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Ethics Q&A
Can leaving a business card behind at a showing be the basis for interfering with an agency relationship?
Read the full Code of Ethics.
Q I was at one of my listings the other day, and I picked up a business card left on the foyer table by an agent who showed the property. The back of the card had all these marketing messages on it—including the fact that this particular agent will list homes for a "discounted" fee. The commission she charges was stated right on the card. It’s lower than the commission I will earn from this seller. I think this interferes with my agency relationship with my seller. After all, the other agent knew she was at a property that was currently listed with someone else (me). Do I have a valid complaint?
A If it is not the custom in your area for agents to leave behind a business card when they show a property to buyers, it very well could be an ethics violation as an attempt to solicit a listing knowing that the property was exclusively listed with another REALTOR®. Of course, that would ultimately be up to an ethics hearing panel to decide.
Assuming that leaving a business card is common practice in your area (as it is in many parts of Texas), the situation looks less like an ethics violation. The leaving of a business card in compliance of common practice does not mean that an agent who leaves a card at a home is actively seeking to take that listing away from the current listing agent. However, a fact issue may be raised if the information on the business card was not ordinarily on the agent’s card and was, in fact, an attempt to communicate directly with the seller.
If the agent goes beyond simply leaving a card, the hearing panel may be more likely to find an ethics violation. For example, if the agent later called the seller to actively solicit the business, that would present more evidence of an "action inconsistent with the agency or other exclusive relationship recognized by law that other REALTORS® have with clients."
For more specifics on the standards of practice pertaining to interfering with agency relationships, see Article 16 of the Code of Ethics.
Q An agent I know took a listing from a client who told the agent that he (the client) would not accept offers from any buyers who used a specific firm as their broker. The agent submitted this listing to the MLS. Is this ethical?
A Yes. Article 3 requires REALTORS® to cooperate with other brokers except when cooperation is not in the client’s best interest. The demand by the owner not to cooperate with a firm or agent is a legitimate instruction by the client concerning the sale of his property.
MLS rules permit the seller to restrict or exempt the listing from normal dissemination by signing a written certification limiting participation. To prevent the designated firm or agent from wasting time acting on the listing, the listing broker should give a courtesy call followed by a confirmation letter to the broker for the other firm explaining the seller’s decision.
NAR policy makes clear that the decision to restrict the listing should originate with the owner and may not originate with the broker or agent.
Send questions about ethics to texasrealtor@texasrealtors.com. Not all questions received can be answered.
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