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My neighbor, who lives diagonally across the street from me, is a real estate agent.
I have known her for decades and I think she is trustworthy. She has been selling for a long time, so I would think she is competent.
But I have been warned not to use a neighbor as my listing agent because of the risk of conflict of interest. She may discriminate against prospects she does not want living across the street from her. And that might create a serious lawsuit risk for me.
In Brooklyn, race is a big issue. I interviewed one local agent and asked her about discrimination. She told me she "had" to show houses to black people. She spoke of bringing a black family to look at a home. She said she "apologized" to the homeowner, telling him she "had" to bring them.
I never went back to her. Her bigotry and provinciality turned me off.
I fear the risk would be worse with a realtor who lives across the street. The block, and the neighborhood, are almost all white, with a few Asian families. When I was a child (I grew up in this house), sometimes angry people would threaten to sell their homes to black people, as a way to punish their neighbors. I don't think the level of bigotry is the same now as it used to be, but I have had black guests complain of hate stares.
The bottom line is that prejudice is a reality and it can affect home selling.
I do not want to be at liability risk because of something my agent does, even if she does it unconsciously.
Should I automatically rule my neighbor out as an agent?
Unfortunately, other agents I have spoken to have turned me off with their pushiness, controlling behavior and/or patronizing attitudes. I need an agent I am comfortable speaking to. Not one who calls me "honey" and talks to me like I am a cute 4 year old, or who is abrasive and controlling.
There are tons of agents in southern Brooklyn. I can't interview all of them.
What can I do to find one with and who will look out for my interests, and not try to take advantage of my real estate inexperience? There is only so much reading I can do about the process. I have still not gone through the actual experience of a home sale.
I have my neighbor's home listing right now. I feel like it is great for her that I have it, because I feel really pressured to get it sold, maybe more than if it was someone else. Everybody around here in my neighborhood knows I'm a realtor, and the are probably counting the days until I get it sold to see just how good I am. I am in no way ignoring my other listings, or giving this one any better sevrice, but I certainly feeling the heat!
Good point, MilkyJayne. It's definitely something to consider.
But what about the conflict of interest problem?
I think I'll just discuss this with my neighbor directly.
There is no conflict of interest...unless you think she's a bigot; in which case, you might not want to hire her anyway. But, just for the fact that she lives on the street? Her interests are actually in line with yours - Besides the potential commission, the more she sells your house for, the higher it raises the value of her own home! So she should have extra motivation.
Bottom line, though, hire the best person for the job, regardless of where they live (with some limit of distance, obviously)
There is no conflict of interest...unless you think she's a bigot; in which case, you might not want to hire her anyway. But, just for the fact that she lives on the street? Her interests are actually in line with yours - Besides the potential commission, the more she sells your house for, the higher it raises the value of her own home! So she should have extra motivation.
Bottom line, though, hire the best person for the job, regardless of where they live (with some limit of distance, obviously)
If your agent discriminates, she stands to lose even more than you. Fair Housing Laws are very punitive and she would likely lose her real estate license. You've said that you believe she is a competent agent, so unless you have some reason to believe that she is a bigot who would intentionally endanger her livelihood and risk huge fines rather than risk selling to a person in a protected class, then I think you should consider using her.
However, don't use her just because she lives across the street. Make sure she has a comprehensive marketing plan. Find out how many listings she has had in the past year -- how long they have taken to sell -- how much they sold for versus their listing price. Do your due diligence with her as well as at least a couple of other agents to ensure that you are getting the best agent for both your listing and your comfort zone.
Maybe, maybe not. I don't know her intimately. I don't really know what her business practices are.
What I do know is that when I have spoken to her in the street, she says this is not a good time to sell.
My next door neighbors got their home through her. The previous resident had passed away and she was selling the house. I think I'll speak to them and ask about their experience.
There are lots of advantages to using my neighbor. As MilkyJayne wrote, she may feel she is being watched by other neighbors. As RedSoxMark wrote, the higher the price she gets for my house, the more valuable her own house can become. Also, she as a pre-existing relationship with me.
As to her competence, I don't really know. I do know she has been at it for a while. She also seems honest when she talks to me. No sales-speak. She has spoken a little about some of the negative aspects of her job.
One issue, which I hope is not important, is that after I move away she will probably not have to see me again. If I were moving onto the block, she would have me as a neighbor for the forseeable future. But since I would be moving away, she would not have to face me every day if she did not do right by me.
I'm just going to talk to my next door neighbor, and then to her.
One word of warning - as it is a falling market, and there is pressure right now to "price right" you may find that she is a little resistant as if you become the lower comp, that will affect her home value and that of your neighbours, which may make her unconsciously resistant.
This happened to a friend of mine who found that the realtor refused to lower the price for a quick sale when my friend requested it - turned out she had a little too much interest in the price holding up, which became a conflict.
I would second the advice you recieved - to interview her just as you would interview any other realtor.
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