Dishin' Dirt with Gary Pickren

Send us Fan Mail We have a special announcement for our dedicated listeners.   For perhaps the first time ever, Blair Cato has created a new program for Spanish first language clients that will allow the client to speak Spanish with the law firm from contract to the closing!  Most Spanish speaking consumers only get Spanish communications at closing through a translator or an attorney who knows a...

Send us Fan Mail We close out another year and begin a new in 2025.  But before we do so let's review the year that was 2024 in real estate.  I am going to look back at what the so-called experts said would happen in real estate in 2024 and then discuss what actually did happen. I will look at interest rates, inventory, prices and much more.  GET YOUR REAL ESTATE SUCCESS SUMMIT 2025 TICKET HE...

Send us Fan Mail Sitzer/Burnett was not the end of the legal threats to the real estate profession.  In 2025 real estate licensees will face other threats that could derail and upend the industry and the way you practice. Today I examine what former Dishin' Dirt guests, Darryl Davis and Carl Medford, think are the biggest issues legal issue and threats that real estate agents are facing. Don&...

Send us Fan Mail We continue to walk through the ever-changing landscape of the so called "Touring Agreement" with updates on Ketchmark's and the DOJ's comments to the court and what they could mean for the future of executing the agreement before showing a house. Plus, additional updates on FINCIN and Wholesaling. Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves o...

Send us Fan Mail So you thought all your worries and risk for anti-trust issues were resolved by the Settlement. Well, think again.  The DOJ is now saying the Touring Agreement is anti-trust yet Ketchmark says if you don't do one, he will come for you.  What do you do now?  And that is not all, five new terms about the settlement just got released.  All your workarounds are now against the se...

Send us Fan Mail I was out of town and missed this month's Real Estate Commission hearing but a lot of big things happened. The REC released a Guidance Letter on what is considered wholesaling according to the plain language of the statute and how that statute would be applied to advertising that is currently happening in the marketplace.  Additionally, I have some updated information on the...

Send us Fan Mail **** EPISODE 200!!!!!!**** Thank you! Thank you! FinCen is some really scary stuff.  The federal government under the guise of "stopping money laundering" is requiring every business entity to provide information on all parties involved in the ownership, formation and control of the company.  This act is arguably unconstitutional. But if you have a company or if any of y...

Send us Fan Mail We are seeing such a mess with broker compensation. Contracts and Form 120s are all over the board. Seller, buyer, agents, lenders and closing attorney can't decipher what the intent is on some of these.  It is an unmitigated disaster. Today, we talk about how easy this should all be and how to handle broker commissions moving forward. Don't forget to like us and share u...

Send us Fan Mail Kyle Toomey recognized that in order to catch someone's attention on social media you had to be quick and entertaining. Thus, he perfected the running real estate agent phenomenon.  In doing so he garnered millions of views and thousands of likes and created a social media following that directly and indirectly exploded his business.  Listen to his tips on creating that follo...

Send us Fan Mail Clear cooperation is the next area of your practice under attack by lawyers and the DOJ.  Today I discuss what clear cooperation is, who supports it, who doesn't and the potential risk to ending the practice.   Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves on the South Carolina Real Estate Commission as a Commissioner. The opinions expressed herein are his opi...

Send us Fan Mail Last week, the South Carolina Real Estate Commission issued a guidance letter that addresses substantive contact, the South Carolina Disclosure of Brokerage Relationship and the NAR Settlement.  Does these revised documents now fulfil the NAR Settlement requirement for a Touring Agreement. Listen to learn more! Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves on the S...

Send us Fan Mail Last week, Blair Cato stopped two potential real estate frauds that could have cost the buyer hundreds of thousands of dollars.  Erica Lybrand, our title attorney, joins me today to discuss these two frauds, what Blair Cato did right, what the real estate agent did right and what lessons can be learned.   Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves on the South C...

