No, No, No. Your House Did Not “Got Bought!”

/ Ally Bean

I’m not a fussbudget about your word choice.  I prefer that your words be nuanced and precise, but if they aren’t most of the time I let it go.  ‘Cuz I’m a kindhearted English major, you know?

I didn’t used to be like this, but I’ve mellowed over the years because, ironically, people have disappointed me so many times that I’ve become charmingly cynical, with incredibly low expectations about what people do or how they do it.

And it’s from this jaded point of view that I’m going to tell you, my gentle readers, about a local realtor who upon selling a house, puts a sign out in front of it that says:

GOT BOUGHT!

Apparently the time-honored SOLD will not work.  Nope, this realtor goes with what I can only assume is a play on the “Got Milk?” marketing campaign, combined with a good old-fashioned rhyme.

I get that this is a clever + seemingly harmless use of the English language.

And I also admit, openly and freely, that what I’m going to write in the next paragraph contradicts one of my favorite sayings: “do you want to be right or do you want to be happy?”

But in this particular case I’m going to declare that I. Want. To. Be. Right.  I want to see SOLD signs.  Now tell me, my gentle readers, is that asking too much?

80 thoughts on “No, No, No. Your House Did Not “Got Bought!””

  1. I suppose a big old sign screaming “SELLED” would be worse, but I have to say that I’m not finding the marketing ploy very entertaining. Stick with SOLD. That’s all you need.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Deb, yes “SELLED” would be worse. Clever of you to think of that! 🙂 But I’d have many second thoughts about using this realtor before signing a contract with him. It’s a ploy, alright.

      Like

    • Maggie, they did cross a line. I don’t know why these signs bug me so, but they do. Of course the way real estate companies come and go, this one will be out of business tomorrow and the signs will be toast. I hope.

      Like

  4. Hell, my realtor didn’t even use sold signs. They didn’t have any. I was told it was something about looking busier with the sales sign still in place? It made no sense to me.

    But “Got Bought?” Oh my word.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. I don’t appreciate the marketing technique at all. Does it drive sales? Who can say? I know that I personally wouldn’t want a GOT BOUGHT sign in front of my house. But you know how people are, thinking all attention is good attention. This definitely got your attention.

    Did I ever mention that the first time we saw our house, someone had painted GREATFUL over the sink? You know I painted over it when we got the keys, right? We didn’t even live in it for another week. Sure, I painted bedrooms, but not before obliterating GREATFUL.
    Amazing this house ever SOLD.

    Liked by 5 people

    • nance, I immediately thought of you the first time I saw one of these signs. I knew that you’d hate them. I think it’s a stupid way to get attention, but apparently whoever this realtor is must be doing well because I see these signs way too often. Wouldn’t you know?

      Like

  8. That nearly isn’t as bad as one realtor in my area (now no longer selling houses) that used signs that said “Lost another one to SOLD” when a house actually sold. It’s a play on the slogan that Ditech used back in the day (they’re still in business!) that had a rival loan company saying “Lost another one to Ditech.” The sign the realtor used was viewed in poor taste in a market where there was significantly more buyers than inventory. I’m not an expert on the English language, but I’m better than most in my mastery. It would behoove some to go back to school and brush up on the rules.

    Like

    • Andrew, you win the worst SOLD sign sighting. Those are idiotic. I remember those Ditech commercials and cannot imagine why any realtor would think a play on their words would be a good marketing idea.

      I agree that a refresher course in English would behoove many people– especially those who proudly display their names for all to see on signs along the way.

      Liked by 1 person

  10. I’m still in mourning the fact that people are using Gift as a verb in everyday conversation now, so I don’t think I’d need to tell you which side of the For Sale sign I come down on.
    Got Bought? Ugh, smack someone for me will ya!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Norm, yes, I don’t like the way people use the word “gift” as a verb either. Nor do I like to hear anyone say that a person is “home officed” [meaning that they work from home]. All these people who use the English language in such sad ways could use a Gibbs smack upside the head. 😉

      Like

  12. Too funny. You sound like my husband and one of our neighbors who took issue with the name of a particular roofing contractor’s company. The sign reads Kustom. My husband and his friend maintain they wouldn’t trust anyone with their roof who doesn’t know that custom is spelled with c.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Allie P, I tend to agree with your husband. Alternate spelling is problematic. Can I trust that the company actually knows the spelling is wrong & that they’re doing it as a clever marketing gimmick? And if they’re this lax about spelling, then will they be as carefree about roof installation? Hmmm…

      Liked by 1 person

  13. I mean, WHY?!? Just no. Granted, I regularly lose it over the local idiom “will you borrow me that?” so I’m the perfect audience for a rant about “got bought”.

