Cookies Policy
Effective January 1, 2020
INTRODUCTION
REALM, LLC (“REALM” or “we”) is a full service residential real estate brokerage firm. We provide various information and brokerage and other services relating to the offering, search and purchase and sale of residential properties directly and in coordination with our network of independent residential real estate agents operating within our brokerage (“Agents”).
This GDPR Privacy Notice (this “Notice”) provides information about how we collect, use, and share your personal information as required by the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”) including advising you of certain rights and choices you have with respect to our handling of that information. This includes through websites we operate that link to this Notice, in our email, phone and other communications with you, and in providing our services to you and operation of our business generally. Personal information means information that identifies you or that pertains and can be linked to you.
This Notice does not apply to websites or, except where noted below, Agents’ handling of personal information nor does it apply to any other website or application not linking to this Notice. This Notice applies to individuals whose personal information is governed by the GDPR, typically permanent residents of the European Economic Area.
It is important that you read this Notice together with any other privacy policy or notice we may provide on our websites or on specific occasions when we are collecting or processing personal information about you so that you are fully aware of how and why we are using your information. This Notice supplements other notices and privacy policies and is not intended to override them.
HOW WE COLLECT PERSONAL INFORMATION
We collect information that you give us through our websites, mobile apps, over the phone, via email, and through other correspondence or communications. For such directly and deliberately submitted information, you generally decide how much information to share with us, but not providing certain information may prevent us from fulfilling your request or otherwise performing the purpose for which the information is collected. For example, in serving as a broker as to a Transaction, we are required by necessity, and in certain cases by law, to collect certain personal information to do so. If you cannot or will not provide such information we will not be able to serve as a broker as to the Transaction or your Transaction may not be completed as planned or at all.
We may obtain information about you from other sources. For example, when we serve as broker in your purchase or sale of a property (a “Transaction”), we may receive personal information from title companies, our Agents, and other parties in connection with the Transaction or from publicly available sources. We may also receive information about you collected by our Agents prior to a Transaction. And, when you create an account on our website using your Facebook credentials, we collect certain information from Facebook as set by your permissions for our websites within your Facebook account. Additionally, our websites may permit you to share our posts and other content through your accounts on social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others in which case we may be notified of such activity. You should review the privacy policy of those services, which governs your sharing activity through their service.
We collect information automatically. By visiting and interacting with our websites and mobile applications, we collect certain technical data by automated means. In most cases, this information is collected through web server logs or through the use of cookies and related technologies. You can read about how we use cookies and your choices in limiting our use of them in our general Privacy Policy.
TYPES OF PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT
In general, we collect limited amounts of technical information to optimize and allow our websites to function, your name and contact information, information you share about your property interests and search criteria, and, if we serve as broker for your Transaction, information about the Transaction that would typically be accessible to a residential real estate broker.
More specifically, we collect the following personal information:
- When you visit our websites [or download and use or mobile applications], we collect technical data such as your IP address or other device identifiers, browser type and version, operating system, and analytic information about your activity on the website [or application].
- When you register on one or more of our websites so that, for example, you may save your property searches or receive notifications of new listings or when you request other information, we collect your basic contact information such as your first and last name and email address and such other contact information you share with us as well as the password you provide (which is hashed or encrypted). In conducting or saving a property search on our websites, you provide us with information about your search criteria and interests [directly or through our Agents].
- If we serve as a broker in your Transaction (whether initially or until closing of the Transaction), we collect and otherwise may have access to the information pertaining to your Transaction. This includes details of the Transaction including required seller disclosures [as well as correspondence between you and your Agent that we are required by law to retain].
- When we collect your personal information in the context of operation of our business, such as when we collect your information as a billing contact.
Personal information we collect from third parties such as from an Agent or in the course of brokering a Transaction is consistent with the information described above.
PURPOSES FOR PROCESSING YOUR INFORMATION
When you visit our websites [or use our mobile applications], we process automatically collected technical data in order to make the websites function and optimized for your device and also to collect aggregated analytical data about usage of our websites by using Google Analytics, although we have enabled Google Analytics’ anonymizing feature. You can read our general Privacy Policy for more information about how we use cookies.
