There are “real estate agencies” and “real estate consultancy” companies. Although they look similar, they are not the same thing.
Traditional real estate agencies offer an important intermediation service, many with highly professional teams. Real Estate Consulting companies offer, in addition to intermediation, a more in-depth and analytical service, commonly associated with international companies with a presence in Brazil.
Both complement and cooperate.
Ocupantes is a company focused on the Corporate Real Estate Consulting niche, commonly called Tenant Rep or Occupier Rep. Our partners come from international companies and have extensive experience.
However, among real estate agencies, there are Real Estate Agents with a capital “I” and real estate agencies that, frankly, do a disservice to the profession. This is a criticism that can generate a negative reaction, however, it is necessary. The mere search for a property leads us to this conclusion when we see real estate ads on major classifieds platforms.
How to identify serious opportunities
Imagine that your company wants an office, land, a farm, an environmental compensation area, or even an apartment for visiting directors from other countries.
If you “Google”, your first results may be classifieds pages, such as Viva Real, Zap Imóveis, OLX (all now part of the OLX group), in addition to Imovelweb. Even Mercado Livre, a marketplace for various products, has properties advertised.
Example 1:
Let’s do an experiment – a search for “office rent Moema”. The first results appear in the print below (ignoring the sponsored ones).
See that the result on Viva Real cites 2,199 results, a significant number, right? However, if we enter the Ocupantes Database, which is constantly updated, and carry out a search of the number of offices available in Moema (stretching a little to Indianópolis and Ibirapuera), the result is 433 available sets, in 65 buildings.
Even assuming a margin of error due to different region definitions, why the stark difference? The answers are:
- Real estate agencies advertise the same property more than once;
- More than one real estate agency advertises the same property, as the owners do not give exclusivity;
- Many advertisements are made WITHOUT THE AUTHORIZATION of the owner, and real estate agencies even copy information and photos from other advertisements or websites;
- Outdated ads are not taken down, often on purpose, to generate clicks;
- Real estate agencies/brokers FISH for clients with false, repeated or copied advertisements.
An unsuspecting employee will believe that searching for the right property will be a piece of cake: “Look how much stuff there is!” But he would be wrong.
Example 2:
We recently had to search for a small furnished area. Below is the result, 994 options between Vila Olímpia and Chácara Santo Antônio.
When looking at this vast number of options, we had the same problem as described previously, that is, the vast majority of ads are repetitions of options that don’t exist. In practice, only TWO announced alternatives were real. In our database, we have 7 alternatives.
See what happens:
- If you call one of these listings, and find the responsible broker, they will often need to “check if the property is still available”. The way I was trained, that would be absurd. The person responsible for the property needs to know exactly what is available, and have all the answers at hand. However, in practice, you can wait days, as he will either try to find out who the owner is, or he will try to find out who the real estate company is that has contact with the owner. Sometimes this results in a queue at real estate agents;
- In this search in Moema, we see that even the page of a large real estate agency generated the results of approximately 2,000 available sets. They don’t even clean the house;
- The price is often wrong. Some real estate agencies keep the price below the official price, so that the search result places your ad above the others. Then he warns you that the price has increased;
- You end up dealing with a broker who doesn’t know how to read a plan or ignores the importance of documenting a property regularly.
In an ideal world, ad platforms would have a verification mechanism. For example: the owner must have a registration that allows him to “approve” an ad from his group with a simple click, or the real estate agency must provide the exclusivity letter as proof. Or, more simply, the broker has to click a button informing whether or not he has exclusivity.
Unfortunately, this will not happen, as it would reduce platform revenues. Who knows, CRECI could make an effort to reduce this mess.
Even more ideal would be for owners to understand the importance of giving exclusivity to just one real estate agency, and to say “no more” to real estate agencies that try to break the exclusivity – ten advertisements for the same property, none with the address, just It generates despair in those who seek it.
Exclusivity would greatly multiply the broker’s commitment to trying to rent their space. This way, whoever holds exclusivity can advertise safely. It is not impossible, as this already happens in other countries.
Advertising on the CoStar system in the USA requires an exclusivity agreement, and in most states it is required that the broker has exclusivity to advertise the property.
What is the solution for those looking for an office?
Well, for corporate-sized properties, the ideal is to: (a) research the pages of Real Estate Consultancies, or (b) hire a Tenant Representation service that can navigate this universe and have a detailed database.
When searching for outfits, the person usually interested is a self-employed professional who wants something close to home. So, the suggestion is to visit nearby buildings, talk to reception, or call the number on the authorized sign in front of the building, if there is one.
For those looking for a house, drive around, and only call one of the real estate agents with a good local presence and a sign in front of the building, as these are generally (but not always) approved by the owners.
CODE OF ETHICS – relevant excerpts (https://www.crecisp.gov.br/Files/notify/71f27005-77ce-47fb-8d10-3c2365681464_codigoeticaci.pdf)
Art. 3° – The Real Estate Broker, in relation to the exercise of the profession, the class and colleagues, is obliged to:
I – consider the profession as a high title of honor and not practice or allow the practice of acts that compromise their dignity;
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V – observe the postulates imposed by this Code, carrying out its duties with dignity;
Art. 4º – The Real Estate Broker, in relation to clients, must:
I – find out about all the circumstances of the deal, before offering it;
II – present, when offering a business, strictly accurate data…
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VI – ensure its exclusive competence in the technical guidance of the business;
IX – contract, in writing and in advance, the provision of professional services;
Art. 6º – Real Estate Brokers are prohibited from:
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III – promote intermediation by charging “over-price”;
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VII – divert, by any means, a client from another Real Estate Broker;
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XV – accept the task of a transaction that is handed over to another Real Estate Broker, without giving him prior written knowledge;
XVI – accept a transaction task without contracting with the Real Estate Broker, with whom he/she has to collaborate or replace;
XVII – advertise speciously;
XVIII – retain business in your hands, when you are not likely to carry it out;
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