A Compass in Real Estate

There’s a lot of noise about British Columbia’s potential, no, make that assured, new Harmonized Sales Tax. There are blogs sprouting up, random tweets from Twitter,Facebook the Vancouver Sun, the Globe and Mail and even the British Columbia Real Estate Association. All are shouting about different elements of this new tax. Some shout, about the government’s scrotal brass. Others shout about secular views and its mitigation. Still others talk about deception in our government.

In the resounding cacophony the Globe notes that a “Facebook group called No BC HST’, set up by Bill Tieleman, a newspaper columnist and former communications officer for NDP premier Glen Clark, has 100,000 members and continues to grow. An NDP petition has more than 40,000 signatures.” “Disgruntled taxpayers are talking of launching recall and referendum campaigns. A radio station is sponsoring meetings this weekend in the Chinese community in Richmond.” Even the Zalm, our not so righteous former premiere, is calling for a referendum. All to the last, claim ‘if we had known we wouldn’t have elected them’ – but, we did! The Hawaiian mug shot scandal should have been a warning but, we Canadians don’t like throwing rocks at glass houses!

Governments and their workings are intriguing. It’s a place where honourable and dishonourable are much of the time, difficult to distinguish. Quoting Miro Cernetig from the Vancouver Sun “was it dishonorable to keep this major policy shift quiet? Is it a scandal? In reply, he says “No. It’s just the craft — and craftiness — of politics.”

From this author’s obtuse but centric perspective, all this front page news carries a message about real estate and Realtors. As intriguing as the innuendo government is, there is in real estate, a charted line called ethics. Like government, it too, for some, wavers. As with government, real estate’s line, is one where honorable and dishonorable meet.

Crossing the line must, it seems, be the effect of a moral compass with a power that bend lines. The forces affecting the compass vary. For some it is power, for others money. The policy’s of our provincial government appear to waver under the influence of federal forces. It’s been suggested that in the case of the HST, that force took the form of largesse from Ottawa. In real estate the line isn’t much different. It’s line has wavered under the influence of a thing called commission.

George O’Neill of the famous blog Toronto Real Estate Musing triggered a discussion on Twitter that started with this response – “@YatterMatters some used to put property on MLS & say no showings until ~5 days later. Perception: listing agent had advantage.” What asks you the poor reader, would be that advantage?

Many times, in real estate, the crossing begins innocently – an expression of competitive spirit if you will. In reality, the intent is to gain unfair advantage. No one is really certain what is the government’s rationale.

George’s note refers to a time when your listing agent suggests in their marketing plan that they will begin to show your home to other agent’s prospective buyers 5 days (an abitrary number), post the securing of the listing mandate. If you are selling your home and you hear things like – ‘it takes 5 days to get the MLS to upload the listing data’ or, ‘you’ll need some time finish tidying up’, you as the seller should worry. Be especially worried if the next day, your listing agent tells you they just found a red-hot buyer and they are anxious to have them view the home today. Disregarding the previous sage advice given by that Realtor, they show the home and in due course magically announce – “can you believe it, you’ve got an offer – and by the way, it’s a good one”!

Is there a problem here? Sure there is for if were you to think that ‘my agent is working overtime’ or, how can I go wrong with such a quick sale? Please, stop what you are thinking! Rather, ask yourself how can you be sure this offer is the best one? Reflect that your agent’s singular statement was that ‘it would take 5 days to reach it’s full potential on the MLS’. Wouldn’t you think you might be selling yourself short, especially since it hasn’t achieved maximum exposure.

Under the assumption that you accepted that ‘really good’ offer, you will never know if another buyer was prepared to pay more. You’ll won’t know because your home never got to experience full market exposure. Why you might ask, would this agent do this? The answer as applied to Realtors, may be words such as expediency, greed, desperation, unprofessional or to emulate our government, deceptive. Others may draw similarities between the policies of our government and that of a Realtor to suggest that the action taken is simply dishonorable.

From this view, of that Realtor, it is clear we will never know the true extent of the financial impact of your decision to accept the offer presented prior to full exposure to the market. In politic, our decision to place our ‘X’ on the ballot also comes with nebulous unknowns. We are asked to accept a contract for re-election based on a marketing plan similar to the Realtor’s. We engage believing the plan is without deception. Specific to the HST, Cernetig points out that “five months before an election” there was “in fact”, “a blueprint for the HST”. It “was posted on the Internet for anyone to see.” Affirmation exists that marketing plan’s for the HST and the sale of your home were disclosed. Considering the fall out evident in the reports, and George’s comment, what value does disclosure have? Isolated, disclosure means little without another element. It’s that thing we call intent.

As politicians stump their benefits and Realtors put forth their marketing proposal, discerning their true state of mind remains uncertain. Some will recognize their intent to be opportunistic. As history unfolds the application of intent appears varied by its dependence on the circumstance of the moment. As those moments pass, we are challenged to determine if the intent of each no longer is headed the right way as it purposefully crossed a previously charted ethical line.

Certain in matters as important as the sale of your home or, the impact HST will have on the peoples of B.C., is that it would be consummately fair to the stake-holders, that the direction of intent, be ratified in advance of engagement. It’s probable that asking someone to clarify their intention is a question that strikes contrary to the idea of leadership and selling. Yet without this knowledge we remain uncertain of our fate? Further, while intent may be disclosed, is one to trust that it is complete? Can we begin to presume that the response is honorable?

Within these political and real estate paradigms it’s impossible to fathom if proposals made by either will result in determining the ‘right way’. We are left to wonder if our perception of honor and intent are the result of a malfunctioning compass or, as Cerneteg claims, it’s “just the craft — and craftiness.” Remaining is one certainty – the right way is uncertain!