Broker Stands Ground Against Threats from Government Official

Several people have inquired as to the response our broker gave to the official mentioned in our previous post "Is A Real Estate Blog Protected by the First Amendment".  She has been kind enough to allow us to post the entire exchange with the official that all transpired on 12/29.07.

From Lisa Jalufka, broker, to Tony Arko:

Here is the entire chain of emails since Friday that I have been a party
to with Mr. Kaufman.  As per our conversation this afternoon, you have
my permission to post & share this email chain to the parties mentioned.
Please let me reiterate that Mr. Kaufman's portrayal of our conversation
of Thursday, December 27, 2007 (not Friday, December 28, 2007 as Mr.
Kaufman indicated) is erroneous and incorrect as to how the conversation
actually transpired.

From Lisa Jalufka to Todd Kaufman, Loudoun County Assessor on:

Mr. Kaufman -
I am responding to your response to Mr. Bogdanovic's email to you.  I
must disagree with your characterization of our conversation on
Thursday, as I did not at any point in that conversation say that I felt
the content of the blog post in question was inappropriate.  What I did
state was that I had read the post, and was in contact with our legal
counsel regarding this matter, and that I would speak with you again
once I had discussed the matter fully with legal counsel.

I have spoken with my legal counsel, who reviewed the post and did not
find anything inappropriate with the blog.  Political freedom of speech
is protected under the United States Constitution, so to simply demand
that the post be removed may not be appropriate.

If you could provide the exact Article of the Code of Ethics and
Professional Standards that you feel that Mr. Bogdanovic has violated,
along with the exact wording from the blog post that you deem
inaccurate, and I will forward that to our legal counsel for further
review.

From Todd Kaufman to Lisa Jalufka:

Dear Ms. Jalufka:

It is unfortunate that you have selected to take this position.  I would
ask that you read the articles and his postings again so you are
familiar with his positions and the statements that he has made via a
public venue.  My suggestion to you yesterday was that we work together
to remedy this  issue in a reasonable and professional manner.  In such,
I offered to meet with you and your organization to ensure that you
understood the assessment and valuation process.

During our discussion yesterday, you did in fact tell me that you felt
that the postings were inappropriate.  I provided you numerous examples
of misleading information during that conversation.  Particularly, you
advised me that you were monitoring the postings and that you did not
understand his position as he does not live in Loudoun County.
Specifically, you also apologized to me regarding the "Article" heading
and the content of the article, "Loudoun County Set To Steal $45 Million
From Residents In 2008", which was posted in September.  You told me
that you were unaware of the article until I brought it to your
attention.  The article, "The Discrepancy Between Loudoun County Tax
Assessments and Fair Market Value", posted in December is peppered with
erroneous and misleading information.  These articles are not posted as
his opinion.  He is posting them for informational purposes on a site
designed to promote himself, Mr. Arko, and Keller and Williams as
providers of professional real estate services as depicted by the use of
the Realtor trademark on the site.

Mr. Bogdanovic is representing himself on the site as an agent for
Keller and Williams and as a professional regarding real estate matters,
yet he does not understand the methodology incorporated in the
assessment and valuation process.  This is evident by his remarks and
the statistical information posted on his site.  These flawed statistics
and the accusatory statements made by him on the site are misleading and
reckless.  There is a comment posted by "Get it Right", that supports
this.  Is this really the position that Keller and Williams and the
professional real estate community want to present to the public?  It is
my position that we work together as real estate professionals and not
publically attack one another.

I agree, Mr. Bogdanovic is entitled to express his political opinion
regarding the government.  His choices can carry serious consequences
when his right to express himself freely is abused or used
irresponsibly.  Since you feel that this is a Constitutional issue, I
suggest that you read the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment so you
have an accurate understanding of both.  Accordingly, I have the right
to file a complaint with the NAR if I feel that the actions of a Realtor
is in violation of the Code of Ethics or Standards of Professional
Practice.

You advised me that you are his Broker.  You acknowledged to me that you
were aware of the site and the postings.  By your actions, you, he, and
Mr. Arko are subject to the NAR Code of Ethics and Standards of
Professional Practice.  All of you have the responsibility to ensure
that the information that is posted on this site is accurate and
factual.  As we discussed yesterday and you agreed, it is not.

I would further like to clarify that I have not demanded that Mr.
Bogdanovic do anything.  I requested that he not post misleading or
erroneous information regarding real property assessments in Loudoun
County (see Standard 12, section 8).  His approach is unprofessional,
negative, and adversarial.  Since you have declined my invitation to
adhere to your professional code and standards, you have left me no
alternative but to pursue this by filing a complaint with the National
Association of Realtors as an ethics violation.  My position will be
clearly stated and documented in that complaint.

