Shall I choose my estate agent based on a punctuation error?

[milkwasabadchoice]

Obviously it's not the only criteria, but the decision has come down to two agents. One has an "it's" on its website that should be an "its".

This seems to have tipped the scales in favour of the other agent.

Is this madness? It seems a bit mad, but if you can't bloody punctuate properly on your website, you are a tad crap, IMHO. What do you think?

I know it's unreasonable, but I'd be the same. Ignorant EAs.

You mean 'not the only criterion'? Criteria is plural.

But yes, all things being equal, go with the company who've bothered to get it right!

I would! Doesn't say much about how they'd present your particulars (as it were).

Cooroo - nobody uses criterion nowadays (apart from you obviously).

That's the problem with the world ItsYonliMe

I think if that was the only deciding factor, I'd point out the punctuation error and monitor their reaction. If they are mortified and change it immediately - go ahead. If they look at you like you've grown another head, mouths open, gum revolving in a beastlike fashion - go with the other agent.

Cooroo I think I love you a little bit. Hope you don't mind.

Cooroo, do you use criterion? datum?

Yes, I would say criterion as a singular. Seriously, is that weird? I'm 53... does this explain it? TBH I hadn't consciously noticed people not doing so.

There's another thread about Latin/Greek plurals (in particular 'fora' which I wouldn't use). I'm not slavish about it - datum would sound overly pedantic to me.

This is the Pedants' Corner, otherwise I wouldn't have mentioned it!

I love hearing words which I wouldn't normally use (and I will try and use criterion from now on).

I'm away to look for the fora thread now!

Milkwasabadchoice - no I don't mind at all. It is better to be loved a little bit than never to be loved at all!

Have done a quick survey round the office - no one else says 'criterion'. I'm baffled, really didn't know it had fallen out of use.

I'd say criterion. And always use the plural verb with data - the data are, not the data is! Don't use datum but that's because I rarely talk about one single piece of datum.

And yes, I would rate an estate agency by its written presentation of itself, as it's their written presentation of your house that will get people in to look. DH and I still describe a single-storey house as a 'bunaglow' after the same word appeared in particulars of 2 different houses from one estate agency.

I would absolutely judge an estate agent on their use of its.

PILs recently put their house on the market. Their estate agent mentioned that their house has two bedroom's.

I nearly passed out.

If its not the only one then it's plural surely?
I love mn. I have learned more grammar on here than I ever did at school.

I ruled out a school on the grounds of it having a sign up saying 'when you've done something wrong, say your sorry'.

oops - if I'm in pedants' corner, I suppose that should be 'its having a sign up'. Save the gerund!

Gibber are you asking about the bedroom's?

It just shouldn't have an apostrophe in there.

I'd think the same as you, OP.

In fact I stopped frequenting a bakery that restyled itself as a 'pattisserie' for the same reason- if they couldn't get their sign right, who knew what they might be getting wrong in their baking?

Tsk.

of course people use criterion these days.

I used it yesterday (twice!)

datum - of course that's in use too - except it's not normally used, because you usually have more than one.

you don't normally have one datum, you normally have several data.

I would chose my agent on the basis of whether I liked them and thought they would sell my house tbh, not whether they used it's or its

and i think that internet forums is the acceptable (like mouses in computer speak rather than mice), but fora for all other areas of life. same as stadia etc.

LOL at bunaglows.