Medina brokers successfully work for improved sign code

The City of Medina recently adopted updates to the city’s sign code that preserve the reasonable use of real estate signs to market homes for sale. “The brokerage community worked together for a good result,” said Tere Foster, principal at Avenue Properties. “We committed to help members of the real estate industry understand the limitations on certain signs and to help police each other when obvious violations occur.”

The Medina Planning Commission began a comprehensive review of the city sign code earlier this year. Some citizens advocated for a more restrictive code or doing away with real estate signs altogether. When asked if internet advertising alone was sufficient to sell homes in Medina, numerous real estate brokers testified that signs were still a preferred and important method of directing members of the public to listed properties.

“Locating listed properties can be difficult in a city such as Medina, with its numerous private roads and wooded lanes,” said Eddie Chang, broker with Realogics Sotheby’s. Brokers testifying before the Planning Commission suggested that real estate signs can reduce unintended impacts on other property owners, because signs make clear precisely which homes are for sale.

The City Council adopted the recommendations of the Planning Commission to limit the overall size of for-sale signs on a property (24” x 30”).  It also set limits on the size (24” x 24”) and number (3) of off-site open house A-boards that can be used for each listing. The most frequent complaints about signs in Medina appeared to involve the number of directional signs used and the duration of time that signs could be posted.

“We might have had a different outcome if not for the REALTORS® from many companies who got involved on this issue,” said Randy Bannecker, Housing Specialist for Seattle King County REALTORS®. “Their testimony had an impact on the final result.”