Mosley Group sells to former colleague

Real estate agents are, in many ways, like individual contractors.

Most work under the banner of a larger group, but they are essentially independent. As independent salespeople, they have the ability to sell their businesses to other agents within their brokerage, or they can purchase other agents’ businesses.

Such is the case with Ben Boling.

Boling, an agent with Carol Jones, Realtors, since 2000, purchased the Mosley Group, another Carol Jones agency, in January.

Jeff Mosley, the head of the Mosley Group, was killed in a Dec. 5 auto accident at the age of 69.

Boling, a former business colleague and friend of Mosley’s, paid a flat fee for the business, which includes Mosley’s active listings and database of former clients, as well as miscellaneous office equipment.

The other agents in the Mosley Group have since joined other groups or work independently.

Mosley’s open listings were co-listed with his daughter Heather Mosley, but she was not interested in continuing in the real estate business.

Heather Mosley, who is also the advertising designer for Springfield Business Journal, said she had decided to pursue her publishing career instead of real estate, adding that the decision was made to leave the Mosley Group name on the open listings to ease clients’ concerns.

Both sides said it was important that the transaction should occur with someone the family knew and trusted.

“As Jeff and I both grew, we went our separate directions, but I always stayed really close with him – he was my best friend at the office,” Boling said, adding that the sale also includes giving a portion of money made on sales of open listings back to the family.

Craig Lowther, partner with Lowther Johnson Attorneys-at-Law, whose practice includes real estate law, said in terms of listings, there really isn’t anything to sell, as by law an agent’s listings belong to the broker he or she works for.

“Sometimes the broker will say, ‘Here you go, you’re a good guy, here’s your listings and good luck,’” Lowther said. “Others will take their listings, say ‘See ya,’ hand them out to other agents and kick the agent as they go out the door. But it’s really up to the broker.”

Lowther said real estate agents are a lot like lawyers.

“People go to a real estate agent, like a lawyer, because they like that person,” he said.

“Real estate agents are not interchangeable – one is not like the next. You go to your agent because you know them and you’ve liked them forever.”