I was watching an episode of The Newsroom the other day when I realized that some of the shows I’ve enjoyed most over the years have been about people doing what’s right and standing up  for what they believe in. I’m all about being honest and doing the right thing, but I’m in a business that, sadly, doesn’t have the best reputation. Over the years, people have even asked me how I manage to survive in this business. The answer to this question is “Very nicely, thank you” (just check out some of my testimonials). Similar to the main actor on The Newsroom who’s on a mission “to civilize”, I’m on a mission to raise the bar of professionalism in the real estate industry and show how an agent can do an amazing job for his/her clients and still be honest.

Real estate is a people business. Each person brings their own emotions and values to the table and behaves differently depending on the circumstances. I’ve seen lots of good and bad during my 20+ year career. Sometimes it feels like my field is behavioural research and not real estate. Situations involving ethical choices made by agents, buyers and sellers come up all time. Here’s a sample I’ve encountered over the past few weeks. What choices would YOU make if you were in these situations:

1.If you interview an agent and give her your word that she is hired after she spends time giving you lots of helpful information, but you don’t sign a listing agreement because you won’t be putting your home on the market for a month, is it okay to then hire another agent?

2.As the listing agent for a condo, is it okay to recommend to your buyer client that he should buy this condo even if it’s the first condo he’s seen, it’s over his budget and it’s not in an area he likes? Is it okay to show him this condo in the first place?

3.You interview three very experienced agents, each of whom has lots of local knowledge. They tell you everything you should do to list and sell your home. You then hire your cousin who works in a different part of the city to be your agent. Right or wrong?

4.There’s nothing on the market that suits your client’s needs. Should you tell them to be patient and wait or should you show them homes that are either out of their price range or don’t have what they’re looking for in the hope that they’ll buy a home more quickly?

5.You spend a year looking at homes with your agent. You see a home online that looks nice. Instead of calling YOUR agent, you call the listing agent to make arrangements to see it. You then try to buy the home without your agent. Is this right thing to do?

6.Your clients have seen about 50 homes over the past 2 years. They finally find one they want to buy, but you see that it has problems they don’t see and you don’t think it’s the right home for them. Do you tell them?

So? How did you do? Issues like these come up all the time. It’s one of the things that makes the business so interesting. If you can think of any other questions like these, or instances of questionable behaviour,  please share. I’m always interested.