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SHOULD A REASONABLE real estate buyer expect the multiple listing service (MLS) to provide a reasonable description of the property being purchased? What if it doesn’t?
All the previous times I’ve purchased real estate, the MLS accurately described the property I was buying. I realized that disclosures were also provided by the seller, and those specified the finer points of what was being purchased. Still, I’d come to expect a certain amount of integrity from the MLS listing itself.
That all changed during my most recent real estate adventure. I signed a contract on a condo that, according to the MLS, came with a “large wine fridge.” A few weeks after signing the contract, I was again reviewing the disclosures and noticed that the large wine fridge wasn’t mentioned. The listing agent subsequently confirmed it wasn’t part of the deal, saying the wine fridge would have been part of the deal if I’d agreed to pay the list price.
Now, I realize that legally the disclosures are what determines what is and isn’t part of the transaction, but I was dismayed to learn that an item so prominently mentioned in the MLS did not actually “convey,” as they say in real estate lingo. I then became concerned about whether the third space of the three-car private garage and the third of the three outdoor spaces would convey. Thankfully, they did.
It also burned me that the large wine fridge would have conveyed if I paid “a full offer.” I’d never heard of such a thing. I wondered how much over asking would have enabled the seller’s Peloton to convey? I pushed my agent to go over the listing agent’s head to attain satisfaction, but the listing agent’s boss was even more obstinate.
For most of my working life, I was employed by one of the biggest companies in the world. People may think that because we were so big, we played hardball with all our customers and vendors. Well, we did during negotiations. But if the signed contract ended up flawed—like my above deal—then we worked hard to find an equitable resolution because our reputation is what enabled us to make future profitable deals.
I decided to go through with the deal after the seller convinced me that the inclusion of the wine fridge in the MLS was an oversight by the listing agent. I also wanted to maintain some good will. I was negotiating with the seller about some issues in the inspection report, plus I wanted to buy some of his furniture.
But after the sale closed, I just couldn’t let it go. I felt this was an integrity issue, specifically a violation of Article 12 of the National Association of REALTORS® Code of Ethics. (Yes, these folks do indeed write “realtors” in all capital letters and include the ®, as if they’re screaming at you and feel their right to do so should be legally protected.)
Article 12 reads: “REALTORS® shall be honest and truthful in their real estate communications and shall present a true picture in their advertising, marketing, and other representations.” That, along with the huge void in my newly purchased “butler’s pantry,” really started to gnaw at me.
So, I contacted the ombudsman at the local Regional Association of REALTORS®. She was a nice enough woman who was there to “attempt to informally resolve your concerns… before matters ripen into disputes and possible charges of unethical conduct.” Unfortunately, she didn’t try to resolve my concerns, instead simply forwarding them to the unapologetic listing agent.
That meant the next step was to submit an ethics complaint. It wasn’t so much that I wanted to try and ding the listing agent with a $250 fine, although that wouldn’t bring a tear to my eye. Rather, it was that I wanted some sort of acknowledgment that what the listing agent did was wrong.
The ethics complaint form was filled in, notarized and submitted via registered mail. Upon receipt by the Regional Association of REALTORS®, I made one last unanswered plea to the listing REALTOR® for “an equitable resolution.”
A hearing by three members of the Regional Association of REALTORS® was scheduled. The nefarious agent and I weren’t invited. A few days later, the Regional Association of REALTORS® contacted me with an update, saying the agent in question was not in violation of Article 12. No further explanation was given, which led me to believe that resistance was futile and an appeal to the grievance committee would be less than productive.
After it was all said and done, I still think it was worth my time. But then again, I’m retired and have nothing but free time. I also learned something useful for the next time I buy a condo—and perhaps even more useful the next time I sell one. I also rest easy knowing I’ve done what I could to hold REALTORS® accountable. Still, I have to say, my refrigerator-chilled Charles Shaw 2023 pinot grigio just doesn’t taste that good.
Michael Flack blogs at AfterActionReport.info. He’s a former naval officer and 20-year veteran of the oil and gas industry. Now retired, Mike enjoys traveling, blogging and spreadsheets. Check out his earlier articles.
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My wife was a real estate agent for years and I can assure you that you would be wise to verify every claim made by a selling agent before you write an offer or remove all contingencies. A buyers inspection and walk-through are absolutely neccessary to identify what may be missing and/or needs attention. Equally important for buyers is the selection of their agent. RE sales attracts a lot of people with limited experience and expertise, and having someone or you side who has been in the business for more than a few years can make all the difference in the world.
I think you just did the next best thing by telling your story. I’m on my 7th house and I’ve had what I consider a good agent maybe 2 times
When we bought the house where I’m writing this, the house had been staged. Part of that staging was removing the microwave, since it wasn’t built in. Of course, we never really noticed there was no microwave until we got the contract!
For me, that was par for the course. What’s a $300 purchase and a couple of hours replacing the stove hood compared to a $300k?
Now the house we bought that flooded the basement when it rained, had the sprinklers connected on the city side of the meter, and had the basketball goal removed from the cemented in post? That was sad, but we never saw the perpetrator again after closing, and we still own that house 30 years later, so I guess that worked out too.
“Self-regulation” is not regulation.
great article Michael. Two Buck Chuck is an interesting case study in inflation. When I traveled frequently to Northern VA Trader Joe’s was a frequent stop for wine bargain. I recall they had an Italian Pinot Grigio for about $3.50 that was pretty decent.