When you search for properties or request notifications of listings based on certain criteria, sign up for our newsletter or blogs or make similar requests for information, we process the information collected in order to provide you with the requested service or information. Where we receive your consent to do so, we may also use this information to send you marketing information, including property listings, we believe may be of interest to you.
When you register with our website, we collect your information including a password for purposes of establishing your online account. In certain cases when you request information, we may automatically generate an account and issue a temporary password, which we email to the email address you provide.
When we serve as a broker in your Transaction, we use the information collected for the purpose of performing our services as broker in connection with the Transaction, including performing any legal and regulatory obligations we may have.
Additionally, we may use your personal information in the operation of our business generally, which may include the following:
- To respond to and process your specific inquiries including support services and to provide you with information and access to resources that you have requested from us;
- To administer, protect, operate, and maintain our websites and our systems and networks;
- To improve the navigation and content of our websites, system administration and security;
- To compile aggregated statistics about usage of our websites and to better understand the preferences of website visitors;
- To help personalize and optimize the experience on our websites;
- To help deliver information about our offerings to our clients and prospective clients;
- To update you about changes in our privacy practices, terms of use and other matters pertaining to our relationship with you;
- To disseminate our blogs, newsletters and similar communications;
- To analyze and develop new products, services, and websites or improve existing ones;
- To perform accounting, auditing, billing, reconciliation, collection, and similar administrative activities;
- To prevent, detect, identify, investigate, respond to, and protect against potential or actual claims, liabilities, prohibited behavior, and criminal activity; and
- To comply with and enforce applicable legal requirements, agreements, and policies.
LEGAL BASIS FOR PROCESSING YOUR INFORMATION
Our legal basis for collecting and using your personal information will depend on the personal information concerned, the specific context in which we collect it and the purposes for which it is used.
However, we will normally collect and use your personal information only where we have your consent to do so (typically in order to send you marketing communications), where we need the personal information to create or perform a contract with you (for example, where we serve as broker for your Transaction or where you have agreed to our Terms of Use in using our websites), or where the processing is in our legitimate interests and not overridden by your data protection interests or fundamental rights and freedoms (for most of our activities not covered by consent or creation or performance of a contract). In some very rare cases, we may also have a legal obligation to collect or use your personal information to protect your vital interests or those of another person.
If you have specific questions about or need further information concerning the legal basis on which we collect and use your personal information, please contact us using the contact details provided under the “How to Contact Us” heading below.
IF YOU FAIL TO PROVIDE PERSONAL INFORMATION
Where we need to collect personal information by law, or under the terms of a contract we have with you, and you fail to provide that information when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract we have or are trying to enter into with you (for example, to serve as a broker in connection with your Transaction). In this case, we may have to cancel our services to you, but we will notify you if this is the case at the time. Please note that sales of properties are often subject to strict deadlines and timeframes. Failure to provide necessary personal information when required could cause a Transaction to fail to be consummated.
HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION
Where applicable, we share your personal information in the follow ways:
- Within our group of affiliated companies (e.g. parent, subsidiaries) consistent with this Notice.
- With Agents for purposes of assisting you in your property search and sale transactions.
- Where we serve as broker for your residential purchase or sale, to those involved in the transaction (for example, the title company).
- With our contracted service providers who perform services for us such as web hosting, cloud applications and infrastructure providers, communications, and technical services, marketing and relations management services, investigations and accounting services, customer support, and bill collection services. Such providers are obligated to only use the information as necessary to provide the contracted services to us.
- If we believe disclosure is necessary and appropriate to prevent physical, financial, or other harm, injury, or loss, including to protect against fraud or credit risk or to pursue collections efforts or other legal rights and interests.
- With legal, governmental, or judicial authorities, as instructed or required by those authorities or applicable laws, or in relation to a legal activity, such as in response to a subpoena or investigating suspected illicit activity. We reserve the right to report to law enforcement agencies activities that we in good faith believe to be illegal.
