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Everyone and their brother...

By
Real Estate Agent with Jameson Sotheby's International Realty

First, I have to tell you, the transaction I'm going to describe is long over.  That's an important note to this transaction... it's not ongoing.

I represented the buyer, and we had agreed on a purchase price, the contract had been ratified and "delivered".  All God's chilluns were happy.

I received an email from the seller's attorneys... with an introductory message: "Hello Mr/Mrs. Seller, we are your attorneys... please review the documents attached, which explain the process... blah, blah, blah"... and continues to give the seller the attorneys names, contact number and emails.

I figure that they've included me, the buyer's agent, on the distribution list, as a courtesy, so that I have all the attorneys names/contact information to pass along to our attorney

We conduct our inspection, and we find quite a few issues to talk about... we send our inspection request from our atorney to theirs... (I also call the agent to bring her up to speed).  I see our attorney's letter go out ... and almost immediately thereafter I see an email go from their attorney to the seller telling them "here are the inspection requests/issues from the buyer... please review... blah, blah, blah."

ruh-roh.

I have, once again, been included on the distribution list. Clearly they don't realize they are providing solace to the enemy.  Now I have a conundrum.  I am now privy to information I should not have. Negotiation information that I should not have as to their strategy.

Ethically, I should call the listing agent to tell them... "hey!..." so they can do some damage control.  But my ethical conundrum goes farther than that.  My fiduciary duty requires me to share any information I learn with my buyer".  Ruh-roh, indeed.

Fast forward... Fortunately, the sellers simply accepted our inspection request in toto.  I didn't have to bring what I had discovered to bear.  But I'll tell y'all.  I was feeling a little dirty.

Posted by

 ALAN MAY, Realtor®   
Specializing in Evanston Real Estate and North Shore Real Estate

Jameson Sotheby's International Realty, 2934 Central Street, Evanston, IL 60201
Office: 847.869.7300      Cell: 847.924.3313      Email: Almay@aol.com

Evanston Real Estate & North Shore Real Estate
Licensed in Illinois

   

Comments (15)

James Dray
Fathom Realty - Bentonville, AR

My goodness! you were in a pickle, good to hear it all turned out well.  So which way was you leaning?  Carol Williams this should be a good one.

Dec 15, 2017 05:18 PM
Alan May

My fiduciary duty would have been to the buyer.

Dec 15, 2017 07:39 PM
Kathy Streib
Cypress, TX
Home Stager/Redesign

Alan- that was a difficult position to be in and out of curiosity, what would you have done had the sellers not accepted the report!

Dec 15, 2017 05:29 PM
Alan May

I would have been obligated to share what I knew.

Dec 15, 2017 07:40 PM
Endre Barath, Jr.
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties - Beverly Hills, CA
Realtor - Los Angeles Home Sales 310.486.1002

Alan, I always tell my sellers work with the first buyer because after it we are obligated to disclose... one high net worth seller was so mad at me .... I just closed on it a couple weeks ago and he ...well never mind...Endre

Dec 15, 2017 11:52 PM
Alan May

never mind, indeed.

Dec 16, 2017 06:01 AM
Wayne Martin
Wayne M Martin - Chicago, IL
Real Estate Broker - Retired

Good morning Alan. That damn disclosure stuff can be a big roadblock! Lucky for you you did not need to put up the barricades! Enjoy your day!

Dec 16, 2017 04:59 AM
Alan May

ain't it the trooth, Wayne. aint' it the trooth?

Dec 16, 2017 06:02 AM
Sheila Anderson
Referral Group Incorporated - East Brunswick, NJ
The Real Estate Whisperer Who Listens 732-715-1133

Good morninf Alan. In NJ where my license is, it is customary to get all correspondence. Don't worry......be happy.

Dec 16, 2017 07:59 AM
Alan May

I'm happy.  I'm happy.

Dec 16, 2017 02:23 PM
Joe Pryor
The Virtual Real Estate Team - Oklahoma City, OK
REALTOR® - Oklahoma Investment Properties

They say what you don't know won't hurt you but this is a twist of that statement. Glad it worked out.

