Referrals Outside Florida

Elkhart is outside my licence — here is the useful part

One licence, one state, and an honest answer about Elkhart.

Referral only

From this page to a licensed agent

Step 1

Start with the constraint

Almost every move has one thing that cannot flex — a start date at work, a lease ending, a tenant with rights until a fixed date, a closing already on the calendar. Tell me that first; it determines everything else.

Step 2

I brief, then introduce

I describe your situation to the Elkhart licensee before you ever speak, so your first conversation starts at the second question rather than the first.

Step 3

You keep my number

The introduction is not the end of it. If something reads wrong three weeks in, call me — I would rather hear it than find out at closing.

Starting with what I cannot do

A licence is a jurisdiction, not a reputation. Mine covers Florida and stops there, which means that for a Elkhart transaction I am not the person who represents you — no matter how much I know about moving, financing, or the mechanics of a closing. What I am is someone with a brokerage behind him and a reason to introduce you to the right person rather than the nearest one.

Things that surprise people moving out of Florida

  • Licensing in this industry is granted state by state, not federally. A Florida licence carries no authority in Indiana, and a Indiana 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 Indiana. 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.
  • Closings in Indiana 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. Indiana 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.

The questions that tell you who you are dealing with

  • What does a normal contract-to-close timeline look like in Indiana, and what most often blows it up?
  • Who handles the closing here — an attorney, a title company, an escrow agent — and when do they get involved?
  • What disclosures is a seller in Indiana required to make, and what are they entitled to stay silent about?
  • If I am buying before my Florida property sells, what do sellers here accept as proof of funds?

Where I stop, on purpose

I will not treat the introduction as the end of my involvement when that suits me and the beginning of it when that suits me better. What I owe you afterwards is honesty and a returned telephone call. What I cannot offer is supervision of another brokerage’s agent, because I have no authority over them at all. I would rather draw that line now than have you rely on something I am unable to deliver.

Where I stop being a referral and start being your agent

A tenanted Florida property does not empty because you have decided to move. The lease runs with the property, the tenant holds rights until it ends, and both of those facts sit in the middle of your closing date whether or not they are convenient. That is Florida work and it is mine to do, but it wants a start measured in months rather than weeks, so raise it on the first call rather than the fourth.

Other cities in Indiana

Questions people actually ask

What is a referral agreement?

A document between two brokerages, signed before you are introduced. It records that the introduction came through The Keyes Company and what fee becomes payable if a transaction closes. You are not a party to it, you do not sign it, and it imposes no obligation on you whatsoever. Ask to be told its terms if you want them — there is nothing in it that needs keeping from you.

Is dual agency allowed in Indiana?

That depends on the state, and it is a question for the licensee I introduce you to rather than for me. Some states permit one agent to work with both sides where everybody consents in writing; others restrict or prohibit it outright. Florida’s own vocabulary — transaction broker, single agent — does not map neatly onto other states, so do not assume your Florida experience transfers. Ask what it is called there and what you would be signing.

Who holds my deposit?

It varies by state and sometimes by county: a title or escrow company, the listing brokerage, or an attorney. What matters more than who holds it is what the contract says about when it can be released and what it takes to get it back. Ask both questions before you part with the money, and ask for the answer in writing rather than on the telephone.

How do I time a Florida sale against a purchase in Elkhart?

Deliberately, and from the start. The two closings are separate contracts and nobody controls both, so the work is in keeping each side informed of the other’s dates. If I am handling the Florida sale, I will speak to your Indiana agent about the calendar directly. Where the dates cannot be made to meet, the usual instruments are a rent-back or interim financing, and both are cheaper to plan than to arrange in a hurry.

Do you get paid if I use an agent you did not refer me to?

No. A fee arises only where the introduction came through The Keyes Company and a transaction closes with that agent. If you find someone yourself, or use somebody you already know, nothing is payable to anyone — and that is a perfectly good outcome. I would rather you had the right agent than that I had a fee.

The next step is a phone call

Two things start this: the city, and the month it has to happen by. Everything else can be worked out on the call.

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 actually ends up representing you

The honest state of things: referral relationships are being formalised, and until one is signed there is no company I can point at without overstating it.

The path is The Keyes Company to a licensed brokerage in your state. What I add is the filter in between — and a phone number you can still call if the introduction turns out to have been a bad read.

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.