Buying or selling a home is supposed to feel like you’ve got a trusted partner in your corner, not a poker player working both sides of the table. A good realtor protects your interests, fights for your bottom line, and helps you navigate the biggest financial decision of your life with confidence.
But not every agent lives up to that standard, and the warning signs aren’t always obvious until it’s too late. To help you spot trouble early, here are 21 red flags experts agree reveal when a realtor might not actually be on your side.
21. Breaches Confidentiality or Gossips
If your agent casually shares other clients’ private details, assume yours won’t be safe either. Confidentiality is not just etiquette; it’s a fiduciary duty that protects your pricing power and negotiation stance. Loose lips can tip your max budget, your timeline, or your willingness to compromise to the other side. An agent who gossips is telling you, without meaning to, that they value attention more than your best interests.
20. Thin Local Knowledge, Thin Prep
When an agent can’t summarize micro-market trends, school zones, commute patterns, or common inspection issues, you’re flying blind. Local mastery is what keeps you from overpaying on the wrong block or underpricing a hidden gem. Preparation shows up in small things—accurate comps, staged showings, and answers ready for predictable buyer questions. If you’re educating your agent, the roles are backward and your leverage is shrinking.
19. No Seller Net Sheet
A detailed net sheet translates list price into real money after fees, taxes, credits, and concessions. Without it, you can’t compare offers apples-to-apples or see how a small price change ripples through your proceeds. Good agents walk you through line items before you list, so there are no “surprise” checks to write at closing. If they won’t run the math, expect disappointment when the final numbers land.
18. Pushes Off-Market “Pocket” Deals
Pocket listings can sound exclusive, but they often limit exposure and suppress the price you could get with full market competition. For buyers, they can hide defects and reduce your ability to negotiate with data. For sellers, fewer eyeballs equals fewer offers and less leverage—great for speed, not for maximizing value. If the agent can’t justify why off-market beats MLS with clear benefits to you, be wary.
17. Downplays Disclosures and Defects
An agent who waves away material issues is inviting lawsuits and price cuts later. Honest disclosure actually protects value by building trust and preventing post-inspection ambushes. Skilled pros surface problems early and frame solutions—credits, repairs, or warranties—so deals keep momentum. Minimizing real risks is not savvy; it’s short-term thinking that usually backfires at the worst time.
16. Won’t Put Promises in Writing
Verbal assurances disappear the moment pressure hits or memories blur. Written commitments—on pricing strategy, marketing deliverables, communication cadence, and timelines—create accountability. A professional who resists documentation is either disorganized or protecting wiggle room at your expense. If it’s important enough to say, it’s important enough to sign.
15. Long Exclusivity, No Escape Hatch
Extended listing agreements without performance checkpoints hand over all your leverage. Smart contracts pair reasonable terms with clear-out clauses tied to service levels or timelines. If the agent is confident, they won’t fear your right to switch if promises aren’t met. Lock-in without accountability signals they’re securing their commission, not your outcome.
14. Steering or Illegal Comments
Any hint of discriminatory advice—about neighborhoods, buyers, or sellers—is both unethical and risky for you. Beyond legal exposure, it narrows your options and distorts market truth with bias. Great agents talk data, housing stock, and amenities, not people or stereotypes. If they color outside the lines, it’s a preview of future problems you’ll own.
13. Handed Off to Assistants
Support staff are helpful, but you hired the expert for strategy and negotiation, not for vanishing acts. If you only see the principal at the listing appointment, you’ve been sold a brand, not a service. Complex moments—pricing shifts, inspection responses, appraisal appeals—require the agent’s brain on the problem. Insist on clear roles so you’re not downgraded the minute the ink dries.
12. Ghosts Between Milestones
Silence breeds anxiety and bad decisions, especially when deadlines are tight. Proactive agents share updates even when nothing dramatic is happening, because “no news” is still news. If you’re always the one chasing status, imagine how responsive they’ll be to buyers or the other agent. Communication isn’t a personality trait here; it’s a performance metric.
