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March 13, 2009

Word Ban at Corco

It's going to be a lot harder for Corcoran brokers to let their creative juices flow from now on. Bowing to fears about anti-discrimination laws, the real estate brokerage giant has banned a couple of hundred words from the listing lexicon, reports The Post. Such potentially-offensive terms include "bachelor pad," "family-friendly" and "exclusive." Seems a little much, no?

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So "walking distance" is an affront to people with disabilities?? So many things wrong with the process in NYC and they are focusing on shit like this??

I'm wondering if Craigslist will block these words in RE posts next to the Men Seeking Men and the Escort ads!!!!

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 9:50 AM

All those words are code.

Posted by: bayridgegirl at March 13, 2009 9:51 AM

The reason for this is all Brokers and Salespersons had to take Fair housing Law 3.5 hour course on top of 22.5 hour License renewal Class. The Department of State is cracking down on Discriminatory Real Estate ads. Plus The Dept of State are now calling the ads posing as testers.

The What (I need coffee)

Someday this war is gonna end...

Posted by: Return of The What at March 13, 2009 9:53 AM

"Quiet" is on the list?
I think there's something seriously wrong when one has to rack one's brain to figure out how a word can be perceived as being offensive.

Posted by: Biff Champion at March 13, 2009 9:54 AM

Lets ban these from Corcoran listings

"gem" - might offend gem owners
"needs TLC" - might offend contractors who do gut renos
" hip" - might offend Williamsburg 20 soemthings
"edgy" - might offend those living in squalor

Posted by: Prodigal_Son at March 13, 2009 9:55 AM

Quiet implies don't want any of those aged but immature way- past-college-age guys who still think they live at frat house. They are easily offended and will immediately barf.

Posted by: Petebklyn at March 13, 2009 9:58 AM

barbara corcoran makes me uncomfortable.

Posted by: Fjorder at March 13, 2009 9:59 AM

what's wrong with "board approval"?

Posted by: Ringo at March 13, 2009 10:00 AM

Can we ban "Open House by Appointment" and "Co-Exclusive" from the lexicon?

Posted by: SnarkSlope at March 13, 2009 10:00 AM

Quiet = discriminating against people from South Brooklyn

Posted by: bayridgegirl at March 13, 2009 10:01 AM

For Sale

2 unit bulding made of a dark color sedimentary product. Can't say anything more about anything or where its located.

Can't quote price because it might offend those who haven't saved enough money.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 10:03 AM

Have we gone insane? Who gets offended at "bachelor pad? or "walking distance?" "scuse me while I pick up my jaw. So "loud" now implies that only hard-of-hearing people need apply (whoo-hoo!, where do I sign!). "Quiet?" I am totally ...oh what's the polically correct term I cn use that won't offend anyone except maybe a dead person? Oh....none. I can't wait for the new laws telling landlords to post a calorie and transfat count for peeling lead paint or perhaps a new Non-offend My Sensibilities rule whereby you can no longer wear the color orange because it upsets the Irish on St. Pat's Day, or make your daughter wear pink because it will offend feminists who believe it stereotypes women or... or.... jeez.Sometimes I think there is no hope for this country.

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 10:05 AM

Did anyone see Corcoran's short-lived experiment where they wrote "Great New York Value" on every single listing in the thumbnail photo? It was ridiculous since it was on every single listing thus totally diminishing the efficacy! They also seem to use the banner "New This Week" in a rather dishonest way, I suppose to counter the impression that certain listings are lingering on the market. I have seen listings that have been sitting for months suddenly get a "New This Week" banner slapped on. Who do they think they're kidding? One more factoid: I've been told that listing the zoned school is against the law, but this seems totally inconsistent as many brokers do - anyone know the reality to this claim?

Posted by: Miss Muffett at March 13, 2009 10:08 AM

This is what happens when the Democrats are in control.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 10:08 AM

I'm also interested why listing a zones school is illegal, or not.

Posted by: Prodigal_Son at March 13, 2009 10:09 AM

Dibs;

We're not allowed to say this on Brownstoner!

;-)

Muffie;

I think you've fallen off the wagon, big time!!

Posted by: benson at March 13, 2009 10:10 AM

Muffie...the fact that you pay attention to that crap to the extent that it bothers you is quite disconcerting.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 10:11 AM

Yes, think they would do better by banning the usual asinine cliches rather than this list.
'Mint' is the one I really hate, with 'TLC' a close runner up.

Posted by: etson at March 13, 2009 10:12 AM

What...can you give us an idea of what some ads would look like when you wrote them at different times during the whole Asshat invasion??? :)

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 10:13 AM

Except this is not a new law- in fact was probably passed under Reagan :-)

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 10:15 AM

And in case some of you haven't figured it out, Asshat is code for white, except in Montrose Morris, PBA's case.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 10:15 AM

Oh no, dave! We are not accepting Montrose into the paler than thou club! She's in a class by herself :-)

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 10:21 AM

I think Indian and Pakistani marijuana smokers should be offended by the name of this blog!!