    Liked by 1 person

    • katie, you said it with: “just no.” I see no value in these signs. They got my attention, but there’s more to selling real estate than grabbing attention. Now about your “will you borrow me that?” I’ve not heard that one, but it doesn’t roll off the tongue, does it?

      Like

      • I think it’s a Wisconsin thing. I never heard it before I moved here. The word lend doesn’t seem to be in the lexicon. Makes me crazy – even some of the smartest people I know use borrow/borrowed instead of lent or lend.

        Liked by 1 person

  15. That’s in the same category as printed materials for public dissemination with grammatical and spelling errors. Or the huge sign painted on a store window saying “Going out of bizness”. Okay, I made that one up.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Carol, you’re right. These signs are exactly like error-filled printed materials. I can’t do a thing about the signs, and try to ignore them, but honestly what’s wrong with just saying SOLD? How difficult is that?

      Liked by 1 person

  16. Oh my word. You should have a sticker ready to put over those signs when you see them! I imagine as an English major this sort of transgression bothers you as much as typing errors bother me, the transcriptionist. Not that I don’t make mistakes once in a while of course. I work from home but I am definitely not “home officed!”

    Liked by 1 person

    • Janet, I have to laugh at the idea of a sticker ready to “correct” the signs. Couldn’t you just see me getting caught in the act of defacing the sign? That’d be my luck. The “home officed” description is just plain weird, yet I hear people say it. I don’t know why it’s so difficult to say “work from home.” I don’t know many things…

      Liked by 1 person

    • Donna, “got bought” is in a font that looks like the “got milk” font so I think that’s how I made the connection. It’s just a guess, really. Who knows for sure what these signs are all about! 😉

      Like

  21. There is simply nothing cute about this sign. It’s bad … but then again, the word ‘got’ makes me cringe at the best of times. I can’t think of a single instance when “got’ sounds appropriate to use. Maybe it’s just a personal bias.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Kate, for all I know this realtor could be a fired used car salesman. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

      Real estate companies come and go around here, as do the people who work for them. Once upon a time there were recognizable company names, but now it’s a mishmash of people who do their own thing. Obviously.

      Liked by 1 person

  25. No, it’s not too much to ask. Got Bought is totally lame, and doesn’t really rhyme, not truly, and the Got Milk? stuff always has a ? at the end, so this doesn’t even qualify as that. It just comes across as a realtor to whom English is a second language. Or a realtor who just moved there from West Virginia or the bayou of Louisiana. Lame. Lame. Lame.

    Liked by 1 person

  28. I. Would. Cringe. Sorry–I have to put my foot down on some of these crazy twists on words and phrases that our culture seems to be leaning toward. There should be a certain degree of professionalism in the working world.

    If I saw that sign I would not EVER call upon that realtor for his/her services. I would be afraid they’d give me a tour of a house and say, “Got fireplace. Got 3 bedrooms. Got pool. Got an offer?”

    Liked by 1 person

    • Kate, you said it: “There should be a certain degree of professionalism in the working world.” That’s my issue with these signs, although I didn’t say it as well as you did. I know that I’ll never consider this realtor to sell my house, and would be reluctant to buy a house that this realtor was selling.

      I almost didn’t write about this subject because it’s a little thing, but then I thought that by not shining light on this bit of stupidity I’d be missing an opportunity to discuss wordplay, the pros and cons of said.

      Like

  33. OK so I’m late to the curled-up lip, buggy-eyes and “you what?” reaction here … but any estate agent (UK for realtor) who tried to do that to me would end up spilling blood. Actual blood. But I’m one of those who still shouts “meeaand …?” at the screen for those who should be saying “X and I”. My excuse is that I’m old and grey and … you know, educated.

    Liked by 1 person

    • deb, I can overlook many things, but this sign drives me bonkers. Realtors come and go around here, so I assume anyone with this sort of take on SOLD won’t last long. Or at least I hope so…

      Like

Comments are closed.