Does this seem ethical?
 

My daughter recently sold two courtyard villas south of 44 that she had owned and rented for three years. She made a nice profit but the way the deals went down seemed a little “off” to me, and I am a former Realtor. She signed listing documents with a Villages sales rep on the first one, but it didn’t appear on the website within a week. Shortly thereafter the sales rep called and said he had a full-price cash offer and she accepted it. A couple weeks later she did the same thing with the second villa and the same scenario occurred. It seems like that happens regularly as when you go to the TV website and search for CYVs there are only a couple listed for sale and dozens listed as pending that never were shown as for sale. My understanding is the sales reps get a listing and circulate it internally to see if any agents have interested party or parties before putting it on the open market. Of course if any agent themselves would be interested I presume they could buy it. That seems a little like insider dealing to me. If I list my property it seems my interests are best served by getting it in front of the widest possible audience. My daughter felt she got adequate value for both units, but you can’t really know if the public never got a shot at it. Anybody feel that my question is justified?

The key point here seems that your daughter got full asking price and was satisfied. If the rapid sale made her believe she'd underpriced the properties she would have two options... either inform the agent she wanted to raise the asking price, or decline the offer at full price and have the listing appear to the public to see if she got an above asking price bid.

I don't see any ethical concerns here.

I think your question is justified, but the way to eliminate your issue is to negotiate the listing agreement to require the agent to advertise the house to the public before you will accept an offer. It's your house and you have the right to dictate how the house is marketed. The broker works for you.

Declining a full price offer could violate the listing agreement, and the broker could charge you the commission, unless the listing agreement stated otherwise.

I've skimmed through the Florida real estate statute and I don't see anything illegal. Ethics are not part of the statute. This brings us full circle. A offer was prepared and forwarded promptly, nothing wrong here.

The public has every chance to contact a PoTV agent and have them look for internally offered property...

Use a licensed realtor instead

I agree, unless the broker didn't act in a fiduciary manner towards the seller. In a hot real estate market, that would be difficult to prove. But, in a slow market, I think the broker may have a problem.

Homes being listed on the MLS in this market often end up in a bidding war and sell above the asking price. Since your daughters homes were never offered in competition to the market, she never had the opportunity to find out the true value of here homes. Therein lies a problem with using the Villages as your agent. The Villages real estate machine is an entity of its own that is not bound by the code of ethics that typical licensed real estate agents must adhere to. If I was your daughter, I would feel that I was cheated out of an opportunity to maximize the value of the homes.

More or less I would say the way they handled it was as a Pocket Listing.
In my opinion and experience, this usually happens with the approval and knowledge of the client.
I don't care for the Villages Real Estate Operation at all. Shady would be a kind word to use to describe the way they operate.

I overheard a conversation that I'm sure I wasn't supposed to hear. It was the more experienced person telling the newer younger guy that it's better to grind out the units, way more important to get the sale up on the board than to worry about selling it for a small amount more. I don't know for certain that they Were Villages Reps but assumed they were because they were in the Spanish Springs office when I heard the conversation. I don't know their names either and I'm not bending the truth or lying.

I went for our first house through an Independent Realtor. I thought they were snakes in New Jersey. These are professional snakes down here. Document and record everything and I don't care how many didn't, I would highly approve of a lawyer to cover your back. Our next closing had a Lawyer throughout the entire process.

Your age and experience set off an alarm because you are looking out for your daughter's best interest. You are just being an excellent Dad. Good Job eweissenbach. :clap2::clap2::clap2:

Many big money powerful Villagers swear by the Villages Real Esate Operation. I'm not saying they are wrong, I'm just saying I don't see it like they do.

Our MLS realtor has given us a heads up on 3 homes before the listing went up. So VLS or MLS doesn’t matter, they are in competition to sell a home before another rep try’s to sell it. So is the Realtor violating something by contacting us before home hit the market? Don’t really care if it’s the house I am looking for.

Anyone selling real estate for a commission in Florida must have a state license. That includes The Villages real estate company.

Many listed properties are selling for over their listed prices as the result of bidding wars. It seems to me your daughter's properties may have been quietly sold before they reached all possible potential buyers. I even wonder if either or both were picked up by an agent to soon be resold at a higher price.

I agree, but the only recourse would be to sue the broker for violating their fiduciary responsibility to the seller. That would be difficult to prove. Otherwise, it is just a lesson learned. The biggest loss is probably the commission that should have been reduced because the broker did not not earn it. In a hot real estate market, I would not allow the broker to sell my property before it was properly advertised and offered for sale to the general public. That is what you are paying the broker to do.

I wonder what would happen if you list with the Villages realtors, but only under the condition that it actually be LISTED, or else you retain the right not to give them their commission.

If they're not putting in the same amount of effort, money, and work to sell it as any other licensed realtor does - then why should you pay the same % commission?

The Villages, when RE-selling a property, are just a listing agent. They don't represent the Developer, unless they're selling new construction.

If they're going to list my property I want to see it on their website within 48 hours, and if they come to me with an offer prior to that listing, they're not getting a dime from me because they haven't given ANYONE else a chance to even look at it.

Villages agents are NOT Realtors so of course are not held to their code of ethics.

Everything You Need to Know About the Realtor Code of Ethics