Posted by: Biff Champion at March 13, 2009 10:22 AM

'Bachelor pad' is pretty dumb. Sounds like what your mom's friends call your first apartment. Can't recall ever seeing it in a RE ad, though.

Posted by: etson at March 13, 2009 10:23 AM

And the Brownstoner tagline "brooklyn inside and out" is not appropriate for young children to see.

Posted by: Biff Champion at March 13, 2009 10:24 AM

Corcoran had an apartment for rent sign up in front of the building on Stuyvesant Ave that babs bought. the apartment was a 1 bedroom for $1,500 and it was up for about a week. Looks likme the tenants are already in with all the cardboard boxes out in front today for recycling pickup.

One for Team Bull.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at March 13, 2009 10:32 AM

some of those words you can't use is lame, how would a person know about the area or distance etc.. it has become way too pc.

Posted by: armchairwarrior at March 13, 2009 10:35 AM

Biff- you make the tagline sound like Brooklyn, CSI.

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 10:38 AM

armchairwarrior- that's because we have gone from pc to pc stupidity. There are some things people really need to edit- prejudice and discrimination are ugly. But this is so far into the realm of idiocy that I am trying to decide if i should be laughing hysterically or sobbing piteously.

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 10:42 AM

DIBS and others, the issue isn't (or shouldn't be) whether an ad offends someone's sensibilities, it is whether the ad uses code to steer applicants based on prohibited classiifications. It is true that enforcement can go overboard, but if LL uses "bachelor pad" it sounds like LL won't accept tenants with children, and the prospective tenant won't bother to look and will look elsewhere. Saves the LL from having to discriminate against the family if teh family doesn't apply. The reverse is true for "great for families" steering singles and shares away (until recently, when gay and lesbian families with children became more common, this could also have been viewed as anti-gay steering as well). The fair housing laws haven't changed in a long time, but enforcement needs to keep up with the increasingly subtle ways some LLs may continue to try to discriminate.

However, enforcement can and does lead to silliness. For example, if I were in a wheelchair, I don't think I would be steered away by an ad that said "walking distance to park" (or even "steps to") because I would know that it would also be within "wheeling distance." Bans on language due to potential offense taken, rather than steering, seem to have little to do with the fair housing laws.

Silliness aside, it really isn't hard to do an ad that puts an apartment's best face forward without resorting to code. Just show the pictures, describe the amenities, brag about best features, and list the essential info.

Posted by: slopefarm at March 13, 2009 10:42 AM

I agree mostly, slopefarm, but as a single, hearing disabled middleaged person I still didn't find those words to be code. Other words- yes- but a bachelor pad usually meant "small, funky, in a nieghborhood with lots of bars and famly-friendly simply meant the LL and neighbors like children, and the apartment was large enough for a family if need be. Never saw that as "steering." Other words though- very much..

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 10:56 AM

Pretty soon ads will read "apartment".

Nothing else.

Can't say "for rent" , that'll offend the buyers. Can't say "for sale", that'll offend those who rent.

Can't say how many bedrooms, that'll offend those who want a different number of bedrooms.

I suppose it can say "apartment: windows as required by law, ingress and egress as required by Fire Code, kitchen, bathroom"

But don't say "stove", that'll offend those on a raw food diet...

Posted by: christopher at March 13, 2009 10:58 AM

Benson - yes, I know I've really fallen off the wagon - it really is just like other addictions, yes? Coincidentally, I have a high stress matter happening at work so perhaps I am turning to my addiction for stress relief the same way other addicts turn to their pet substance ;)... B'stoner is my little guilty pleasure that I toggle to between firing off millions of work emails and other work stuff...

Oh, and DIBS, I'm not bothered by the Corcoran tactics (or other brokers for that matter) but I just find them silly...

Posted by: Miss Muffett at March 13, 2009 10:59 AM

New Corocran Ad:

Apartment
Avaliable
Brooklyn
$2,200/mo.

Posted by: TownhouseLady at March 13, 2009 11:18 AM

new new ad:
Domicile
Withn the 5 boroughs
Available or not- depending on if you want it or not
An unmentioned amount to be discussed unpon agreement

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 11:21 AM

I know from code.

I was looking to rent an apartment and the broker was going to show me one in a predominantly Italian neighborhood in Brooklyn and when the broker called to make an appointment with an owner for me to see his place he very much emphasized that, "You'll like her she comes from a NICE family. No...I know...Her family is VERY NICE...like yours."

The dude clearly assumed I was Italian and he was clearly letting the owner know this. It was as subtle as a cinder block fall on your foot. I said to him, "So, how do you know my family?" I wanted him to know that I understood exactly what he was doing and was not amused.

As offended as I was about that this Corcoran thing is pretty ridiculous. It's just too much.

