Adventures in estate agents, #1

[kaberett]

This here is a screenshot of the Contact Us form of an estate agent I was contemplating arranging a viewing with.

Title (sorry, "Salutation") is not an obligatory field; however, there is no blank option. The choices are, in the order listed on the website:

Mr
Mrs
Miss
Mr & Mrs
Mr & Miss
Dr
Dr & Mrs
Messrs

I-- I don't even know where to start.

Comments

[alexseanchai]

Nno 'Dr and Mr' or 'Dr and Dr'? No 'Ms'? Even leaving aside (which we can't, of course) the absence of same-gender pairs of prefixes and gender-neutral prefixes, WTF.

[kaberett]

nope but you see

there is messrs

...

with the assumption of the same last name????

um

I am kind of at SIBLINGS OR BONING :D???

[alexseanchai]

...oh is that what that one means?

[kaberett]

's short for "messieurs", yeah, i.e. plural "monsieur", i.e. two or more dudes.

It is archaic.

... I am also still kinda stuck on the fact that "Dr & Mr [different surnames]" is the correct form of address for the owners of the place I am currently living, and they're a nice middle-class suburban hetersexual married couple.

... I think this form is assuming not only shared surnames but shared e-mail addresses.

I. Just. What. No.

[alexseanchai]

Shared email addresses can be a valid thing. Provided all parties also have private email addresses. For example, if it doesn't matter which of my parents sees a thing as long as at least one of them does and if it doesn't matter that any of my siblings might see the thing, I email the address my family shares.

[redbird]

That can be a valid thing, but it should not be assumed.

[alexseanchai]

True point.

[swaldman]

yeah, this.... how can you have Dr & Mrs but no Dr & Mr?

[jelazakazone]

Clearly I'd have to go with Dr even though I have no right to that title because none of the other titles fit me.

Wow. These guys are clearly out of touch.

[kaberett]

On days when I don't feel like having a fight, I mostly just leave it sitting on the default and let them deal with their intense discomfort at the dichotomy between their perceptions of my gender and the way I've filled out their form.

[jelazakazone]

The trouble for me is that I'm (mostly) cis-gendered, but none of those labels apply to me because I didn't take my husband's name. See the problem? I'm neither Miss nor Mrs. What does that leave? LOL at the strategy of leaving it on the default and letting them sort out their own discomfort.

[rmc28]

Yeah, I have a shared email address with my spouse, but we have different surnames.

[forthwritten]

I like how NO ONE in my immediate family would be able to use that form apart from, perhaps ironically, me (Dr and Dr; soon to be Dr and Mr).

[hairyears]

As alway, people and organisations who fail at gender fail at a raft of other things - but this lot are estate agents (or worse, rental agents) and you'll have no better choices.

Nevertheless, you might point out that they can technically be sued for refusing the proper salutations of peers of the realm, knights, and holders of the Queen's Comission. That might motivate them.

Based on the evidence of their disregard for those who prefer gender neutrality or their own name without a label of their marital availability, these genderfailers are probably too stupid to be bothered by the knowledge that they are excluding (or offending) customers who hold divinity degrees (rev), members or religious orders (brother, sister), and those who omit all titles for religious reasons.

...And it's entirely possible that they are Christian fundamentalists, who have enumerated all the gender permutations of a household that can possibly exist, in their peculiar world - although the omission of 'Rev' is incompatible with that.

[beckyc]

I don't even...

[shanaqui]

We have immense fun with people calling us when I'm at home because of fuckery with "salutations".

"Hi, I'm looking for Mr C---?"
"Mr C--- is dead and never lived here. Are you looking for Dr C---?"
"What?"
"...Calling this household, you have an option of Mr W---, Dr C---, Miss N W--- or Miss S W---. Arguably also Mrs W---, Miss C--- and Ms Cr---, but they're the same people as the above."
"I..."
"Shall I put you on the phone with my mother, Dr C---? She's the only one who commonly goes by that surname in this house."
"...Yes?"

My dad and I take especial pleasure in annoying these people.

[fyreharper]

:toothy grin: this pleases me greatly

[naath]

What I find really weird is that they think "Mr and Mrs Smith" will want to fill the form in together; but that a group of people sharing will what? want to fill in the form once each? nominate one person to be the contact-estate-agent-person?

Do these people really NEVER deal with sharing friends? Even if they are so obnoxious as to assume that all cohabiting couples share a name.

[duckwhatduck]

Especially since they also have Mr and Miss Smith, which implies two people cohabiting, one male and female, who are not married but who share a surname.
So father and daughter, brother and sister, or unmarried mother with son, presumably?