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Two Sides of Ignorance

By
Real Estate Agent with The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty

Derek came home from an afternoon showing homes to his very first buyer client, as a Realtor in Colorado Springs (we'll call her Ms. P) and sits at the computer in obvious bewilderment. He logged onto the local MLS and then paused for a few minutes.

"Honey. What's up? How did your day go?" I was excited about his first time out showing homes, as well as interested in why he was so bewildered.
"Well, it went ok. But I need to narrow down her search to homes on streets with no mature trees and a lot of street lamps."
"Huh?" I now joined him in his bewilderment. There are not searchable fields for either of those requests. How were we going to search for homes in Colorado Springs with those guidelines?

This was going to be interesting.

We decided to pull up all homes that fit her previous requests and then we spent the better part of 2 days driving around each street in each neighborhood making notes about the trees, foliage and street lamp placement. We found some great, well-lit homes. Man! Ms. P was going to be proud when they met up the next weekend!

Well, the next weekend arrived, and after several hours of showing homes, Derek came home quite irritated. What was wrong? How could she NOT like any of the homes that Derek picked out! They were perfect! Derek then called his managing broker. Maybe he could help him figure this out.

After a few seconds on the phone, Derek's face fell. He got off the phone and let me know what the "problem" was.

Let's just say that we learned the hard way what "I don't want to live in a dark neighborhood" means. Yeah, Ms. P didn't care about trees and street lamps.

Derek got on the phone immediately and called her. First, he let her know that he had no idea that her requests were discriminatory in nature. He told her that it made no sense and that he did not understand why she would think in those terms. Second, he educated her on how there is NO WAY that he can or would ever narrow down a home search based on discrimination. Finally, he said that she can either a.) Find a new agent to represent her, or b.) Narrow down the search herself. He would have no part in a discrimination-based home search. After a brief silence and a short good-bye, Derek hung up the phone.

We waited a couple days, not knowing what Ms. P was going to decide on. Those were a tough couple of days, as Ms. P was Derek's first client ... ever. And, we never thought that we would actually have to deal with the discrimination that we learned about in real estate school. Well, she called back, and for reasons that we will never really know she decided to buy one of the homes that Derek had shown her originally.

We do not make decisions based on discrimination and I guess it never occurred to us that others still do. It is a sad thing. Our ignorance of the presence of existing discrimination clashed with her ignorance of the absence of discrimination.

... At least we now know where all the well-lit streets in Colorado Springs are.

Posted by

       Posted By: Derek and Mariana Wagner - Springs Top Agents

Keller Williams Premier
(719) 434-7525    SpringsTopAgents.com

Comments (35)

Monika McGillicuddy
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Verani Realty - Hampstead, NH
Southern NH & the Seacoast Area

Wow...I would not have gotten it either! We don't have many street lights and have lots of mature trees...probably wouldn't have been able to show her a thing.

Poor Derek ...what a lesson to learn!

Jan 24, 2007 10:15 AM
Christy Powers
Keller Williams Coastal Area Partners - Pooler, GA
Pooler, Savannah Real Estate Agent
I didn't understand the trees bit....but I got what you were saying about the well lit. That is horrible though.
Jan 24, 2007 11:37 AM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®

Kristal- That makes SO much sense- us living in the West, and not seeing the ugly face of racism as often. I LOVE living in a melting pot, too!

Nick- Yep, this happened many, many years ago, but we have not heard that term since ... (Thank Goodness...) And Derek says, "You Rock, too, Nick the Appraiser"

Leigh- Yeah, you are in one of those "bleeding from the civil war" states. So beautiful there, though. I guess there are 2 sides to every coin, yes?

Monika- Did you know that Colorado Springs has NO naturally occurring trees? All the trees that we have here are planted by homeowners/developers/builders. All the big ones downtown were planted by our founder, General Palmer 100 years ago.

Kaushik- Yeah, we did not have any idea either! What a horrible surprise...

Christine- I wonder how that comment would have gone over in the neighborhoods of NYC ... I laugh, to this day- remembering us driving around taking notes on trees and lamps. DER!

TLW- I like telling people to stop talking, too. Sometimes they never really comprehend that it is for their own sake. Sometimes they listen. Sometimes I just have to walk away... Sometimes I sound like that Austin Powers movie.. "Zzp. Shh. Zip it..." I think iot was Dr. Evil talking to his son...

Ann- Thank you. I just hope that she understood that she was being ignorant and made an effort to educate herself.

Jan 24, 2007 11:59 AM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
Christy- Thanks for stopping by! Mature trees would block the natural sunlight from a house. We figured that she wanted a lot of light - sunlight or street lamps. Oh, were we wrong!
Jan 24, 2007 12:01 PM
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

Interesting story, and not funny. Discrimination is alive and well all over, and unfortunately it can be kinda subtle. I guess you could have asked for some clarification coz that statement could be misinterpreted - I would have been confised I think. I lived in the CITY and showed property at night regularly, and thsometime you just ere were areas that literally WERE dark because of limited lighting (and I had someone who WAS specifically concerned about that as a safety issue, not the ethnic or racial makeup of the area).

I think it was an easy mistake to make...and sometimes you can't believe someone is being obvious in their discrimination.

Jeff

Jan 24, 2007 02:03 PM
Jeff Belonger
Social Media - Infinity Home Mortgage Company, Inc - Cherry Hill, NJ
The FHA Expert - FHA Loans - FHA mortgages - USDA loans - VA Loans

Mariana.... it can be a doggie dog world out there.... and I remember a similar situation about 8 yrs ago, when I had a client describe this to me. I just said I can't help you with this, I just do your financing. And I wasn't mean enough to the realtor involved .. meaning, I could have said, talk to your realtor, bring up your concerns to him or her.  I did think about that, but then I would have been like those clients in a way also.....  overall, I just made conversation on another topic.

