One Licence, Forty-Nine Referrals
Moving out of Florida? Start with the introduction.
The offer on this page is an introduction through The Keyes Company, and nothing beyond it.
Referral onlyWhat this page is, and what it is not
When a website offers you an agent in any city you care to name, one of two structures usually sits behind it: a network of brokerages with a fee arrangement between them, or a marketplace that resells enquiries to whoever is paying for that area this month. Neither is disqualifying. What matters is that you know which you are in and who is paid by whom. This is the first kind, the arrangement runs through The Keyes Company, and it is written out in full further down rather than buried in a footer.
Three steps, and what each one commits you to
Put both dates on one page
A Florida sale and a New York purchase are two separate contracts with two separate calendars. Before anything else we write down what has to happen by when: the date you must be out, the date you can be in, and which of the two will not move under any circumstances.
Introduce early, not late
An introduction is worth considerably more eight weeks out than two. An agent who knows your timeline from the start can tell you what is achievable on it. One who inherits it a fortnight before closing can only tell you what is not.
We revisit when a date moves
One of them always moves. When it does, tell both sides on the same day. Most of the expensive repairs in a two-state move exist because somebody learned about a slipped date a week after everyone else did.
Structural differences worth knowing before you go
- Real estate licensing is state by state. An agent licensed in Florida cannot represent you in New York, and a New York licensee cannot represent you in Florida.
- New York 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.
- Residential closings in New York customarily involve an attorney, rather than being handled by a title company as they typically are in Florida. Budget for it and expect the timeline to be structured differently.
- Like Florida, New York has coastal exposure and a named-storm deductible regime in its property insurance market. The mechanism will feel familiar; the numbers will not necessarily.
- Florida’s homestead exemption and its Save Our Homes assessment cap do not follow you. New York 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.
What this page is not offering
I will not promise you an outcome. Not a price, not a timeline, not a standard of service from somebody else’s employee. What I can give you is what I asked the agent, what they said, and anything in the conversation that gave me pause. Anyone offering more certainty than that about a transaction in a state they are not licensed in is describing a wish rather than a service.
Questions worth asking on that first call
- 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 New York, and what do buyers here commonly write into the contract to deal with it before it happens?
- If the property is listed by your own brokerage, what happens to my representation, what does New York law permit in that situation, and what exactly would you be asking me to sign?
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 James Town, that is the strongest version of this: I represent you on the Florida sale as your agent, and I refer you for the New York purchase. One relationship, two licensed professionals, and nobody pretending to be qualified where they are not.
Other cities in New York
Questions people actually ask
Will my information be sold or shared with a lead network?
No. A referral goes to a named brokerage through The Keyes Company, not into a lead marketplace. This page itself collects nothing — the links go to forms hosted by The Keyes Company, which processes them under its own privacy policy.
Do I need a New York licence to be referred?
No — that requirement falls on the agent, not on you. The licensee I introduce you to will hold a current New York licence and will represent you under New York law.
Why should I go through you instead of searching myself?
You may not need to. If you already know a good agent in James Town, use them. The value here is that someone with a professional reason to care makes the call, checks the fit, and stays reachable if it goes sideways.
What if the agent you introduce me to turns out to be no good?
Tell me, and tell me early. I will go back and look again, and I will say so to the brokerage that put them forward. What I cannot do is repair the transaction from Florida: I do not supervise them and I am not a party to your agreement with them. Your remedies are the ones written into that agreement, their own broker, and the body that licenses agents in New York.
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.
The next step is a phone call
I would rather have one honest conversation that ends with me saying you do not need me than ten that end in an introduction you regret.
Send me the details 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
I do not keep a list of preferred companies to hand you, and I would be sceptical of an agent who did. A name that is always the answer is a name that is paying for the position, not one that was chosen for your situation.
The Keyes Company handles the placement. I handle the question of whether the person on the other end is right for you, which means asking them about their last few transactions rather than reading their bio.
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.