@snowberry The best is to get someone through a referral. A friend of a friend, that type of thing. What state are you in? Really, for the most part agents are going to behave ethically. They are sales people, true, but most will not jeopardize their license for something like that in my opinion. My experience was much better in FL than it has been in TN though. TN they are more focused on the money. Like I said you can look up their license and see how long they have been licensed and if there are any complaints. Make sure you have recent comps before you put in an offer. I actually made a mistake when I moved to TN, and am going to lose some money in the end because of it. I paid a little too much for my house in retrospect. I am dissappointed the realtor did not guide me better, so I understand your frustration. I knew the market I worked in really well, but was a fish out of water here.
It’s like anything else, how do you know you have a good lawyer, or a good accountant? I had an accountant make a $12,000 mistake on my taxes a several years, I caught it before I signed and sent them in. Luckily, the mistake was so big (an extra $12K in taxes for me is a lot) that it stood out. I don’t know why I bother to pay an accountant I swear. My first time using an accountant here in TN, he sent my paperwork and had not done the TN taxes at all. When I called him, he said, “it shouldn’t add up to much.” WTF kind of answer is that? He did them free of charge, and I did owe some money.
I still don’t understand why he was bidding on the property? If he wanted it he would be better off that you did not bid higher, better for him not to tell you there was another offer. So if he was unscrupulous, well for sure it looks like he is, but he would have bid just a little higher and you would not have had a chance. Or, he thought the seller would not take your original bid so he told you that to up your bid?