I guess this is a good lesson and would keep you on your toes for future prospects....  thanks for sharing.

Jan 24, 2007 02:04 PM
Patricia Beck
RE/MAX Properties, Inc., ABR, GRI, SRES - Colorado Springs, CO
Colorado Springs Realty

Derek sure handled that situation very well.  I wouldn't of understood what she said either!  It's really sad but, discrimination is still an issue even in the Springs.

Jan 24, 2007 03:23 PM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®

Jeff Dowler- Thank you for your comment. I agree. The discrimination part is NOT funny. Driving around looking at street light placement, well, I guess it shows OUR ignorance. I understand that it is alive and kicking- more in some areas than others. It is aweful, plain and simple. I just did a post on the Realtor Code of Ethics, Article 10 which is about the Fair Housing Laws. That is what actually reminded me of this incident. I have a hard time wrapping my mind around discrimination. I was not raised around it and I have NO tolerance for it either. Discrimination is kind of a barbaric thought process, in my opinion.

Jeff Belonger- Fortunately we have not had to deal with anything like this since then. But, you never know, right? I just hope that people pull themselves out of the past and stop being so ignorant. It is such a shame.

Jan 24, 2007 03:28 PM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
Hi Patricia! Welcome to Active Rain...! You are right, there IS discrimination everywhere- even HERE! But, from my experience and from what I have heard, there are MUCH worse places around the U.S. We just need to stay on top of it and do our part to educate and eradicate. Right?
Jan 24, 2007 03:32 PM
ARDELL DellaLoggia
Better Properties Seattle - Kirkland, WA
I LOVE the knowing where all the best lit streets are.  I grew up in Philadelphia during racial unrest and ignorance.  Be glad there are so very, very few people left that feel that way, relatively speaking.
Jan 24, 2007 04:54 PM
Randy L. Prothero
eXp Realty - Hollister, MO
Missouri REALTOR, (808) 384-5645

One of the reasons I moved to Hawaii was to get away from that nonsense.  I am not sure I would have caught that one either.

Jan 24, 2007 08:27 PM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
Ardell- Well, if you ever want to move to Colorado Springs, I know where the well lit streets are!
Randy- Yeah, it WAS pretty subtle. I am actually glad that we did not "get" it.
Jan 25, 2007 02:27 AM
Michael Jordan
Tarbell, REALTORS - Murrieta, CA
Mariana, I too would have thought she wanted a home an a well lit street, how sad. Derek handled it great, maybe you made her feel guilty or ashamed for being so dark minded, and that's why she bought from you.
Jan 27, 2007 02:28 PM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
You know. It is possible. I can only hope that she learned something ... opened her eyes ... something.
Jan 27, 2007 03:29 PM
William Collins
ERA Queen City Realty - Scotch Plains, NJ
Property and Asset Management

Mariana,

Thanks for the post. I too, had not heard this one before. Here in the northeast people tend to be less poetic in their attempt to discriminate. Last year I had a call from a gentleman with a middle eastern accent, inquire about a neighborhood. What kind of neighborhood is it? he asked. I replied, a $350,000 to $1,500,000 community. He responded, I mean what color are the people? he went on to say I don't want to live near blacks. I replied, then you probably wouldn't want to ride with one either. At that point I informed him that I was African American and that I was not obligated to assist a racist.

Jan 29, 2007 05:21 PM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
William, Thank you for the comment, and for the story. I still  do not understand how someone (buyer/seller) can think that they can attempt to do business through descrimination. Not nearly to the extent as this, but still in the arena of discrimination, I often deal with "old school" real esate agents who flat out ignore me (female) in favor of speaking with my husband (male) when doing business. Funny, as there are more female RE agents in the US than male... I just hope that as the generations mature, here in the U.S., archaic thought processes fade away.
Jan 30, 2007 12:37 AM
Roberta Lee
Century 21 Olde Tyme - Norco, CA
Norco Corona Riversid Homes For Sale

Mariana,

Well color me blond....I never would have known what she was talking about and I would have done just what you did.  Spend my evenings driving up and down streets looking for lights.  Golly aren't we ever going to learn.  It's not the color of your skin that matters, it's the color of your heart!

Bless you and your husband and have a wonderful day,

Roberta Dove" Lee

Century 21 Olde Tyme, Norco, CA

Jan 30, 2007 09:55 AM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
Thank you, Roberta. You know, there are some things that I wish we never had to learn - like "discrimination code". Thank you for your comment.
Jan 30, 2007 11:26 AM
Joan Whitebook
BHG The Masiello Group - Nashua, NH
Consumer Focused Real Estate Services
I moved to New Hampshire from liberal San Francisco about 9 years ago.  One of the things that struck me right away was how WHITE New Hamshire was at that time -- and I am not just referrring to the snow!  It was certainly culture shock after living in the Bay Area for 28 years.   About 3 years ago I showed a home and there were pictures of a black family on the walls -- when I went back for a second showing a couple of days later the pictures were all off the walls.  I wondered what that was all about ----
Feb 06, 2007 02:36 PM
Derek and Mariana Wagner
The Artisan Group- Keller Williams Premier Realty - Colorado Springs, CO
The Artisan Group - Colorado Springs REALTORS®
Joan, We tell all of clients (regardless of nationality, color, race...) to remove family pictures from the walls. No one wants to buy "someone else's" house. As long as the request is consistent from client to client, there is no issue. That may have not been a racial issue.
Feb 07, 2007 02:56 AM