You're being Watched....and Listened to as You Tour Property!

You're being Watched....and Listened to as You Tour Property!

As smart-home technology becomes more common, real estate agents and their clients are increasingly thrown into settings where someone, somewhere, could secretly be observing them tour property listings. And while most people believe such technology is not normally used for nefarious purposes, it does raise a host of questions about ethics, legality, and privacy when it comes to listings that feature surveillance devices. States generally have laws governing recordings but it’s a patchwork of different regulations, and few real estate agents actually know what they are. Some states require both parties must have knowledge they are being recorded; while other states only require that one person has to consent.

Either way, many real estate agents (myself included) believe we have an ethical obligation to disclose the existence of recording technology, regardless of what the law says, to all parties. Agents have a fiduciary duty to their clients, and making everyone involved in a sale aware of cameras is part of that duty; regardless if the law states only one party has to be aware.

It is very difficult to ask a seller not to watch or listen in to conversations, because sellers will argue that they have the right to know who is in their property, and what they are saying or doing. And quite frankly, whether you agree or not, that is hard to argue against.

On the other hand, buyers will argue that they should be given the opportunity to preview and discuss the property in private. Again, a very hard argument to debate.

So, agents are really in a dilemma. However, I still believe full disclosure is best practice. If sellers wants to watch & listen, so be it - in fact, why not just make it fun! Wave at the cameras and tell the seller(s) Hi! If you're feeling really bold, leave feedback via the video devices for the sellers!

With all this said, it's human nature (I guess) to ease drop on conversations or watch what's going on. Heck, before technology advanced to this - sellers were sitting in there cars watching from down the street or their neighbors drive - and using tape recorders in their home. WAIT!!! They still do this!!!

Compliments of:

Julius F Zatopek III – Broker/Owner

Zatopek Properties