Send us Fan Mail There continues to be massive numbers of people without power in the Upstate and even here in the Midlands of South Carolina. Today I discuss what agents need to know on how lenders and insurance companies may treat closings moving forward this week.   Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves on the South Carolina Real Estate Commission as a Commissioner. The...

Send us Fan Mail I have had many conversations with Realtors who espouse their anger over how things are being run at NAR. In fact 62% of Realtors in a national poll have stated so.  Today I offer Ten "suggestions" for NAR that will help it suck less.   In providing this list it is done with a belief that NAR is probably the only group standing between you and the morons in the governmen...

Send us Fan Mail One of the biggest complaints of real estate agents since the settlement is the requirement to get a touring or showing agreement signed prior to showing the buyer a house.  Luckily for you the Real Estate Commission may have solved that issue for you. I examine that ruling as well as the status of three other issues that have been a rallying cause for licensees. Don't forget...

Send us Fan Mail We are only a few weeks into the new compensation rules and agents are already greatly screwing it up all over the place.  Today, I will walk you through how compensation is supposed to work in the ERTS, the Form 120 and the contract.  You need to listen carefully and take notes so you don't make the same terrible mistake that a lot of agents are making which just might get y...

Send us Fan Mail As we enter the second full week of the implementation of the settlement, I began getting many calls for me to draft an Exclusive Right to Sell Agreement that is NOT broker to broker compensation.  Brokerages have already started to recognize that the traditional system of broker to broker compensation is not only on the endangered list but is also a liability nightmare.  Therefor...

Send us Fan Mail I have been warning agents that the NAR Settlement was just the beginning of this.  More lawsuits and government intervention would soon follow. Today I discuss a $3.29 million settlement/fine involving real estate agents and title insurance. I actually applaud this settlement as a positive step forward for the consumer.  If you are doing these schemes you need to stop now or face...

Send us Fan Mail Now that we are a week or so into the new rules on real estate compensation, we need to discuss how your commission might be shown on the settlement statements. Direct compensation, concessions and broker to broker commission most likely will be handled differently and you need to know what to look for on the ALTA. I also will discuss what documentation you might need to provide t...

Send us Fan Mail The settlement went into full effect and force today. With that comes many new problems and requirements for the real estate agent.  Today we attempt to resolve two of these problems for you. The first problem we resolve is the crazy idea that you should rescind your agreements and enter into new agreements. The second problem is the touring agreement requirement. Take a listen at...

Send us Fan Mail Two things are 100% expected. You will always have to pay taxes, and the national media is a joke.  They lie and obfuscate.  They work an agenda and allow half-truth and inuendo to take over. Moreover, there is zero intellectual curiosity in the media. That just spout talking points and never examine the issue to see if the points are truthful.  Case in point, the LA Times has alr...

Send us Fan Mail Everyone is on edge about broker compensation. How do we handle it through Form 120? Why can it not be done in the contract? What about all of the issues with concessions?  On Monday I published my discussion on all of these issues with Leo Pareja, CEO of eXp Realty.  Afterward he and I discussed my thoughts on how it should have been handled. He then asked if I had looked at his...

Send us Fan Mail A lot of rumors are swirling about how August 17 will play out for agents. One of the biggest rumors is that eXp Realty agents will no longer do broker to broker compensation.  Leo Pareja, CEO of eXp Realty, joins me in this special edition of Dishin' Dirt to set the record straight and discuss how compensation will be handled August 17 and moving forward. All agents need to...

Send us Fan Mail Can buyer broker agent compensation be included in a buyer's offer? Does including it in the contract violate the NAR settlement or South Carolina license law? Today we find out for good. Also, I examine the changes to the Exclusive Right to Buy and Exclusive Right to Sell that SCR has published.  Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves on the South Caro...

Send us Fan Mail Another week and even more confusion.  Today we take a further look at the two avenues for a real estate agent to get paid compensation post August 17.  We will try to answer when and how to use the compensation agreement versus contract concessions. Plus, is procuring cause dead?  Don't forget to like us and share us! Gary * Gary serves on the South Carolina Real Estate Comm...