Most Agreements of Purchase and Sale these days contain a special clause that allows Realtors to use the specifics of the sale to be used for their personal marketing. It reads something like this:
"The Seller and Buyer of this property hereby agree to permit the listing broker and/or the Selling Brokerage and their respective representatives to use any and all information related to the property in any and all marketing materials and formats for the sole and express purpose of promoting the property and/or Brokerage and/or Sales Representatives."
On the surface, it looks innocent enough and seldom is it discussed at length. At the time the client reads this and signs off on it, they're excited and focused more on the purchase/sale price and the closing date so they don't really think of the repercussions.
For the most part, this doesn't appear in the client's radar screen again and it's forgotten.
However, there is the odd occasion when the details they've permitted with this clause become intrusive and even embarrassing.
It used to be flyers that are delivered in a neighbourhood that contained details about the sale and since most everyone knew about the sale in the first place, there was never a surprise. Today however, the newspapers have features such as "What They Got" and there one finds the address of the sale, some of the details of the sale and how much over asking a particular buyer paid. Not only that, there are interior photos of the property published online during the sale and they generally remain on the internet for all to see long after the new buyers have moved in.
I ask you, how would you like the general public to know the details of your purchase of the house and be able to view the interior any time they want?