11. Avoids Negotiating Hard
Accepting the first decent offer is easy; extracting better terms is the job. Strong agents test ceilings, counter with logic, and use timing to widen your win. They separate must-haves from nice-to-haves and trade strategically to protect what matters. If you hear “let’s not rock the boat” more than “here’s how we push,” you’re leaving money and protections on the table.
10. No Marketing Plan or Budget
Listings don’t sell themselves—they’re sold through crisp photos, copy, staging, syndication, and smart targeting. A marketing plan with dates, spend, and channels tells you how your home will be seen by the right buyers. Without it, you’re relying on luck and a yard sign in a digital marketplace. If the strategy isn’t written and resourced, it probably won’t happen.
9. Flimsy Comps, Ignores Data
Cherry-picked comparables make any price look “right,” but real comps pass the test of proximity, property type, features, and timing. Good agents show ranges, adjustments, and trend lines so you can predict how buyers—and appraisers—will think. When the numbers don’t add up, days-on-market stretches and leverage crumbles. If their pricing story can’t survive a spreadsheet, it won’t survive the market.
8. Withholds or Delays Offers
Holding back competing offers distorts your decision-making and can violate fiduciary duty. Timely, transparent presentation lets you counter smartly and maintain momentum. Delays can spook buyers, shorten response windows, and shrink your negotiating leverage. If you suspect gatekeeping, insist on timestamps and a clear process for offer handling.
7. Underprices for a Quick Turn
Speed can be seductive, but a fast sale at the wrong price is just a tidy mistake. Some agents chase easy wins to pad stats, not to maximize your proceeds. Smart underpricing is strategic and paired with planful offer deadlines to fuel a bidding war; lazy underpricing is not. If the advice is “cheap and hope,” you’re the one paying the convenience fee.
6. Overprices to Win Listing
Telling you what you want to hear feels great—until your home sits, stales, and invites lowball offers. Overpricing burns your first-week buzz and makes later price cuts look like weakness. The best agents price to the market and create urgency, then defend value with data. If their listing pitch sounds like flattery, ask to see the math.
5. Pushes Waiving Key Contingencies
Contingencies exist to protect you from inspection landmines, appraisal gaps, and financing hiccups. Waiving them blindly may win a bidding war, but it transfers risk squarely onto your wallet. Good agents calibrate risk—tighten timelines, sweeten terms, or add caps—rather than throwing the safety net away. If “just waive it” is the whole strategy, that’s not advocacy; it’s roulette.
4. “Skip the Inspection” Pressure
Inspections reveal the stuff glossy photos hide—aging roofs, tired HVAC, and sneaky moisture. Forgoing them can turn your dream home into a project you didn’t budget for. A savvy agent helps you keep deals intact while still protecting your right to know. The only people who benefit from ignorance are sellers with surprises and agents chasing speed.
3. Lenders and Titles for Kickbacks
Steering to “preferred” providers isn’t always evil, but it demands transparency and competition. You deserve multiple quotes, clear fee sheets, and a credible reason beyond “they’re my go-to.” Hidden incentives can inflate costs or reduce service when you most need precision. If loyalty points matter more than your savings, your agent’s priorities are misaligned.
2. Steering to In-House Listings
Brokerage-exclusive inventory can limit your options and create conflicts you can’t see. When the house, the listing, and your agent’s paycheck all live under one roof, who’s the client and who’s the product? A true advocate widens your universe, not narrows it to what benefits their office. Ask for a full-market search and proof you’re seeing everything relevant.
1. Hard Sell on Dual Agency
In dual agency, one agent tries to “help” both sides, which legally mutes the very advocacy you’re hiring them for. Your negotiation edge blunts the moment your agent also owes loyalty to the other party. Some states allow it with consent, but “allowed” doesn’t equal “optimal” for your outcome. If the pitch is that it’s faster or smoother, remember: convenience for them often means compromise for you.
