Real estate agents and brokers must fight to gain the trust of their clients throughout the home buying and selling process.

However, while some do this using good, tactical methods, others try to simply trick their clients into doing what they want.

(Video credit: Alcynna Lloyd)

A former New York City real estate broker took to Reddit to air his complaints, saying he simply couldn’t stand to be around other brokers all day.

In the post, the former broker, known only as NerdHerd88, revealed five lies brokers tell their clients, comparing them to little more than MLM pyramid schemes.

Here are the five lies:

1. They know the value of your property.

The reddit user claimed brokers do not do any real analysis, and simply enter square footage, income and expenses into a software program to determine the value of the property.

2. They are experts in the market, with many transactions to their name.

While some brokers may have years of experience, others just starting out will bulk up their expertise by claiming their company’s transactions as their own, even if they had nothing to do with it.

3. A large brokerage devotes more resources to advertising your property.

The former broker says the opposite is actually true, and large brokerages typically have a more formulaic approach to marketing their properties.

4. The listing price they give you reflects their opinion of the market value.

Even after submitting the info through their software, brokers may not always give the best price opinion since, if they quote a higher list price, they are more likely to win over the seller, the reddit user explained.

5. Decent brokers need an exclusive listing in order to market your property properly. It benefits you because it allows them to create an auction for your property.

Simply put – this is not true. In fact, the user explained exclusives provide very few benefits to the owners, and only weak brokers who lack investor relationships need an exclusive to conduct business.

So, there you have it – the five lies brokers tell. What do you think? Does NerdHerd88 have a point? Let me know in the comments below!