As online brokerages expand across the country, their agents are coming into increasing contact with traditional agents, and vice versa. Some agents are not too pleased with the phenomenon, while others report positive experiences in selling homes to buyers represented by erealty.com, zipRealty.com and the like. Several agents reported bad experiences: a buyer left alone at the closing table, the online counterpart's absence of office space and the request to perform tasks, like showing a home, that are normally the responsibility of the buyer's agent. Those types of activities concern Prudential California Realty president Ed Krafchow. "Are they in fact adding and presenting a value?" he asks. "Or are they just discounting and taking pieces of the transaction away?" He foresees online brokerages adjusting their model, working more toward a business model. "The dot-coms have yet to experience a cyclical market," Mr. Krafchow points out from his San Francisco-area office. And in his mind, success in real estate "keeps coming around to service, service, service." Lack of service raised a red flag for Paula Wommack of RE/MAX Associates near Fort Worth, Texas. She is concerned that some online agents may not be working in the real estate profession with the same sense of responsibility as she. She says a salaried agent she dealt with went missing one Friday evening when he was expected to be representing his buyer at the closing table. "We could have written anything into that contract, and she would have signed it," Ms. Wommack says. "They (online brokers) are definitely a piece of the puzzle, but I think there are things people aren't thinking about." On the flip side, one agent in Houston has nothing but good things to say about an online agent with whom she worked on a sale. Nancy Nunu, an 18-year real estate professional with Greenwood King Properties, says erealty's Laura Locastro was professional, knowledgeable and pleasant. "So many people think being a buyer's agent means being adversarial," Ms. Nunn says. "Laura knows the real goal is to get the transaction done as smoothly as possible." Ms. Locastro says she has had positive experiences in her dealings with Houston-area agents. "For the most part, I have not had anyone act negatively toward me," she says. "(Traditional agents) have this perception that we're the Big Bad Wolf, but we're just like them. We're just getting our clients through our Web site." Ms. Locastro stresses customer service, just like traditional agents. She says one of the best ways realty provides quality service is by working as a team. Her office works together to serve clients each he sale is thrown into a pot to be divided for bonuses. "So all of us benefit by getting a percentage of everything closed," she says. "We work as a team. We have clients all the time." Larry Spiteri, an online agent for zipRealty.com in San Francisco, says the team work at zipRealty is what allows him to provide clients with quality service. Licensed since 1993, Mr. Spiteri says enjoys contractual work and prides himself in his ability to represent clients well in escrow. He works with field agents who handle all of the showings. From his office, Mr. Spiteri has worked on at least 20 transactions involving 20 or more buyers. He was successful in a transaction involving 26 other buyers. "Our service is what will keep our clients with us," Mr. Spiteri says. So both sides look the same — they both herald customer service — yet they are two means to the same end. More than that, those sides are represented by individuals, several thousand in one case and millions in the other, with their own goals, agendas and personalities.