- In connection with, or during negotiations of, an acquisition, merger, asset sale, or other similar business transfer that involves substantially all of our assets or functions where personal information is transferred or shared as part of the business assets (provided that such party agrees to use such personal information in a manner that is consistent with this Notice).
Note, that while our Agents are affiliated with our brokerage, they operate as independent real estate agents and we may exchange your personal information that you submit to us or them and use it for our own respective purposes. While we contractually restrict how Agents use personal information that they receive from us, you should look to your Agent for your questions about how they collect, use, protect and retain your personal information.
COOKIES
We use cookies, which are small text files placed on your device, to enable you to create and log in to your account on our websites. These are session cookies and are automatically deleted when you close your browser. You can find out more about how we use cookies in our Privacy Policy.
PERSONAL INFORMATION IS PROCESSED IN THE UNITED STATES
REALM has its headquarters in the United States and information we collect from you in other countries is transferred to and processed in the United States. We endeavor to apply suitable safeguards to protect the privacy and security of your personal information consistent with the practices described in this Notice.
YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS AND CHOICES
You may avoid our collection and use of manually submitted personal information by not providing it to us, although this may prevent us from providing the information and services you request.
Within your account profile on our websites, you may add and edit personal information associated with your account, manage certain email subscriptions, save and manage your property searches and favorite properties, connect your account to your Facebook account, and manage other information that you choose to store within your account, which generally will pertain to your property searches.
You may unsubscribe from our email communications and information services by following the instructions or unsubscribe mechanism in the e-mail message or by contacting us at the contact information provided below. Note, if you choose to opt out of such communications, we may still retain and use your personal information for transactional, administrative or other purposes.
You have the right to access or correct the personal information we maintain about you and, in some circumstances, you may require that we erase the information, or you may object to or request that we restrict our processing of the information. You have the right to withdraw consent where we rely on your consent for use of your personal information. In certain cases, you may have the right to have us transfer your personal information to you or a third party in a common, useable electronic format.
Additionally, you may have the right to lodge a complaint with your national Data Protection Authority or equivalent regulatory body.
You may exercise certain of these rights, such as correcting certain of your personal information, by doing so through your account on our websites. You may withdraw consent to marketing and certain automated email communications by clicking the unsubscribe link or following the unsubscribe instructions in the communication or in certain cases, by adjusting your preferences within your website account.
For other exercise of your rights or to ask questions or convey any complaints or concerns about our collection and use of your personal information, you may contact us at the contact information below.
SECURITY OF YOUR INFORMATION
We maintain reasonable and appropriate security measures to protect your personal information from loss, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction.
OUR RETENTION OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
We will retain your personal information for the period necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Notice unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law, for legal, tax or regulatory reasons, or other legitimate and lawful business purposes.
Note that, by law, we are currently required to retain Transaction information for seven years following the date of its closing.
If you have questions about our retention for a specific purpose or context, you may contact as the contact information below.
THIRD PARTY LINKS
Our websites may provide links to or the ability to connect with third party websites, services, social networks, applications or social media features such as “Share” or “Like” buttons. Visiting those sites or clicking on those links may allow the third party to collect and use information about you. We recommend that you review the privacy notices and terms of use of such third parties prior to interacting with them or providing them with your personal information. REALM does not control the use of your personal information by these third parties.
CHANGES AND UPDATES TO THE PRIVACY NOTICE
We reserve the right to change, modify, add or remove portions of this Notice from time to time and in our sole discretion, but will alert you that changes have been made by indicating on this Notice the date it was last updated. When you visit our websites or provide us your personal information under circumstances covered by this Notice, you are accepting the current version of this Notice as posted at that time. We recommend that you revisit this Notice on occasion to learn of any changes.
IDENTITY OF CONTROLLER; HOW TO CONTACT US
REALM, LLC is the controller of the personal information we collect and process.
You may contact us about matters pertaining to this Notice at the following:
By Email: concierge@realm-global.com
By Mail:
Attn: REALM, LLC
PO Box 1440
Jackson, Wyoming 83001
