Hands On The Heartland
Checking The Pulse Of The Kansas City Real Estate Market

Fair Housing laws can put us Kansas City real estate agents in a difficult position. I’ve had the occasional home buyer get upset when I try and explain that I can’t tell them whether they should choose a particular school district. Some say that help with Johnson County Kansas schools is why they hired me. Other’s – often parents of young homebuyers – will ask if the home is in a safe area. I nearly got fired when I tried to explain to a client’s father that I couldn’t answer that question. We became buddies before the home search was over but we were on shaky ground for a good hour or so.

Buyer’s don’t need to panic because real estate agents are able to point home buyers to information on area school districts as well as where to find info to determine whether the buyer believes it’s safe place to live. I just can’t make a blanket statement on either issue. Fair Housing laws are important because they protect the public from being discriminated based on race, creed, color nationality, marital status, familial status, etc. With that in mind, Kansas City real estate agents can’t take part in steering clients to any particular area, city, school district, lake, street… you get the idea. 

So when I’m representing you in your home purchase, don’t ask me “is this a safe area”. Instead, ask me where you can get your hands on the area’s crime reports/statistics.  Don’t ask me “is this the right school district for your children”. Instead, ask me if I’d feel comfortable putting my kids in the schools. See the difference? I can’t steer you to any particular area. But I can steer myself. An even better question is where you can get your hands on the facts, stats and reports that will help you make an informed decision. For this reason, I have links to area schools and crime statistics all around my web site, www.JBPRealtyGroup.com.  

Posted by Jason A. Brown

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