I want to make sure that you understand that the issue was brought to my
attention by a member of the public who found the content of Mr.
Bogdanovic's site offensive and misleading.  Perhaps that should be
considered as well.  In closing, I would like to express that I am the
County Assessor, not the Tax Assessor.  Real property assessments are
completed annually with a January 1 date of value as mandated by law.
The tax rate is set by the Board of Supervisors based on the budgetary
requirements related to services that are provided to the residents of
Loudoun County.  Neither assessments or the tax rate are constants.  The
tax rate fluctuates based on the county budget and assessments fluctuate
based on fair market values.  The County Treasure's collects tax levies
based on the tax rate that is applied to real property assessments.
This is all explained on the Assessor's web page that Mr. Bagdanovic
frequently refers to.

From Lisa Jalufka to Todd Kaufman:

Mr. Kaufman -
At this time, I am referring this matter to legal counsel.  I will again
state that you are mis-characterizing our conversation, as it was, in
truth, very different from your statements in the emails that you have
sent in the past 24 hours.  I will offer no further discussion with you
regarding this matter.

Comments

[Greg Swann]

Three cheers for your broker! I'm impressed.

[Jay Thompson]

Mr. Kaufman said: "His approach is unprofessional, negative, and adversarial."

Wow, there is the pot calling the kettle black!

I am very impressed that the Broker here is standing behind their agent! The responses by e-mail are great. I am curious… is the Tax Assessor authorized to make these threats and demands on behalf of the county. I would think a well ran local government would only allow the county attorney's office to handle such issues. Can you say "deformation of character" and harassment? Still, as I’ve said on another blog, it’s awfully childish to go tattle-tale. I’ve been surprised by Professional Standards decisions before, but I can’t imagine that this would be a founded complaint or even make it past Grievance panel.

[Thomas Johnson]

Danilo is not alone in finding corruption and greed in the property appraisal process. Here’s a taste of another jack booted appraiser, Tylene Gamble, Chief Appraiser of Wharton County, Texas. She sued taxpayers after her own appeals board sided with the citizens. The case is still in litgation. Read all about it at http://maximstench.com/

Tom Johnson

[Scottsdale real estate]

Perfect example of hypocrisy, guess I shouldn't really be surprised.

[Steve Belt]

I too am impressed with your broker. It's certainly refreshing to see a broker that is willing to stand behind their agent this way. I suppose calling the broker a liar helped cement this broker's position.

I would caution you to continue to be very careful and factual, particularly with regard to this subject matter. I'd also make sure you have all of you ducks in a row regarding anything on your blog that may be considered a violation for any reason. For someone with enough free time, and the desire, they could make your life very unpleasant, even though you've done nothing wrong. Sitting in an ethics review wouldn't be something I'd want to do at all...even if I knew it was frivoulous. But for goodness sake...be careful and don't give them any real ammo.

[Elise]

This is actually great evidence of the failure of local governments to embrace or understand online social media "2.0".

[Laurie Manny]

I love that your Broker is supporting your right to free speech. The assessor certainly could use a few lessons in comporting himself publicly. Your Broker politely asked him to "provide the exact Article of the Code of Ethics and
Professional Standards", which the assessor feels you have violated, he did not. Perhaps he cannot? Perhaps he is guilty of exactly what he is accusing you?

On Dec 23, the NY Times published an article which you might like to read regarding tax reassessments in various places around the country.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/23/us/23tax.html?_r=3&th=&adxnnl=1&oref=
slogin&emc=th&adxnnlx=1198437365-UAL2OYG32/Aki3HERBYB+w&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

Perhaps your County Assessor should read it as well.

[Loudoun resident]

Keep fighting this disaster of an assessor! What a hard ass bully boy. This clown gets to make such crackpot threats whenever he feels threatened? And throw around referrences to the county attorney? This is not about the First Ammendment only. This is about abuse of power. ABUSE OF POWER. Keep fighting! This clown is not worth your good faith, grown-up efforts to resolve this. Life in junior high must have been tough for ol' Todd. One by one, recent new residents to this county are losing faith in its leaders. Todd is at the top of the list. Or the bottom, I guess. Loser.

[Kenny Alex]

It's a lot misundertand because the Professional Standards decisions before with the complaints after.

[Donna Crouse]

I remain interested in the initial complaint and complaintants, who are the people who brought this to Bogdanovic's attention. It is plausible that property owners, not just in Loundoun County but in other counties across the country at this time are not being properly assessed as to their property values and do have the right to request their properties re-evaluated! This too, is a granted right within the First Amendment of the Constitution that Mr. Kaufman admits he is so knowledgable of. So while he is so concerned and offended by what Bogdanovic presented, has he addressed the grievances of the property owners who have complained to the COUNTY ASSESSOR within his own jurisdiction? Or is he too busy trying to pass the bureaucratic buck and re-focus attention onto a blogger who just openned more insight to the plight of these same property owners?

[coach handbags]

There is no doubt that happiness is the most precious thing in the world. Without it, life will be empty and meaningless. happiness consists in contentment. A man who is dissatisfied with his present condition is always in distress.

[jordan retro 1]

If you would convince others, you seem open to conviction yourself. What do you think?

[jimmy choo]

Jimmy Choo's beginnings can be traced back to his workshop in London Borough of Hackney, North London, which he opened in 1986 by renting an old hospital building.

[socorro]

very good. keep standing still brokers. go for what is right, and to those greedy, they must disappear and hide.