Posted by: TownhouseLady at March 13, 2009 11:27 AM

quiet = not loud
loud = Bad for non-deaf people

Therefore quiet should be forbidden because it indicates a condition whose desirability highly correlates with the lack of a disability.

They should also not talk about any aspect of a unit that a blind and deaf person would would not be able to perceive. Or someone in a coma.

Posted by: asdf at March 13, 2009 11:27 AM

We started down this slippery slope by saying "no smoking" and "no pets". What next? No meth-labs?

Posted by: cmu at March 13, 2009 11:29 AM

Bxgrl, I am offended by "boroughs". What if I am used to "wards", "arrondisments", "sector" or "district"?

How dare you? When your lease is up.........

Posted by: Montrose Morris at March 13, 2009 11:29 AM

NY Post ban @ BHO.

***Bid half off peak comps***

Posted by: Brownstones Half Off at March 13, 2009 11:36 AM

bxgrl - I'm pretty sure that will offend those with a restraining order keeping them out of NYC.

Posted by: dittoburg at March 13, 2009 11:49 AM

Ah, how far we've come from the dirtbag broker 21 years ago who told us, regarding anything south of Windsor Terrace: "You've got yer element around there, but it's spasmodic."

Posted by: Brenda from Flatbush at March 13, 2009 12:09 PM

Is this "news" for the Post? Sounds as though this is a rehash of a NYTimes article 2 years ago, which included this Corcoran quote:

"In addition to seminars for brokers, Corcoran’s efforts include a computer program that automatically screens property listings for unacceptable language. 'Some words get completely blocked, and others flash a warning on your screen,' Ms. Liebman said. 'It’s a huge list of words, but we have zero tolerance for violations.'" http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/realestate/24cov.html?_r=1&ex=1184212800&en=fc986027001ee54f&ei=5070

That article generated a letter to the editor the following week from an HUD assistant secretary that specifically debunked the Family Friendly problem: "Housing providers who advertise that their buildings are “family friendly” aren’t violating the law". See the True Gotham blog for the whole letter, http://www.truegotham.com/archives/a-brokers-job-fair-housing-laws-too-strictly-interpreted.html.

I wonder if the NY Post just got hold of a 2 year old email in which "Corcoran officially banned more than 200 potentially "offensive" words and even installed new software that makes it impossible for brokers to type them into their ads". Or maybe Corcoran just reiterated the policy. Whatever, if Family Friendly is still on the list, the HUD disagrees.

Many of these terms are probably not Fair Housing violations, though they may be unnecessary (why not say "5 blocks" instead of "walking distance"?). But these scrubbing exercises *do* prevent agents from providing useful (legal) information while not (materially) reducing a firm's risk of being sued.

As I recall, Corcoran's Fair Housing problem at that time alleged active steering, taking white couples to see some rentals and (otherwise matching) non-white couples to see others. That was not a language problem, but a behavior problem.

Posted by: Sandy Mattingly at March 13, 2009 12:16 PM

"For Sale

2 unit bulding made of a dark color sedimentary product. Can't say anything more about anything or where its located.

Can't quote price because it might offend those who haven't saved enough money."

Dying of laugher.

And Brenda, that's the most incredible circumlocation.

Posted by: mopar at March 13, 2009 12:31 PM

Does that mean we can cut right to the chase and see listings for "impossibly small junkheap with remote control dimmer lights" and "fly-by-night renovation but the block has trees" instead of "bachelor pad" or "family friendly"?

Posted by: serpentor at March 13, 2009 12:53 PM

Actually, I'm going to rethink my mockery of banning "family-friendly" -- I always thought that meant "quiet street, near schools" but I bet it really means "no queers, no butches. go to church"

Posted by: serpentor at March 13, 2009 12:59 PM

I most humbly apologize to the person who currently holds the lease on my abode in the wards. :-)

dittoburg- damn! thought I was safe.

Posted by: bxgrl at March 13, 2009 1:21 PM

I think they should have to remove all references to "great views" as that might offend those with vision problems.

But seriously, "safe" is a well-known and oft-employed code word. Whenever I have someone tell me they only want to be in a "safe" area I know exactly what they mean (and usually find a way not to deal with them).

Also, as people become more and more lawsuit-happy, there will be fewer and fewer words that can be used to describe a property. And forget about saying anything about any neighborhood!

And my company does not allow us to mention school districts. This is because an agent at another company had in her ad that a property was in a certain school district and in fact it was not (like the north side of President St. west of 7th Ave is not in PS 321); the buyers sued and apparently won.

Posted by: babs at March 13, 2009 2:41 PM

Typical Corcoran ad if you read between the lines.

Fantastically overprices piece of shit house, do not contact agent because he will not return your calls.

Whites Only Need Apply.

Posted by: Xander Crews at March 13, 2009 2:49 PM

« When a Candy Store Isn't a Candy Store 53 Bridge Street: An Accident Waiting to Happen? »

March 13, 2009

Word Ban at Corco

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