Dec 16, 2017 08:03 AM
Alan May

Coulda been a serious twist.

Dec 16, 2017 02:23 PM
Corey Martin
Martin Presence Group - Ruston, LA
Real Estate and Management Solutions

I'm glad it worked out. I think I might have done the same thing as you did. Thanks for sharing!

Dec 16, 2017 10:02 PM
Alan May

I think I might have done the same, too.  Oh, wait.  I did.

Dec 17, 2017 06:30 AM
Debb Janes
Nature As Neighbors - Camas, WA
Put My Love of Nature At Work for You

Wowzers, that is a dilemma. However, given our responsibilty to our clients you handled it quite well. In fact, I don't see what you really could have done differently.  Glad this one had a successful outcome, without the need to sling mud...and get really dirty. D 

Dec 17, 2017 12:19 PM
Alan May

I don't either... so I'm glad it turned-out, as it did.

Dec 17, 2017 12:39 PM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Wow, I'm glad this turned out just fine. You would have definitely needed to share whatever you learned with your client, but wow, that's messy. I always double check the names on any email I send, but maybe I should start triple checking!

Dec 23, 2017 03:59 AM
Alan May

That's the reason I never "Forward" from my phone... I always start a new email, just to make sure.

Dec 23, 2017 06:00 AM
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

That was quite the dilemma, Alan...someone sure goofed!! Glad it all worked out in your buyer's favor.

Jeff

Dec 24, 2017 08:49 AM
Alan May

I was happy that I didn't have to intercede.

Dec 24, 2017 08:59 AM
Jan Green - Scottsdale, AZ
Value Added Service, 602-620-2699 - Scottsdale, AZ
HomeSmart Elite Group, REALTOR®, EcoBroker, GREEN

That is indeed a conundrum!  Thankfully all worked out and they were none the wiser.  But that could have been a real pickle if they hadn't just agreed to the repairs.  Whew! 

Dec 25, 2017 06:49 PM
Alan May

and that's the entire problem in a nutshell.

Dec 25, 2017 08:13 PM
Sharon Tara
Sharon Tara Transformations - Portsmouth, NH
Retired New Hampshire Home Stager

Wow....what an interesting predicament!

I'm sure there are many agents out there who would have gladly used it to their advantage if given the opportunity.  

Dec 26, 2017 10:54 AM
Alan May

I'm sure there are.

Dec 26, 2017 12:16 PM
John Wiley
Fort Myers, FL
Lee County, FL, ECO Broker, GRI, SRES,GREEN,PSA

Alan May thanks for sharing your personal experience. It was a most difficult situation and you were aware of your responsibilities as an agent.

There are agents who would not be aware and could have fallen into a most dangerous trap.

Glad we can learn from each other.

Dec 28, 2017 06:50 AM
Alan May

there are lots of landmines in this business... not merely for the buyer/seller, but a good handful for we Realtors, too.  It's wise to be aware of them.

Dec 28, 2017 06:52 AM
Karen Feltman
Cedar Rapids/Iowa City, IA KW Legacy Group - Cedar Rapids, IA
Relocation Specialist in Cedar Rapids, Iowa

I have had similar things happen to me.  Especially if a lender or attorney has more than one Karen in their contacts and they look closely and choose the first one they see.  I have often seen priveleged information and needed to let them know that I was not a party to the transaction.  Oops.  

Jan 02, 2018 06:31 PM
Alan May

oh, the problem with multiple Karens.

Jan 02, 2018 06:59 PM
Susan Haughton
Long and Foster REALTORS (703) 470-4545 - Alexandria, VA
Susan & Mindy Team...Honesty. Integrity. Results.

Just goes to show no good can come of having attorneys involved.

Ethically, shouldn't they be more careful with their distribution lists?  ;-)

Jan 16, 2018 10:24 AM
Alan May

shouldn't they?? You bet they should.

Jan 16, 2018 12:41 PM