Back in late January I wrote a post about a current story on a RE/MAX agent that was being sued in California by a couple that blamed him for the declining values in his neighborhood and its impact on their purchase. The story had been picked up by several large newspapers and was being read about far and wide.
Well, today news comes out on the verdict in the case. The agent won the lawsuit and the jury saw in his favor along with making some very necessary comments about responsibility when it comes to buyers doing their own due diligence. Sometimes that means reading what’s been given to you, and it also means, especially with all the tools available today, that a buyer can’t put blinders on during the process and expect not to do some of their own research.
We work with clients every day that we attempt to educate as to the tools that are available to them to review property values, assessor reports, crime statistics, school info, etc. In most states there are also elements of common law as well as real estate law that talk about the responsibility of the buyer and what limitations there are on agents to provide certain information. Fair Housing Laws fall into many of those – these laws are why I won’t answer certain types of questions for clients but instead direct them to websites where they can find that kind of information. I can only be the “source of the source” but not the definitive source.
Part of my reason for following up on this post is that I believe it’s important that buyers and their agents understand exactly what it is that their relationship will be if they are going to work together on such a large purchase. Setting expectations is important and can help with making the process go smoother for all involved. We even have a portion of our buyer’s agency agreement that states our client must be “actively engaged in the process” partly to make sure our clients know this is a joint effort.
One of the things I liked in the RE/MAX article was the quotes provided by jurors regarding their new found understanding of how agents work and the many hours put in to providing information to clients and showing homes, etc. I’m sure these folks have a stronger, or new, respect for the hard work that many agents put into helping their clients.
My guess is that the final outcome won’t be covered nearly as closely and widely as the original story though. But, perhaps I’ll be proven wrong. I’d like to be.
