Home Seller Demands Buyer Use Particular Electric Company AFTER Closing!!

Imagine scrolling through your local MLS and reading, "Buyer Will Agree To Use ADT Alarm Services For 36 Months After Closing." 

Every MLS is overseen and operated by an Association that has its own set of rules, some are different form other Associations. Association rules in Nebraska could be very different in say Houston or LA - Lower Alabama. You just can't compare.

I was chatting with some friends in a real estate forum today when a Dallas Realtor commented that she had noticed while searching for properties that on one particular listing included some highly annoying language. The Listing Agent had typed in under Agent Remarks that the  Seller required the Buyer to use a particular utility company for up to 12 months after closing. First and foremost, this is ridiculous. No residential real estate contract should be contingent on the buyer using a specific utility provider. There are many laws in place that govern real estate. RESPA is the abbreviation for the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, a federal consumer protection law overseen by HUD. Section 9 prohibits a home seller from requiring the buyer to use a particular title insurance company. The consequences can be expensive for home sellers and their listing brokerages who run foul of this particular rule. Wouldn't it stand to reason that a home Seller cannot demand the particular use of a utility provider as the condition of the sale??

Is it against my MLS to enter in such demands? Right here in Houston, Texas? As it stands, the Houston Association of Realtors does not allow any agent to enter in language that requires the use of a particular title company unless it is foreclosure or short-sale. You might be surprised to know that our Association ALLOWS home Sellers to insert the demand of a particular energy company or alarm services company. I completely disagree with it being permissible.

I would strongly advise against making the use of a utility provider part of any real estate contract. There are too many details to a transaction to dirty the waters with such an absurd request. Home buyers need the power to choose. Point blank. Realtors should not be negotiating the terms and conditions of cable companies and internet providers. Providers have their OWN contracts and Realtors, by trade, are not trained (none that I know) to differentiate all the clauses and legal terminology. I know I don't want to be on the hook for a misunderstanding when it comes to early termination fees and disconnection terms.

Why can't the Seller just transfer their utilities to the next home they are buying or renting? THEY should be responsible for any termination fees, not the buyer. No way any of my buyers are going to incorporate this expense!