Hello:I have a question please. We were thinking of selling our house soon. One of the tenant in my house is a realtor. We were thinking she...

Question

Hello:

I have a question please. We were thinking of selling our house soon. One of the tenant in my house is a realtor. We were thinking she should be our realtor and she can continue renting the room until the house gets sold. We thought that with her staying there as a tenant still it is not an empty house and to prevent vandalism. Is this legal? Also another question, can we just have her a realtor for 1 year just in case if it don't work out with her? Thanks much, Pamela

Answer

I do not see that there would be a legal issue that would prevent it. The agent may be better aware of conflict regulations within the real estate marketing industry.

I can see some positives of her coordinating the sale and her own move, but I could also see reasons that she may make poor choices. If you use another agent, that agent, working with your closing attorney, should be able to help you make sure the timing of everything flows well.

You should be able to get your listing in 6-month periods and that should be negotiable.

I suggest your first consideration be other factors in whether you would hire this realtor. In other words, if she were not a tenant, where would she rank in referrals you receive from others who have used realtors, is she with a company that seems to do well in your area, does she seem to have plenty of background, how does she do in answering questions about listing the property, does she seem organized, ...