Referral, Not Representation
A Florida licence does not reach Raleigh. Here is what does.
I can still help — by introducing you to someone licensed where you are actually buying.
Referral onlyThings that surprise people moving out of Florida
- Real estate licensing is state by state. An agent licensed in Florida cannot represent you in North Carolina, and a North Carolina licensee cannot represent you in Florida.
- Leaving Florida means picking up a state income tax in North Carolina. 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.
- Residential closings in North Carolina 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.
- North Carolina shares Florida's coastal exposure and, with it, a named-storm deductible regime in its property insurance market. The mechanism will be familiar. Do not assume the premium will be.
- Florida’s homestead exemption and its Save Our Homes assessment cap do not follow you. North Carolina 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.
The part most sites leave out
A referral fee is not a finder’s fee and it is not something you pay. It is a share of the commission the North Carolina 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.
How the introduction gets made
What kind of transaction
A first purchase, a downsize, an investment, a relocation with a company behind it — these need genuinely different agents, and the difference is not obvious from a profile page.
A shortlist, not a name
Where Raleigh supports it I would rather hand you two options than one. A referral that gives you no choice is just a redirect.
Nothing is owed either way
If you take a name and never call it, that is a fine outcome. No fee arises unless a transaction actually closes, so nothing about this obliges you.
What this page is not offering
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.
The questions that tell you who you are dealing with
- What is on the survey or title work here that a Florida buyer would not think to look for?
- Have you worked with buyers who were selling in another state at the same time? Ask for the mechanics of how they handled it rather than for a reassurance that they have.
- How do you prefer to communicate, how quickly do you normally reply, and who covers your clients when you are away? Settle that in the first week and most of the friction in a long-distance transaction disappears.
- Who actually answers the phone — you, or someone on your team? Ask early; the answer changes the whole relationship.
One move, two transactions
If you already have a Florida agent you trust, keep them. The referral stands on its own and does not require you to move your Florida business to me. Tell me on the first call and I will make the introduction and step back out of it. That is a shorter conversation than the other one, and it costs you exactly the same, which is nothing.
Other cities in North Carolina
Questions people actually ask
Am I obliged to use the agent you introduce?
No. A referral is an introduction. You can interview them, interview others, and decline. If they are not right, tell me and I will look again.
How do you choose who to refer me to?
I look for someone whose recent, actual work resembles your transaction — price band, property type, and whether they handle relocations regularly. I speak to them before I pass on your name.
Do you know the Raleigh 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 Raleigh 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.
Say where you are going and when
A referral costs you nothing and commits you to nothing. The worst outcome is that you meet an agent you decide not to hire.
Request a referral 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.
Where the referral goes
You will notice nobody is named below. That is deliberate and it is temporary: I would rather show you an empty list than a borrowed one.
Practically, The Keyes Company routes the referral and I do the vetting. That means a conversation with the receiving agent first — what they close, how they communicate, whether they will still be reachable in week six.
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.