lakes office, also serves on this committee.

For the second consecutive year, William Herlong also will be serving on the S.C. Real Estate Commission’s Investigative Review Committee (IRC), which functions as a panel to listen to licensing complaints registered by the public against South Carolina real estate agents.

“Our company is not just involved in buying and selling real estate, we’re involved,” said Joan Herlong. “Our personal involvement in local and state association committees is an integral part of our ongoing commitment to ‘raising the bar’ within our industry, and to serving our clients and community better.”