Aussie real estate agent apologises for murder jokes in house listing

A property listing for a NSW home has come under fire for its "disgraceful" reference to "murder", with the agent boasting about the generous yard being big enough to "bury a body" — after killing your spouse.

While intended to be humorous, "there's absolutely nothing funny" about domestic and family violence, says Professor Susan Heward-Belle from the Sydney School of Education and Social Work, with advocates slamming the agent for the "inappropriate" remarks.

Property listing is 'condoning violence'

Seen by Yahoo News Australia on Tuesday, the listing for the home in Tottenham, 140km west of Dubbo, asked prospective buyers, "does the sound of your husband/wife’s voice irritate you enough to fantasise about their possible murder?".

It went on to say that the home, with an asking price of $269,000, "has a large, shady back verandah (sic) area to lock them out on … so you can have wine in peace" and also bragged about a massive yard that has "plenty of space to bury a body". Plus a fireplace to "burn the evidence".

Agent's response to backlash

Listing agent Averill Berryman of ABC Property claimed there'd been a strong response to the sale due to the "creative" listing after the original, more straight-up description received "a lukewarm response from buyers". She told Yahoo they'd received "so much humorous feedback" online and it was supposed to be "something to laugh about".

"It did not even enter my mind that it would be something people would get upset about," she said. "It was supposed to be cheeky. It was a tongue-in-cheek throwaway line.

"No harm was intended and there was definitely no intention to incite any kind of domestic violence or anything like that. If it has offended some people, then I apologise for that".

The listing has since been changed back to a more generic description. While this is a "positive" step, Professor Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Director of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre, questioned how it was approved in the first place.

"It's terrible. I'm honestly shocked. Men's violence against women is a national crisis in Australia," she told Yahoo.

"That fantasising about killing your wife (or husband) and burying their body in the backyard is still pitched in 2023 as a funny one-liner highlights how far we have to go in achieving a safe community for women and girls."

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Domestic violence is a 'national crisis' in Aus

Recent ABS data shows that an estimated 8 million Australians (41 per cent) have experienced violence (physical and/or sexual) since the age of 15, including:

• 31% of women and 42% of men who have experienced physical violence

• 22% of women and 6.1% of men who have experienced sexual violence

In the last month, six women in Australia have been killed, five allegedly by men known to them, Fitz-Gibbon cited, "and yet here we see violence pitched as a joke," she added.

"Community attitudes that condone and excuse violence are highly problematic and contribute to breeding the disrespect and inequality that drives violence against women."

Professor Silke Meyer, from Griffith Criminology Institute, agreed telling Yahoo that "references like this one are neither funny nor appropriate".

"We all have a role to play in changing community attitudes around domestic and family violence. That includes not making so-called jokes about gendered and family violence," she said.

"These comments have no place in our communication — neither in public marketing nor private conversations with our mates."

If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au

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