Reply by kcslaw/MA on 3/31/11 6:02pm
Msg #378198
Re: You just have to laugh...
Let me try this again 
Got a call from Nations Direct at 3:15 to do a closing "this afternoon". I was in the driveway of my next closing and nicely declined for that reason. Now, as an aside, I don't take closings from them because they never agree to my fee, but I haven't decided to drop them yet. When they call I just sweetly tell them that I have another closing at or around that time and they tell me they'll "get me on the next one" and that's that. So, back to this afternoon ~ after I told her that I was getting ready to go into my next closing, she said, "Oh, yes. This one is in 15 minutes, so that probably won't work." YA THINK?????
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Reply by kcslaw/MA on 4/1/11 6:57am
Msg #378253
Re: You just have to laugh...
Not in this lifetime! And I just adore the reaction I get when I tell them that no, their $XX fee is not ok and mine is $XXX. You'd think I just asked them to give me their firstborn!! "You want $XXX??????!!!!"
I really should just tell them to take me off their list...the pays sucks, it takes forever (though they *do* pay eventually) and the fire-ringed hoops they want me to jump through while holding their hand are considerable. On top of that, it's all beyond last minute - i.e. get docs at 7pm for a 5pm closing, etc. I mean, I'm flexible and understand that delays are common, but for them it's nearly every time. So not worth my time when I have other clients that have their act together, treat me with respect, don't want to micromanage, don't want 150 pages faxed back, and pay me well for the excellent service they've come to expect from me.
I actually had a conversation with ND about the fee, explaining that I always turn them down because their fee was less than half of what I get elsewhere. They tried to give me the line about how much more work I'd get if I took more from them at their reduced rate. How they have sooooo many more closings to offer than anyone else. I said that must be nice for them, but it's not like I'm sitting around waiting for a well-paying client to call me. They are calling. I am closing them.
She really just did not understand, could not understand that I have to do two (or more) of their closings to make what I make doing one for another client. Add in the fact that I can do the closing for the other client and drop the package and that's the end of it. I don't have to spend hours with post-closing. It's a no brainer. Not so much for them - they just don't get it - or they're purposely obtuse.
And the one time they did meet my fee? I accepted the closing and then the confirmation didn't come. When I called them back, there was no record of it. There was no such closing in their system and they just couldn't tell me what happened (head scratching...). Duh...they called someone else, got it assigned to another agent for less than my fee and they blew me off. Can you even IMAGINE if we did that to them? Accept a closing and then when we get a call from a client who pays more, we accept THAT closing and just blow off the first one. No call, just 'poof'! "Gee, I don't know what you mean. I didn't accept a closing from you for X. I don't have that in my appointment book. Gosh, I don't know what to tell you..."
And so ends this chapter on Nations Direct. Maybe someone there will read this and catch on? Nah...
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