Summary: The one thing I can say about staying out of trouble is that I have never been in trouble. After 1,000's of sales I have never been sued. I have never been fined, and I have never even been in arbitration or mediation. Knock on wood. The thing that I believe kept me out of hot water was my unwavering morals and standards for the way I treat the clients. I do not sleep well if I feel there is something I can do to fix problems. Although we have our e and o insurance this is not enough walk on the dark side. Over the last 20 or so years I was able to keep my nose clean by following these simple guidelines. I hope they work as good for you as they do for me. 1. Ask lots of questions. Asking questions is a great way of discovering the history of a home. Better yet, if you know there could be troubles ask your clients the same questions phrased differently. This way You are able to pull out the truths without running into trouble later. 2. Get an Inspection. Sometimes buyers ask me about who they should hire for an inspection. Some companies discourage agents from recommending one particular company. Some brokers are suggesting that we offer them a list of home inspectors for the buyers to use. Lately I have just told my buyers to look in the phonebook. I follow up by saying that they are all the same if they are licensed but I cannot recommend one. Most of the time they will not question it. 3. If you have to ask yourself," should I disclose this?", then you should. I learned this from a very wise broker years ago and it has worked for me. 4. Slow down. Take time to read and re-read the details of a contract. Don't keep your eye on the prize when it should be on the paperwork. 5. Get more education. Take every class you can that your board of Realtors gives. You are already paying for it. 6. Follow the rules. They are there for a reason and not meant to be broken. 7. Think before you speak. Sometimes as agents we jump in to a conversation way too early. The best thing to do is shut your mouth until you know it’s your turn. It also make you look smarter not to talk and to listen attentively. 8. Think before you hit send, or, post, or tweet or update. I know with social networks being interesting is hard. There is no reason to like crude humor or make comments on flammable topics. When you put things on the web it stays on the web. You would be surprised how much is left behind. 9. Pay attention. Pay attention to the environment, pay attention to the clients words, pay attention to the prelim,to the disclosures, to the body languages. Pay attention to the people around you, pay attention to the neighborhood. Pay attention to recent sales and listings. Pay attention to interest rates. Just pay attention. 10. Know the score before you call the shot. If you do not know what the situation at hand is then you should not lend your opinion. Know what you are dealing with before you start talking. 11.Get help and second opinions from those around you. You have so many resources. Your association has a hotline to get legal help. Ask your broker or your company attorney. Ask the ones who you know are smarter than you. There are no stupid questions, actually there are, but go ahead and ask. 12. Follow your gut, sometime all it takes to use common sense to decide whether or not you are stepping into the red zone. Sometimes it’s a vibe you get from an up call, or a feeling you get in an empty house. If you don't feel right about a situation then step off. If the potential client is a real jerk then walk away. You will make more money without them. Better yet, refer them to your biggest competition. 13. Double check everything. Before your fax, before you make the call, before you sign documents. Double check before you show the home and make sure it is not sold. Double check that all of the signatures are there. Double check that you have the file before you leave to the clients. 14.
