Cohousing-L Mailing List: Is there any conflict of interest in community outreach?

[Deborah Gibbs (gibbsdeborah]

At Pacifica Cohousing (Carrboro, NC), or outreach committee maintains a
list of people who have expressed an interest in living here.  When a home
goes on the market, we circulate that news to our outreach list.  We also
give tours of the community, for people with all kinds of interest in
cohousing, and sometimes, for a potential buyer, at the request of the
realtor.  We don’t show houses, or advocate for specific buyers.


This sounds like a win-win-win – the community increases the likelihood of
a new neighbor who understands and embraces cohousing, the potential buyer
gets the perspective of someone who’s not trying to sell the house, and the
seller gets more informed and potentially enthusiastic prospects.


But one of our members has raised concerns about whether we run the risk of
interfering with real estate transactions. What if the buyer was about to
make an offer, then backed off when the tour guide said it wasn’t all
sweetness and light?  What if the tour guide mentions the persistent roof
leak in that unit?


Have others dealt with this challenge, and where did you draw lines?