Rick Connor, I agree that Trader Joe’s has some very good stuff, that falls just above Charles Shaw in both price and taste.
Real estate agents are like car salesmen.
It’s not just the real estate agents! Some states require an attorney for each party at the closing. I attended a closing for my home purchase and was forced to do my walk through immediately before the close. Several major repairs that were promissed in writing were not performed and more items were discovered that needed to be fixed. The attorney for the seller advised take it as is or don’t close. It was the week before Christmas and my family needed a place to live in our new location. We were stuck. As I sorted through the final closing statement, I checked the math and found a significant error in my favor. Money changed hands and we closed. Two weeks later I received a call from my attorney who said the seller’s attorney had found an error and wanted the corrected amount. I advised him to tell the attorney to go to hell. No further action was taken.
HT, on my above real estate adventure, there was also a financial miscalculation made by the selling agent’s title company. Though in this case the title company made it right by writing me a check for the misstated amount.
Thankfully the state where this adventure took place in does not require lawyers and their egregious fees.
thanks for your comments.
This is good information to know. I’m dealing with two real estate agents and will be on the lookout for their antics. People will say or do anything to get their hands on your money.
Charles Shaw–one of my favorites! 😉
Thanks for sticking up for properly chilled wine-drinkers rights!
Ben Rodriguez, you are welcome. Thankfully the place came with a small fridge that I used to use to keep my Bud Light perfectly chilled. Now I use it to keep my Modelo Especial perfectly chilled.
Your action reminded me of a recent post on Seth’s Blog-
For many, the imagined cost of speaking up is almost always higher than the actual cost.
My last, and likely final, real estate purchase was over 20 years ago in a buyers market. On the day before closing during our walk through some mirrors had been removed. The seller agreed to return, and did return, those mirrors. I wonder if your situation would have been different if we were not in a seller’s market.
So you plan to include a “briefcase with $1 million cash” in the listing when you sell? That should really up the offers.
Perhaps your efforts will cause the realtor to alter his/her methods in the future.
Dan Smith, As my dear Mother used to say “Hope springs eternal.”
This is the kind of story that emphasizes the need for careful perusal of the documentation when buying real estate. I have always looked at the MLS material as advertising, and the purchase contract as being factual. Since furnishings and appliances that are not built into the structure generally must be documented specifically in order to be included in the deal, somewhere you missed the omission of the wine fridge and/or did not specifically list it. And, unless you had a buyers agreement with the realtor who handled your end of the deal, he/she was really working for the seller and so had no real reason to point out this omission assuming that he/she knew it was important to you.
After walking through a home that we eventually purchased as a vacation home, I noted to my wife that the 3100SF shown in the listing was a joke. Later when we received the appraisal there was a measured plan of the home that showed is as 2900. In this case the listing agent had included a golf cart garage as part of the living space.
Especially when dealing with real estate, let the buyer beware.
stelea99, I agree that “careful perusal of the documentation” is always in order, but I think you are letting off this REALTOR® a little too easily. I realize we now live in a world where people can lie, with others believing that lying is a character strength, but I am not one of them.
That’s part of being an officer.
Many occupations try to elevate public perceptions of what they do by adding a patina of “Professionalism”. This can be in the form of a code of ethics, education, testing, and designations. They want to elevate perceptions because such perceptions are a significant part of how people learn about who they can trust.
Expectations are everything. Doctors, dentists and other medical professions have successfully achieved this status. Lawyers and accountants as well. Realtors, not so much. A federal law had to be enacted to keep realtors from pushing their customers into various additional channels that made money for them at the expense of their customers.
I am referiing to the Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act, passed in 1974. Even today, there are many who feel that MLS services create unfair market conditions elevating commissions via monopoly power.
There are many real estate agents who treat their customers professionally. Despite this, the question is can you generally trust real estate agents and MLS listings implicitly? My answer would be no. You just need to read the descriptions of properties written by realtors which attempt to gloss over unpleasant characteristics of properties they need to sell.
Even in areas like medicine, where most of us trust our doctors, one tends to try to verify what one is told. With real estate and used cars, let the buyer beware.
I have also seen some egregious square footage listed. One in our own neighborhood with a similar floor plan to ours, likely built by the same builder, but clearly about 200-300 square feet smaller than our house because of the design differences was listed as having around 200 square feet more (!) than ours. It appears to be listed that way with the county as well, so whoever owns it is paying taxes on a large amount of square feet that they do not actually inhabit.
I’d be annoyed too but reflecting a bit I suggest the MLS offered the property with the fridge at full price and by paying less than full price the MLS offer is invalid. A new deal has to be struck which was done. Your story will make me check the details of my next real estate transaction more carefully.
My real estate peeve is real estate brokers advertising on the radio saying they have buyers ready to act and that “your home may already be sold.” I cringe at that language and have thought about an ethics complaint as well but I see that process is more complicated than I thought.
Boss Hogg, I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree. What is stated in the MLS should be accurate, irregardless of whether the buyer pays the list price or not.
Mike, I love how you stood on your principles despite the slim likelihood of getting satisfaction since the offending RE agent had the home court advantage. It’s frustrating when incompetence or dishonesty is not held to account. Thanks for the good read.