If you’ve ever bought a house in a competitive real estate market (aka Raleigh’s current situation), you may have written a love letter to entice the seller into choosing your offer. These letters typically describe the many reasons why the seller should choose you over someone else to buy their home. While these letters may seem harmless, they’re starting to spark concerns over fair housing risks because they may reveal the potential buyer’s race, religion, or familial status, which can cause an unconscious bias by the seller when it comes to accepting or rejecting offers.
Over the summer, Oregon was the first state to pass a law requiring sellers’ agents to reject love letters and photographs provided by buyers due to the fact that they can lead to fair housing violations. Since then, more and more buyers have listed descriptions specifically stating that they will not accept love letters. Some real estate agents in North Carolina think that other states could follow suit on the ban.
While love letters are still allowed in NC’s real estate market, there are ways in which you can protect yourself from fair housing liability. Here are a few best practices when it comes to love letters:
- Educate yourself on fair housing laws.
- Advise buyers not to send love letters, and encourage sellers not to accept them.
- Encourage buyers to accept offers based on objective criteria only.
I’m Here to Help
Navigating buying or selling a home can be tricky enough without having to worry about love letters. If you need assistance navigating fair housing laws, give me a call at 919-961-3277 or email me at Annie@HudsonResidential.com.