In the summer of 2022, a local man placed his Mobile, Alabama home on the market with Keller Williams, expecting professional representation to find a buyer. What he got instead, according to an ethics complaint and subsequent formal findings, was an open house that doubled as a personal modeling session for the agent running it—complete with a photographer friend capturing poses throughout the property that were later posted online with no address, no listing details, and no clear connection to any sale.
The property located in West Mobile was listed under a 45-day representation agreement signed June 8, 2022. The listing agent, Scott Williams of Keller Williams Mobile, arranged an open house for July 10. The man prepared the home and left the area for the day. Security cameras allowed him to monitor remotely. What those cameras captured formed the core of an ethics complaint he later filed with the Mobile Area Association of REALTORS®.
A temporary salesperson licensee named Michaela Ferguson appeared at the property to conduct the open house. Accompanying her was Lydia Gross, identified as a friend and an employee of Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux who was not a real estate licensee. Gross carried a camera. According to the seller’s signed complaint, the camera was used “solely to take photographs of Ferguson.” Two prospective visitors came through. Neither submitted an offer.
Days later, photographs and videos surfaced online. Ferguson appeared seated on furniture inside the home, posing on the porch swing, standing at the front door with materials in hand, reading in the kitchen, and modeling outside the brick facade. The posts—appearing on accounts associated with both Ferguson and Gross—contained no property address, no price, no listing information, and no indication the home was for sale. Captions and hashtags promoted Ferguson as a real estate agent and Gross’s photography work. One Instagram post from Ferguson’s account showed her on the porch swing with text about a “cozy porch swing to my home wishlist” and hashtags including #dreamhome and #buyingahome. Posts from the photographer’s account framed Ferguson as “a BEAST of a real estate agent.”
The seller contacted the listing agent and then the qualifying broker, Melissa Babcock. He withdrew the listing on July 18, 2022. He texted Ferguson demanding removal of the images. According to the complaint, some were taken down, only for others—including a pre-scheduled post—to reappear weeks later. The seller stated that when he raised the issue again with Babcock, she described his request to remove the photos as “ludicrous” and suggested he should feel “proud and flattered” that his home had been used that way.
On August 25, 2022, the man filed a formal ethics complaint with the Mobile Area Association of REALTORS® against Ferguson and Babcock. He charged violations of Articles 1 through 16 of the Code of Ethics, focusing particularly on Standard of Practice 1-16: “REALTORS® shall not access or use, or permit or enable others to access or use, listed or managed property on terms or conditions other than those authorized by the owner or seller.” The man argued he had authorized neither the personal photo shoot nor the presence of a non-licensee photographer for modeling purposes. The complaint noted that the open house produced no offers and that a subsequent brokerage succeeded in generating showings after the Keller Williams listing was withdrawn.
Ferguson and Babcock submitted a joint reply. Ferguson stated she had been asked by the listing agent to host a “seventh level” open house that included paid social media advertising, door-knocking, signs, gift cards, a lender, and a photographer “to further market the home and the open house.” She said the work was done with her own time and money and with the listing agent’s permission. Her “number one intention,” she wrote, was to secure an offer for the seller. She acknowledged hoping “to have some good photos that I could also use to market my services” and claimed she “honestly never thought of it being an issue to a seller.” Ferguson said she apologized, offered to remove the photos, and complied once notified of remaining posts. She described a pre-scheduled post that briefly reappeared as an “accidental oversight.”
Babcock’s statement confirmed she received agitated calls from the man, immediately withdrew the listing at his request, and understood the photos used for self-promotion had been removed. She characterized as “ludicrous” any suggestion that the brokerage compensate the seller because the agent had allegedly benefitted. Both respondents raised concerns about the man’s background, citing online information about prior charges and a pending grand jury matter, and noted that Gross filed a police report after she alleged someone visited her workplace regarding the photos, which was proven to be a false allegation. These claims about the man’s history were not part of the Hearing Panel’s findings of fact on the ethics violation and were characterized as “personal attacks unrelated to the misconduct at hand”.
The matter proceeded through the association’s process. After notices, challenges to potential panel members, postponements due to illness, and scheduling, a formal ethics hearing took place via Zoom on April 6, 2023. The Hearing Panel consisted of Deborah Luca Robinson (Chairperson), Libba Latham, and Carolyn Norman, all local Mobile-area real estate agents.
In its Decision of Ethics Hearing Panel, the panel found the following facts: Ferguson held the open house on July 10, 2022. A photographer she hired was present and took photos and videos later used on the social media accounts of both Ferguson and the photographer. The seller was not informed the photographer would be present or that the images would be posted. He did not authorize the taking or use of any photos or videos of the house during the open house. Nowhere in the photos or videos did the property address appear. After photos were removed at his request, a pre-scheduled post later appeared.
