Brooke D'Sousa

           As a child I recall my grandmother teaching me the “Golden Rule” that she expressed as “do unto others as you’d have them do unto you.” This was the foundation of my code of personal principles. Over the years she passed along more wisdom that helped to build my moral character and shaped my adolescent self into the person I became as an adult. Her moral and ethical basis was founded in her religion, while mine grew over the years as I garnered new life experiences that taught me many valuable lessons. The most important lesson I learned is that there isn’t any hardship that can’t be overcome with good decisions and a little time.

           

          In my late teenage and early adult years I was less responsible and engaged in more selfish behaviors that caused me unnecessary grief in my personal and professional relationships. I wouldn’t say that I lacked ethics or integrity, but I definitely had a lot of room for improvement. At the time, I was rationalizing my behaviors to a point that I didn’t even recognize them as something that could be improved upon. I came across as inconsiderate, because I was, even though I was bothered by pain I caused others with my selfishness. It wasn’t until I was at a really low point in my life that I was able to take inventory and realize the way I felt was one hundred percent my responsibility, and from that point forward I was able to make the necessary changes that have transformed me into the person I am now. I like to think I can be trusted in any role or with any task, and I hope others regard me as highly ethical.

 

          After being employed for the last twenty years by a banking institution, I took a leap and chose the path of self-employment and became a real estate agent. After the recession hit I had the need for a bigger home to accommodate some life changes and my now growing family, but I wasn’t able to sell my current home without taking a loss, so I did what other had done and I kept it as a rental property, purchasing another home as my primary residence. From this experience I gained a deeper interest in real estate, and looking back the decision to own a rental was the catalyst for my new journey into entrepreneurship.

           

          The thing about real estate is, like banking, it’s a highly regulated industry, but unlike banking there are less controls in place to ensure one acts ethically and in compliance of all laws and regulations. It’s no secret that real estate agents are akin to lawyers and used car salesman in the eyes of the public, so it was difficult for me to associate myself with the lot of them after all the work I’d done to distance myself from those types of associations. I realized quickly though that I could use my personal ethics to set myself apart from my competition, and hopefully help to change the public perception of my new profession. I was quite successful my first year in real estate and was excited for many more years as lucrative. I was also beginning to receive referrals from past clients and I was able to stay nearly as busy my second year. I say nearly because I also decided to go back to school and finish my education as another personal goal that needed to be checked off as completed.

           

          Working with clients helping them buy and sell homes can prove challenging when it comes to maintaining a high level of ethics as not everyone views them the same. For example, I had a transaction once where I represented the seller, who also happened to be a personal friend for many years. During the sale of my client’s home, the buyer asked a question pertaining to a utility easement on the property. In the process of doing my job and answering the question asked of me honestly, it was uncovered that a detached garage had been built within the boundary of this easement and the utility company was now asking that it be removed. My client panicked and asked that I not share that information with the buyer because it may cause the buyer to walk, and also devalue my client’s property in a future sale. I explained that while I had a fiduciary duty to her, I also had a legal and ethical duty to disclose material facts about the property, and reminded her that she also agreed to be honest in her dealings when she signed the agency agreement with me. In the end, I shared what I knew with the buyer’s agent and the buyer still went through with the transaction, even signing a statement acknowledging they had been informed and still wanted to purchase the house.

 

          Not only could I have lost my real estate license for concealing that fact, I could have been sued, or much worse. In addition, my client could have been sued and it could have cost her everything she was looking to protect and more. I made a decision a long time ago that I would never compromise certain principles regardless of the reason, and I’m surely glad I did. I can see how easy it is for some to take advantage of their role as agents and exploit their clients to their benefit. I swore I’d never recommend that a client make any decision that isn’t right for them even if it costs me a much-needed commission. I believe it is these beliefs and practices that have earned me referral after referral, providing opportunities for continued growth and success. 

 

          I have goals of one day owning my own brokerage and employing other agents, and record keeping of financial statements will be incredibly important, as with any business. I will be responsible for money that is not mine, but belongs to clients as they deposit their earnest money into my brokerage trust account during escrow, and also commissions that belong to my agents for successful transactions they've closed. I can imagine many opportunities a person's ethics could be challenged in this industry, but I can safely say my resolve to always do what's right will weather any storm I encounter, and I know I will come out ahead on the other side in time.