The Real Estate Truth Tribune
7 More Yapology Non-Secrets Real Estate Agents Think Are Secrets
The Comments Section Became a Confession Booth
A routine news post about "hated selling tactics" turned into something else: a public airing of real estate's dirtiest secrets.
Buried in the replies are first‑hand accounts of fabricated offers, vendor‑bid manipulation, and outright auction theatre — described by ex‑agents and burned buyers alike.
It reads less like consumer feedback and more like an industry indictment.
1. Whistleblowers From Inside
Ian Stenhouse didn't mince words:
I left the industry because I was being forced to fabricate offers which I refused to do. I know of leading agents in Adelaide that do this tactic.— Ian Stenhouse
Ruby's Tips & Slips recounted an auction where young buyers were hustled $120,000 above the true final bid by fake "phone bidders" across the street:
I asked the business owner to rate the ethics of it. He said 'about a 5.' That's when I walked away.— Ruby's Tips & Slips
2. The Auction Gaslight
Silvana Ambrosia called out the illusion of auctions:
Auctions are only fuelled cause people are gaslit to think it's the only way to get a property. Stop playing the game.— Silvana Ambrosia
In truth, auctions are engineered to benefit agents: vendor bids, psychological anchoring, and "urgency theatre" keep prices climbing while buyers fight ghosts.
3. Phantom Offers & The Bluff
Craig John described the "other offer" ploy every buyer dreads:
Ask them about the buyer — finance? inspection? settlement terms? If they dodge, they're lying. Call their bluff. Let them go with the other offer. If they ring you back, you know.— Craig John
John Jamaica summed it up bluntly:
There's always some higher bid awaiting finance… What BS.— John Jamaica
4. Vendor Bids: Legal But Loathed
"Vendor bids should probably be banned," says Rayson Lim, recalling an auction with four consecutive "bids" from the seller themselves — pushing the price up $200,000 in seconds.
Technically disclosed, practically manipulative. The system calls it legal. Buyers call it theatre.
5. The Transparency Black Hole
Craig Flanigan highlights a broader frustration:
If there isn't a rough price then stuff them. Used cars don't work like that.— Craig Flanigan
Price guides are still opaque, even after promised reforms. "Contact agent" remains code for "pay what we can squeeze from you."
Why Does This Still Happen?
Because weak enforcement meets strong incentives. Commissions reward price inflation. Regulators issue warnings, not prosecutions. And buyers, desperate for a home, tolerate the abuse — even when they know they're being played.
As Jamie Young put it:
There is only ever one winner with the sale of a house and it's barely ever the vendor or the buyer.— Jamie Young
Reform Starts With Licensing
Better training won't fix greed — but it can fix ignorance. Many buyers don't even know what's legal vs. illegal. Many agents don't either.
CPP41419.com.au exists to close that gap: to expose bad practices, lift standards, and educate tomorrow's agents (and buyers) so the next generation doesn't inherit this mess.
Want better agents? Start with better training.
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