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Anyone remember that little thing called the DO NOT CALL LIST?

Remember that Do No Call list "thing?" Well I do!

The reason I bring this up today is that I listed my own parent's home last fall. We took it off the market, withdrawn temporarily, and on Saturday it "expired." Unfortunately for them, I had not taken their phone number out of the MLS so they have been bombarded with phone calls to list their home. Some blatantly deceptive, some straight forward, either way - people, they are on the DO NOT CALL LIST!

At this point I'm really mulling over whether they should all be turned into to the do not call registry. I know there are a lot of agents desperate for business (or so it appears from the sheer magnitude of calls and desperation displayed on their answering machine), but do it right! Do it legally, and remember to check the registry before you call - as you may be unlucky enough to be calling an agent's family member :)

What would you do? I follow the rules, I really do expect others to do the same, is that too much to ask?

Posted by Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate on 02/02/2009 11:37 AM

Comments (10)

do not call list

10 Comments on Anyone remember that little thing called the DO NOT CALL LIST?

FEB

This is another reason agents get a bad rap.....c'mon people, we are not 12 years old...follow the rules already. Thanks for posting Catherine.

If they are on the "don't call list, .... don't call." H e l l o....

patricia Aulson/ Portsmouth NH Real Estate

I see this all the time in my area. I called one person because it was a personal relationship and he told me he had been bombarded with calls. I thought that odd since hes not supposed to be called at all. I wonder what other rules are being bent?

Catherine- This is exactly why we do not call expireds. We have a very good mailing campaign. The expired listings call us, not the other way around. In this day and age it all about permission marketing not interruption marketing! It is a very hefty fine to call anyone on the do not call list and they are serious about the fine. If your parents want to call about them then by all means do that.

I don't know what I would do. I am not on the do not call list, but extra calls are annoying.

I see unsolicited calls as an opportunity to make new enemies. Nice post.

We've seen it happen in the Ventura real estate community regularily. I would absolutely turn them in. They're the kind that give our profession a bad name and they need to be kept honest.

Two things:

1. Depends on the attitude of the person calling. I have had some that call and are so nice and polite and REALLY trying to help that I never even thought about turning them in.

2. I have turned some people in (two come to mind, both are autodialed messages. One is an insurance salesman and one is builder/remodeler). Nothing that I know of has stopped them and I don't know if anyone was ever "fined" for it but ultimately, the FINE goes to the government and not the person who was wronged, so what the heck...why waste time and energy over it.

I do not call people on the Do Not Call list, quite frankly because I am afraid of the fine.

In my MLS I don't put the sellers phone number but even if I did ...you aren't supposed to call. Do you know that if someone puts a sign outside with their number you can call them even if they are on the list? It's like giving them public information.

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