The panel concluded that Michaela Ferguson violated Article 1 of the Code of Ethics, supported by Standard of Practice 1-16. Melissa Babcock was found not in violation. There were no prior violations on record. The recommended discipline was a Letter of Reprimand from the MAAR Board of Directors advising of a lack of professional conduct. The panel noted that Ferguson “now understands the issues,” had “learned valuable lessons about the practice of Real Estate,” “expressed remorse,” and “apologized to the Complainant for her actions.” Future similar conduct, the decision stated, could result in more severe sanction.
The decision was not final at the time of issuance and remained subject to appeal rights by either party within twenty days, with a $500 deposit required. The documents provided do not include a final Board of Directors action or any subsequent appeal outcome.
The case illustrates a fundamental tension in modern real estate practice. Social media has become a primary marketing tool. Agents routinely photograph themselves in front of listings, stage lifestyle content, and build personal brands. Yet the Code of Ethics draws a clear line: listed property may not be accessed or used on terms other than those authorized by the owner. An open house is a marketing event for the property. Turning it into a modeling session for the agent’s personal Instagram—without disclosure, without the owner’s knowledge, and without any visible connection to the listing—crosses that line, according to the Hearing Panel that reviewed the evidence.
The seller’s complaint emphasized that the posts contained “no advertisement anywhere of the address of the property or any indication that the property is listed for sale with any details about the property itself.” The panel’s findings echoed this: the images advanced the agent’s and photographer’s personal branding, not the sale of the home. Two visitors walked through; zero offers resulted under the Keller Williams listing. After the withdrawal, a different firm generated activity.
Ferguson’s reply framed the photographer as part of an aggressive marketing strategy intended to benefit the seller. The panel did not accept that the personal-use element was authorized. The broker’s reported remark that the seller should feel flattered underscored a cultural disconnect: what one party viewed as free publicity, the owner viewed as unauthorized commercial exploitation of his private property.
The documents also reveal secondary friction. The seller texted Ferguson and contacted the photographer’s workplace. Respondents described these actions as inappropriate and concerning, and Gross filed a police report. The Hearing Panel’s decision, however, rested solely on the unauthorized access and use of the listed property and the failure to obtain the owner’s authorization for the photo activity that occurred.
In the end, the formal process delivered a measured outcome: a finding of violation against the agent who hosted the open house and directed the photography, no finding against the broker, and a letter of reprimand rather than suspension or more severe penalties. The panel recorded that the agent expressed remorse and had learned from the episode.
From Mobile to the Pacific Northwest
Public records and current professional listings show that Michaela Ferguson did not remain in Alabama. After launching her real estate career in Mobile—where she “specialized in relocation services and built a national referral network”, according to her own current professional biography—she relocated to Washington state. She is now licensed and actively practicing as a REALTOR® with Windermere Professional Partners at the Puyallup Meridian office, located at 12114 104th Ave E., Puyallup, WA 98374. Her contact number remains the same one used during the Alabama events: (253) 307-2872. Her Washington license number is listed as 23019508.
Ferguson’s current professional profiles describe her as a co-owner of the River & Ridge Home Group and a specialist in residential sales serving Western and Central Washington. She markets herself as providing “Luxury Service – At Every Price Point” and highlights roots in Puyallup and the Pacific Northwest. Her website and social media content include posts about Ellensburg, Washington—such as coverage of local businesses like Flirt Boutique and upcoming events in the Ellensburg area—indicating activity and client service in that Central Washington community as well. One professional Facebook listing associates her with Ellensburg, WA, alongside her Windermere affiliation.
Her online biographies openly note the transition: “After earning my real estate license, I launched my career in Mobile, Alabama… Now based back in Washington…” and “Before becoming a licensed real estate agent in Washington, she was a real estate agent in southern Alabama.” She continues to promote a personal brand centered on high-end service, relocation expertise, and lifestyle content—elements that featured prominently in the disputed 2022 open-house photos.
The ethics finding in Mobile remains a matter of public record through the association’s process. Whether the Letter of Reprimand was ultimately issued and whether any further internal consequences followed is not detailed in the available documents. What is clear is that Ferguson left the Alabama market where the violation was adjudicated and established a new practice under the Windermere banner in Washington, operating out of the Puyallup Meridian office while also engaging with Central Washington markets including Ellensburg.
For property owners, the episode continues to serve as a cautionary example. Listing agreements and open-house authorizations should be read carefully. Owners who monitor their properties via cameras may discover activities they never approved. Agents who treat a client’s home as a ready-made backdrop for personal content risk ethics complaints—and formal findings—when that content fails to serve the seller’s interest first.
The Mobile Area Association of REALTORS® process confirmed that using a listed property for an agent’s modeling session without the owner’s authorization violates the Code of Ethics. The house was supposed to be sold. Instead, for one afternoon in July 2022, it became a set. Years later, the agent at the center of that finding continues practicing real estate—now more than 2,500 miles away in Washington state.