I recently read an article about buyers researching sellers on line to find out information that might reveal the sellers motivation to sell or other information that could help the buyer decide how much to offer or help in the negotiations. Buyers were also being searched by sellers for the same reasons. Both looking for information that is generally considered confidential between a client and their agent in a real estate transaction.
I must admit that I was a little shocked when I read the article because it never even occurred to me that people would do that. But it does bring up some interesting questions:
Is it legal? Is it ethical? Should an agent suggest to their client that they might want to do that? Is it really in anyones best interest and could it backfire on the person that was able to obtain what should have been confidential information?
Consider the following scenarios:
A buyer wants to find out the sellers motivation for selling. They search and find out that the seller posted on Facebook that they got a promotion and need to get their home sold fast because they have to be in their new town in a short period of time. Or maybe the buyer Googled the sellers name and found out that it's a divorce situation. Could that influence the buyer to make a lower offer?
How about a seller who searches and finds that the buyer has posted on Facebook that they just made an offer on the perfect home that they must have. Could the seller use that information to refuse to budge off the listing price? Or maybe the seller doesn't want to sell to a particular ethnic group. They have multiple offers on the table, search the names and finds pictures that indicate the buyer is of a particular group and refused to consider their offer.
What do you think? Would you do it? Would you suggest to your client to Google the buyer/seller?
At the very least, the lesson here for both buyers and sellers is be careful what you say and post especially on social media.
Post your comments below.
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