Moving out of Florida? Start with the introduction.

The honest position, stated up front

A referral fee is not a finder’s fee and it is not something you pay. It is a share of the commission the California brokerage earns on a transaction it closes, paid across to The Keyes Company under an agreement signed between the two firms before you are ever introduced. Nothing is added to your closing statement, and nothing arises at all unless a transaction completes. I set this out early because the word “referral” has been used to describe several quite different arrangements, and you are entitled to know which one you are being offered.

Structural differences worth knowing before you go

• Licensing in this industry is granted state by state, not federally. A Florida licence carries no authority in California, and a California licence carries none in Florida — which is why an introduction, rather than representation, is the only honest offer on this page.
• Leaving Florida means picking up a state income tax in California. Model it against the housing number before you settle on a price range, and take the actual arithmetic to a tax adviser rather than to any real estate agent, including me.
• Title works differently for married couples in California, which is a community property state. It affects how you may hold the property and what happens to cost basis on a first death. That is a conversation for an attorney in California, and it is better had before closing than after.
• Closings in California generally run through a title or escrow company rather than requiring an attorney as a matter of course — structurally closer to what you are used to in Florida than not.
• Neither the homestead exemption nor the Save Our Homes cap travels with you out of Florida. California sets its own assessment rules, its own exemptions and its own limit on how fast a bill can rise — confirm the specifics with the local taxing authority rather than assuming a Florida analogue exists.

What I will not do

I will not read your California contract and tell you it looks fine. I do not know that state’s standard form, its local addenda, or what its courts have made of the wording, and a Florida licensee’s reassurance about a contract in another state is worth precisely nothing. Put it to the agent, and where the sums are significant, put it to an attorney licensed where the property is.

How a referral works

What to ask the agent I introduce you to

• How many transactions have you closed in Cupertino in the last twelve months, and how many were on the side of the table I am on?
• Who actually answers the phone — you, or someone on your team? Ask early; the answer changes the whole relationship.
• What does your written agreement say about the length of the term and how I end it if this is not working?
• How is your compensation structured, and what is negotiable about it? Broker compensation is not set by law in any state.

What I can do directly, without an introduction

Most moves out of Florida have a Florida transaction attached to them. If you are selling a Florida home and buying in Cupertino, that is the strongest version of this: I represent you on the Florida sale as your agent, and I refer you for the California purchase. One relationship, two licensed professionals, and nobody pretending to be qualified where they are not.

Other cities in California

• Mission Valley
• Hawaiian Gardens
• Dana Point
• Irvine
• Torrance
• Norwalk
• Palo Alto
• Danville
• All of California