True or False - Bird Dogging is Illegal

[Sean Brennan]

Specifically this situation:

A wholesaler pays a mail man for the address of a vacant property. The wholesaler is not a licensed RE salesperson/broker.

Is this an illegal activity for the wholesaler, the mail man/bird dog, or both?

Bill Gulley, I bet you have an opinion.

[Bill Gulley]

Perfectly legal and I had a mail carrier who I bought lunch for on many occassions. The issue is that the mailman is a federal employee and they can only accept nominal gifts and may not be employed in other activities while on duty.

If someone simply informs you that there is a vacant house, gives the address with or without a name, that is not a regulated real estate`practice. They are not facilitating a transaction but just giving information that is generally in the public domain.

Birddoging, is different where someone presents a property with a price or value, may estimate repairs, provides details as to condition and does so for compensation arising out of a transaction, that is what Realtors do. :)