Provide method to review buyer side documents before a property is chosen

This is an issue that seems to appear in multiple feature requests over the years and should really be addressed sooner than later. 

All real estate transactions start with a client, either a buyer or a seller. In my opinion all files should be started as a client, either a Seller/Buyer or Landlord/Tenant not as a listing, address or as a transaction. Only after basic client information has been added should a listing or a buyer or a transaction be created. 

The ideal workflow in SkySlope should be: 

1) Enter New Client - at this stage basic client information needs to be entered. This should be the first step for everything. You have it right in the Forms App and this is the way is should be in SkySlope as well:

In DigiSign the New Envelope dropdown should read as follows:

• Choose Client
• Create New Client (linked to appropriate entry form)
• Choose Property
• No Client or Property   

2) Create New Seller or Create New Buyer (also consider adding Landlord/Tenant as options) - at this stage a new listing would be created with a Listing Documentation Checklist (I would rename it Seller Documentation) or a new Buyer would be created with a Buyer Documentation Checklist. Agency agreements are used both with buyers and sellers but the forms used in each case vary so the checklists for Sellers and Buyers should be named similarly. Having a checklist section for Agency Agreements would be fine but it is not as important as allowing agents the ability to add agency agreements and other forms into files before they go under contract.

I believe that the ideal would be to have the following checklist types: Buyer, Seller, and Transaction rather than the only two checklist types currently available that are Listing or Transaction. You might also want to consider adding checklists only to be used for landlords or tenants.

3) Create Transaction - once the Seller (Listing) goes under contract or the Buyer goes under contract then a transaction should be created by converting the Client (Buyer or Seller) with the appropriate Transaction Checklist applied. This is the point where all the necessary transaction items can be added to the files up until closing.

The impact these changes would have on the productivity of the agents and their managing brokers would be substantial. Right now I am struggling to figure out how to be able to timely review buyer side transactions along with all the associated paperwork involved before a buyer goes under contract. It is not unusual for buyers to submit multiple offers on different properties before they go under contract on a home they eventually purchase. If agents don't have a way to store and have their buyer files reviewed by their brokerage before actually going under contract there is a huge gap in the SkySlope system that creates unnecessary liability for Brokers, Agents, Company Owners etc. Most if all states that I know of require brokerages to keep accurate records of all their agents agency agreements, offers made on behalf of buyers, listing agreements, and the like that are created before a binding contract/transaction is created.

I am hopeful that you will be able to improve your systems to better accomodate the needs of your SkySlope clients and the various regulations that we are supposed to abide by.

Many thanks!

We, too, are hoping that some day soon a new feature will be available to MANAGE BUYER. Since an agency disclosure is actually between the buyer and the broker, the broker should be able to view the buyers agency/customer agency for accuracy while the buyer is home shopping. Another reason for wanting to have a section for MANAGE BUYER is due to the fact that if an agent leaves the firm, we should be able to keep track on the buyers that the agent is working with during the transition. The set up process could be quite similar to the Manage Listing / Manage Transaction; once entered into a Manage Buyer section it could be converted into a transaction, prompting the questions that usually come up with entering a new transaction. The buyer agency does have a start and end term .. seems like it would be easy to set up :)

I am interested in an update to this user's request as we are running into the issue of how/where to store active/working buyer client docs until we have an accepted contract on a property. Following for updates - thanks