March 2021 by Anna Ferrin
I have no malicious intent in sharing the experiences I had with a Berkshire Hathaway real estate agent, Kyle Blake. I want others to know about my experience before they engage in business with Kyle.We sold our home, FSBO in March 2020. He was the representing agent of the purchasers. Throughout our interactions with Kyle he was unprofessional, sexist, and aggressive. I would like to illustrate his behavior through the following experiences. When we first met Kyle, he was kind, professional and knowledgeable but as our interactions continued, he exhibited extremely unprofessional and aggressive behavior in both his language, tone, and timing and choice of interactions with us. The first experience was when a root blockage was discovered in the sewage line. We had difficulty viewing the block and while communicating this issue Kyle said condescendingly, “Can we just FaceTime, you don’t know what you’re talking about.” I told him that we need an access panel to view anything and he would only see the basement. He responded that I wasn’t using the proper vocabulary which I had learned and relayed directly from the inspector. A series of text & calls further illustrates his unprofessional approach to our relationship as he treated me like a subordinate employee, rather than a partner in this transaction. He barked orders such as, “I’ll need written statements by 5 pm,” or “ok get me written statements by the warranty company.” The directness of his requests was not the issue but the lack of politeness such as, “please”, and “thank you.” When he texted another to-do on a Sunday morning while we were participating in virtual church, I asked him to be more polite in our conversations. He immediately called and emphatically said, “QUIT THE SNARKINESS.” This conversation also included the following direct quotes, “you mean to tell me that while I’m trying to get this big 300K deal signed, you’re going to be sitting at home on your couch watching church?” and “this is the problem with for sale by owners.” In the conversation I just relayed, Kyle then began to make demeaning, sexist comments which continued in following interactions. These comments included: Deferring to my husband, “C’mon man, back me up, Rhett. This is just a business deal, and I’m doing business. That’s the problem with you, you’re a for-sale by owner. You’re emotional and sentimental. I’m a realtor and this is my world you’re stepping into.”“You make me sound like a big, evil guy walking around chopping people’s heads off. I married the pastor’s daughter. I’m a family man. My business is based all off referrals, I’m the top sales agent. People like me.”In response to me asking again if he could be more polite, he responded, “I feel like I’m talking to my mom, I don’t need a lecture on business.” As well as, “Seriously? I feel like you’re like an ex-girlfriend, you just can’t give this up.” I would like to acknowledge that Kyle did text and apologize for not being more polite and that he had wished that he had been more patient with us, acknowledging that we were not realtors. However, Kyle’s unprofessional manner, aggression, and demeaning sexist comments cannot be made right by a simple apology. Kyle kept coming back to not “saying sorry” when his words went beyond just being polite. He did not apologize for his hostility, his lack of common courtesy, unprofessionalism & sexist remarks. This series of interactions showcased that there needs to be corporate training on both for-sale by homeowners as well as diversity. I want Berkshire- Hathaway to be aware of my experience with Kyle in case there are other situations like this in the future with him, and especially with other women. I want Berkshire-Hathaway to be aware of the damaging impact he had on your brand. I will never recommend Berkshire-Hathaway as a real estate service.**We have spoken directly with the Regional Manager of Berkshire Hathaway who was kind, considerate, professional and apologetic. He let us know that trainings have taken place & the necessary corrective measures are in
