What questions can R.E. Agents legally answer? (settlement, properties, broker)

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by Silverfall

1) Agent left car door unlocked in white neighborhood vs. locking the door while in a driveway in a transitional neighborhood, perceived to signal one was more prone to crime than the other.

This has got to be one of the most asinine ones that I have heard. They went door to door and determined how many whites were in the "white neighborhood" and compared them to the whites in the "transitional neighborhood?" Transitional out here has to do with socioeconomic status. Does transitional mean something else where you are?

5) Interpolating state supplied school report card information by race. This agent who wastes their time figuring out these type of statistics clearly does not have enough business.

olecapt, are you referring to the steering issue with one of the EBA's? I am aware of that one, but not any others.

Yes - and a most interesting case. The writer suggested strongly the memo would be withdrawn...but it never was. And that is really the only position that actually ever existed on the point.

I presume the Executive and the Legal locked horns and were unable to either certify the view or withdraw it. Executive wants one the Legals the other. Standoff that has held to this day.

I would also take these anecdotes with a great grain of salt particularly without a source attribution. You hear them but never a source - they never google.

[middle-aged mom]

Originally Posted by Silverfall

1)

This has got to be one of the most asinine ones that I have heard.

Fair Housing Initiative Program ( FHIP) funds not for profit fair housing enforcement initiatives. One of the principal functions is to put testers into the field to evaluate whether real estate agents treat equally qualified people the same. This is huge in the greater Chicaoland area.

It is not limited to testers posing as buyers. They sometimes also pose as homeowners who do not want to sell to a particular minority. Some of these tests are protracted, designed to build relationships over time. Most claims are settled out of court.

I too thought the unlocked verses locked car door thing was a real push. The moral of this story is consistentcy.

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by olecapt

You reallly think that "source of the source" is federal law? You are in bad need of a refresher course.

Ohh and to the intellectually deficient coward with the anonymous negative...The comment is on point and quite in keeping with the message to which it responded.

Someday CD will develop a little class and send you cowards to the cesspool where you belong.

[Silverfall]

I think I was "tested" once. It was the most bizarre conversation. This guy wanted to buy a used car lot for Hispanics. I was thinking what a bad business plan...Sell cars to whomever wants to buy them...When I tried to refer him to a commercial broker he asked "Are you refusing to help me?" I had to explain that commercial agents and residential agents are different specialties and that he wouldn't ask a pediatrician to perform brain surgery. I think I had been an agent for about 6 months when I got that call. I called my broker right after it since it was so bizarre, and she told me it was most likely a tester.

I am aware they are out there. I do agree that consistency is the key.

[middle-aged mom]

Originally Posted by olecapt

I would also take these anecdotes with a great grain of salt particularly without a source attribution. You hear them but never a source - they never google.

Never say never.
http://www.nationalfairhousing.org/r...7050637157.pdf
http://fairhousing.com/include/media..._october02.pdf
NFHA
( Note: They do not have any members in Nevada, yet)

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by middle-aged mom

Never say never.
http://www.nationalfairhousing.org/r...7050637157.pdf
http://fairhousing.com/include/media..._october02.pdf
NFHA
( Note: They do not have any members in Nevada, yet)

They appear to make most of their mark by nailing people for discriminating against blacks. That will be very tough in Vegas. Here there are no places to refer blacks that have no whites...or whites that have no blacks. Even if you wanted to discriminate against a poor black you would likely have to send him to a majority hispanic neighborhood.

I would think that someone could play a useful role here but it is more likely discrimination against families and rarely gays. Do people discriminate against people of color...I suppose...they also occasionally pick on Mid easterners, Hispanics, mormons, gays, blacks, the elderly, the young, non-English speakers, illegals (which may be legal) Jews, orthodox Jews and whoever.

I would also note that your reference had all reasonably clean busts... no bad key uses or similar.

Do I think they steer in Chicago? Well of course they do. Will enforcement programs ever stop it? Nope. The problem is societal not RE Agents. They bust a dozen agents, drive them from the profession and who replaces them? Another set of card carrying steerers.

The outcome of enforcement activities is you likely raise the skill lever of the steerers.

[Scott Secor]

Feel free to ask am many question as you wish. If the agent is the least bit uncomfortable about your line of questioning, she will let you know. Realtors can give opinions (professional and otherwise) on a varity of topics. One area of questioning that we cannot answer is regarding sexual predators. All we can do is refer you to a web address or telephone number.

I also offer information from my website ...

http://MotivatedAgent.net/Demographi...e_1122808.html

[Scott Secor]

LOL

What does it say about someone who locks their car doors in their own garage? (I have done that for 40 years.)

[austin-steve]

As stated above, you can't "steer" clients. For example, if an Asian American buyer told me they want to live near other Asian Americans, it would be illegal for me to direct him to those neighborhoods. Same as if someone told me they wanted to avoid certain neighborhoods.

The best strategy is as follows:

Q: Is this a good area?
A: What is your idea of a good area?

Q: Is there a lot of crime in this area?
A: Well, that depends on what you call "a lot". Crime stats are available from the police department. I can tell you though that there is no area in Austin that doesn't have at least some crime.

Q: Is this house too nice for this neighborhood?
A: Yes. It is the highest priced home in the area. If it sells for the list price, it will be the highest sales price ever achieved in this particular neighborhood. You'd be better off, from a potential appreciation standpoint, buying an average home in the higher priced neighborhood down the street instead of the best home in this neighborhood. (Note: this is a market value question, so there is nothing wrong with answering it)

On the tricky/illegal questions, it's always better to answer with another question and try to get to the real question/concern of the buyer.

I had a buyer fire me once after I scolded her for being a bigot, after she responded to my probing of what she means by "good people" by saying "well, you know. People with good jobs...and we don't want to be around ethnics". I asked her what she meant by "ethnics" and she said, "well, you know {whispers} blacks and mexicans."

I let her no in no uncertain terms that her comments was very inappropriate and that I would not be able to help her based on that criteria. That I could help her find a place with good schools, certain commuting distance from her job, certain price ranges and sizes, but that we don't filter our search based on racial makeup up the neighborhoods. She of course back pedaled, accused me of over reacting, and then decided maybe she needed another agent, which I gladly agreed with.

Though rare in my world, there are still people like this out there. As an agent, if you try to help someone like this you're risking your license and career.

[Greatday]

Originally Posted by middle-aged mom

Fair Housing Initiative Program ( FHIP) funds not for profit fair housing enforcement initiatives. One of the principal functions is to put testers into the field to evaluate whether real estate agents treat equally qualified people the same. This is huge in the greater Chicaoland area.

Agreed.

These types of tests are done regularly. And, if a alleged violation is found, the real estate company (Broker) is contacted along with the Agent. More often than not, a settlement is reached that includes FH training and to cover the cost of the testing etc.

These settlements, by design, are not public record cases (in most cases) and therefore cannot / would not be found on the internet.