If your prospect for a new home visited a builder without a Realtor and wanted to revisit the builder’s model center, take them, but call first. At all cost, DO NOT RETURN TO "THEIR" PROSPECT WITHOUT CALLING FIRST.
I don’t know of a builder who does not have the 'first time visit’ policy requiring you to physically bring your prospect to the sales center, on their first visit, do you? It's a policy that has been around for at least 40 years or longer, and there is a little-known exception to it with many homebuilders.
When you understand the ‘why’ it makes sense for both the builder to have the policy and under certain conditions, make an exception to it, if the Realtor follows the unwritten policy: Call and explain the situation to the on-site sales agent, preferably the one the prospect visited if they remember their name.
Scenario:
The Realtor has the prospect sitting in his office, probably to see resales or other new home communities or both. The home shopper has requested - or the Realtor has discovered - that the prospect visited the builder’s model center and would like to revisit one of the models they wanted.
At this point, the Realtor must make the call to the sale office to inquire about the commission policy under such circumstances. Why now? Because the Realtor still has control of the prospect. If the Realtor returns to the builder's sales office without calling, the builder controls your home shopper.
The odds are overwhelmingly in favor of the builder’s agent promising commission protection if the Realtor brings them back to the model center.
Here’s why:
The builder’s agent knows one thing. The Realtor has a motivated prospect for the builder’s home. And the builder’s agent does not want one thing to happen with this prospect.
And what that might be? They do not under any circumstances want the Realtor to take this prospect to see other builder’s homes.
What if the builder will not protect the Realtor? Then the Realtor is in no position to protect the builder.