Referral, Not Representation
Moving to Boulder, Colorado?
The honest version: wrong state for me, right state for someone I can find you.
Referral onlyWhat works differently in Colorado
- Real estate licensing is state by state. An agent licensed in Florida cannot represent you in Colorado, and a Colorado licensee cannot represent you in Florida.
- Colorado levies a tax on income; Florida does not. It is a change worth modelling against the housing cost before you commit to a price range, and it is a question for your own tax adviser rather than for any real estate agent.
- Closings in Colorado are generally handled through a title or escrow company rather than by an attorney as a matter of course, which is closer to the Florida pattern than not.
- Florida’s homestead exemption and its Save Our Homes assessment cap do not follow you. Colorado has its own property tax treatment, its own exemptions, and its own rules on how fast an assessment may rise. Confirm the specifics with the local taxing authority.
Why you are reading this
If you are selling in Boulder rather than buying, this introduction matters more, not less. A listing agreement is a contract for a fixed term with a named brokerage, and it is considerably harder to unwind than a conversation with a buyer’s agent. So take longer over it than you think you need to. Ask what the agent will actually do in the first fortnight, ask in writing what it costs you to end the arrangement early, and do not sign anything on the first call — including anything I put in front of you, which is nothing at all.
What actually happens next
Tell me what you are leaving
If the property in Boulder is yours to sell, lead with that. A listing is a different search from a purchase: I am looking for someone whose recent work is on the seller side, who can describe how a property like yours is normally brought to market there, and who does not have to be chased for an answer.
I look for a listing agent
I speak to them before you do, and I put the awkward questions to them rather than to you — how long their agreements run, who covers when they are away, what actually happens in the first fortnight, and what they are willing to admit they do not handle.
You sign with them, not me
The agreement is between you and their brokerage. I am not a party to it, I do not see its terms unless you show them to me, and I have no ability to alter them. Read it before you sign it, and ask what it costs you to end it early.
The limits, stated outright
I will not send your details to several agents at once to see which one bites. One introduction, to one named brokerage, after a conversation with the person at the other end. If it turns out to be the wrong fit I would rather go back and make a second introduction than have set four strangers racing each other with your telephone number.
Questions worth asking on that first call
- If I am buying before I have seen the property in person, what will you do on my behalf and what will you refuse to do? A clear answer to the second half of that question is worth more than the first.
- When an inspection turns something up, what is the local practice — a price reduction, a credit at closing, or the seller arranging the work — and who conducts that negotiation on my behalf?
- Which documents will you ask me to sign at the very start, what does each one commit me to, and how long does it run? Ask for them by email so you can read them somewhere other than at a kitchen table.
- How is a shortfall on the appraisal usually handled in Colorado, and what do buyers here commonly write into the contract to deal with it before it happens?
Where I stop being a referral and start being your agent
There is a version of this where I am not a referral at all. If the property you are leaving is in Florida, I can list and sell it as your agent under The Keyes Company — that half is squarely my licence — while the Boulder side goes to the licensee I introduce you to. Say so early, because the two timelines have to be planned against each other.
Other cities in Colorado
Questions people actually ask
Do you know the Boulder market?
Not the way someone working it every day does, and I am not going to claim otherwise. That is the entire reason this page offers a referral rather than advice.
How long does it take to find someone?
Usually days rather than weeks. It depends on how specific your requirements are and how many licensees in Boulder genuinely fit them.
Can you help me sell my Florida home at the same time?
Yes, and that is the part where I am your agent rather than an introduction. Florida listings are squarely within my licence under The Keyes Company. If your move has a Florida sale attached, say so early so the two timelines can be planned together.
Is this a referral to a lender or title company too?
No. This is a real estate brokerage referral only. It is not a referral to any lender, title company, insurer, or other settlement service provider, and it should not be read as one.
What if I am moving to Florida rather than away from it?
Then there is no referral to make — that is my licence and my market. Start on the About page instead.
Tell me the city and the timeline
Send me the details and I will start looking. If your move is into Florida rather than out of it, skip the referral — that one is mine.
Tell me about the move Moving to Florida instead?
Jacob Campbell · Florida Real Estate Sales Associate, license 3623732 · The Keyes Company · Licensed in Florida only — referrals outside Florida are made to independently licensed agents in your state.
Who takes it from here
A referral is only worth anything if the choice is made for your transaction rather than made once and applied to everyone. So there is no default name here.
In practice: The Keyes Company places the referral, and I go looking for a licensee whose recent work resembles what you are about to do. A first-time purchase, a downsize and an investment buy need genuinely different people, and that difference is invisible from a profile page.
Three things stay true whoever it turns out to be:
- They will hold a current licence in the state where your transaction happens, and they will represent you under that state’s law — not under Florida’s, and not under mine.
- Any referral fee is paid brokerage to brokerage, out of the commission on a closed transaction. It costs you nothing and it does not increase what you pay. Under Section 475.42(1)(d), Florida Statutes, any share reaching me comes from my broker and from nowhere else.
- You are under no obligation to use them. Interview them, interview someone else, or decline entirely. If the fit is wrong, tell me and I will go back and look again.
As referral relationships are formalised, the brokerages involved will be named here, together with their licence number and the regulator that issued it, so you can verify them yourself rather than take my word for it.
Referral disclosure
- I am licensed in Florida only. I will not act as your real estate agent in any other state, and nothing on this page is an offer to represent you outside Florida. Your agent in your state will be licensed there and will represent you under that state’s law.
- A referral fee may be paid. If a referred transaction closes, the receiving brokerage may pay a referral fee to The Keyes Company, and The Keyes Company may in turn compensate me. Under Section 475.42(1)(d), Florida Statutes, a sales associate may be paid only by his registered broker, so any payment reaches me that way and no other.
- It costs you nothing. You are not charged for a referral. A referral fee is paid between brokerages out of the commission on the transaction and does not increase what you pay.
- Commissions are negotiable. Broker compensation is not set by law and is negotiable between you and the brokerage that represents you, in every state.
- No guarantee. I can introduce you to a licensed professional and give you my honest read. I cannot promise any outcome, price, timeline, or level of service, and I do not supervise or control the agent or brokerage you choose.
- Real estate brokerage referrals only. This page covers real estate brokerage referrals only. It is not a referral to any lender, title company, insurer, or other settlement service provider.
- Equal Housing Opportunity. Referrals are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, disability, or any other class protected by federal, state, or local fair housing law.