EA making me uncomfortable

[Zaab213]

Am I bu? Or is this normal?

Sold property through EA. We’re looking to buy a house. Buyers living with parents and said they in no rush and will wait until we find a place. It’s only been 3 weeks since we accepted offer. I’ve taken time off work 2 weeks ago to focus on the search.

now what’s annoying me is there’s a young guy at the EA who keeps calling me everyday for past 2 weeks, asking how my house search is going. Now I now it doesn’t sound bad abs it’s hard to explain but he makes me uncomfortable as he will ring and ring until I pick up! Last Friday there were 8 missed calls from EA. He annoys me. He literally grates on me his voice his attitude. He keeps WhatsApp really awful run down homes when I’ve told him clearly we not looking for a project.

How can I be blunt to him to stop calling me so much and do I really need to be in this much contact? He keeps telling my buyers everything then telling me e.g. last week my baby had his immunisation do I said I can’t talk and he called me back saying he spoke to buyers to tell them I’m busy at doctors with my baby and he really thinks he’s found a property for me! He talks too much.

sorry for my rambling my question is if I ignore his calls will it affect my sale? DH thinks I need to keep him sweet as he’s in contact with the buyers.

He wants his commission but you are his client. Tell him to back off or you will pull out and relist with another agent.

Just tell him to stop calling you. I'd be very firm and straight. He has no business sharing your personal stuff with buyers. I'd speak to his managers. The EA works for you, reassure them you plan to follow through and you'll update him when you have news. if he calls again say you're finding all his calls stressful and threaten to pull out if he calls you again.

That would annoy me too. I would tell him that 8 calls a day is excessive and agree to catch up every Friday to keep the buyers in the loop.

Just tell him, he sounds over-zealous. And don't tell him personal stuff unrelated to your business with him unless you are happy for it to be shared.

Thank you all. I just felt maybe I’m being too sensitive. I am struggling with my mental health at the moment and I am finding it hard enough talking to people I like let alone someone I can’t stand!

Complain to the main office, 8 missed calls for no urgent reason is horrendous. Sharing your personal information to your buyers is not acceptable.

Your EA works for you and should understand your position and that finding the right property takes time. I’m not sure why your DH thinks you have to keep him sweet, as long as your buyers understand the process could take a while and they need to be patient. If you’re feeling harassed and uncomfortable speak to the EA’s manager.

Give him your DH's number. He can "keep him sweet".

In seriousness, just say "Please stop calling. I will inform you when we have found somewhere". He wants you to buy one of his listings, basically.

How can I be blunt to him to stop calling me so much and do I really need to be in this much contact?

No you don’t need to be in so much context. Tell him nicely but firmly that you’re looking for properties actively but calling so frequently is not helpful. You’ll be free to speak every Weds/Friday/whatever.

If you told him you’d taken 2 weeks off to house hunt he may have genuinely been thinking you wanted lots to view and has a time window to do it in. Now is the perfect time to tell him you cannot answer calls except for X time on X day (because you’re working) and just cut him off if he tries. It won’t affect your sale.

The buyers may well get fed up in time and pull out. This is why the EA is of course panicking. It is very likely to fall apart and he will lose out.

He's lost all perspective. You have enough material to complain about him to his manager.

It seems to be normal for them to check in every day, and it soon gets wearing when you've no news for them. I've been in that position. But yes, he works for you. I would ask him to stop calling, and say you will update him as soon as you have any news.

I should add, I agree with the others, that he is overstepping the mark.

You have to be very, very firm. Tell him you will call him when you have anything to say. And that calling you so many times is tantamount to harassment.

Get angry. I bet you a tenner he wouldn't do this to a man.

He probably is worried you will lose the buyers . Just tell him you will update him once a week . Have you found anything you are remotely interested in?

There’s nothing out there. The ones that we would buy get sold literally in a few days. It’s crazy.

Exactly, and that's why he's calling you because property is so hot right now. Take a step back, stop taking it personally and realise he's just doing his job. Tell him when you are free to take his calls if you don't want him to ring you every day.

I don't think he's worried about the buyers at all! He just wants both lots of commission, from you and your eventual sellers, rather than you buying from Smith and Jones Agents down the road.

Be blunt. Tell him his this frequency to communication doesn’t work for you.

next time he calls say

’I appreciate this daily phone call is on your to do list, but the frequency of communication is far too intense for me. I am actively looking for a house, but the places you suggest are simply unsuitable so it is not helpful.

The buyers do not need a daily update, nor do they require details of my private life. I will contact you in X days with an update.’

"Look, I know you want your commission badly, but you need to back off. Yes, I do want to sell, but I need to find a place. I will contact you when I have an update." If s/he continues to hassle speak to the manager and ask to deal with another person from the same agent (it will be hard to switch agents entirely as you'll have a contract).

I think this is it too. He knows that for every week you haven't found somewhere, your buyers are one week closer to finding something else they like better. I agree that calling every day isn't necessary, but he should contact you everytime he has something that could possible interest you, rather than wait and then it's snatched up by one of their other buyers. I think you need to keep him in the loop unfortunately, because if you go completely silent your buyer will start to get nervous and will look for something else, but maybe a weekly call is enough to reassure them that you are still actively looking but struggeling.

Except as the OP says, there's fuck all out there so it's exceptionally unlikely her buyer is going to bugger off.

She's trying to find a property. And this clown is slowing her down because every moment she's dealing with him is time wasted.

And you don't need to keep him sweet - he works for you.

I'm sorry your MH isn't too great. Are you getting help? And you have a young baby & all that comes with that! (Lively though they are!!)

moving house is one of the most stressful things we do, on its own, let alone those other things!

theres no way I'd be putting up with that. Depending on his length of service as an EA, I'd be telling him or his Manager, that his behaviour is completely unacceptable. Completely. Tell them you will contact them once a week to give them an update & you do NOT want them to send you any listings, that are not EXACTLY what you have told them you're looking for and if they do, you will not be looking at ANY if their properties.

Then if it continues, tell them you WILL pull
out of the sale & relist with another Agent.

It's YOUR house... stop letting them harass you!

This is probably why he's calling.

Have you actually asked him not to call everyday ?

Why not just ask him not to call unless he has a new property available and if you don't answer just to leave a message and you'll call back when free.

It does sound like you need to be on top of the market if properties are moving that quickly, your buyers won't wait forever.

my estate agent rang every Friday. I have an intense job so often couldn’t answer the phone. He used to leave a message which simply asked me to call him. It drove me batty. If I didn’t get time to return the call it was all weekend wondering was it just a routine call or had something happened!

I spoke to him and asked him to leave proper messages.

he was great - said it hadn’t occurred to him that my
job was so different that I wasn’t always able to make calls.

'Buyers won't wait forever'. No, but the OP can't move until she has something suitable to move into, so they wait or buy something else (& good luck with that). They're living with parents, so maybe not ideal, but they don't have buyers nipping at their heels, in this market they'd be foolish to pull out unless they miraculously find another property they like at a price they can afford.

The EA is sending details of UNSUITABLE properties to the OP, how the hell does that help???

how does calling daily help?? How does yapping your their buyers about the baby's injections help?

'keeping on top of the market' takes a few minutes at the moment, because in most areas there's just nothing new coming on!!