Real estate agents, already feeling the brunt of a slowing market, are now facing the brunt of a Pierce County sign law.

Last month, county road crews began removing and throwing away signs found to be illegally installed on the county right of way. Among many of them: ones used to market homes for sale and open houses.

The sign roundup is part of a county-wide effort to enforce long-time sign laws that was tested last summer with a two-month pilot program intended to declutter roadways.

Since Feb. 15, county workers have collected and taken to the dump 1,320 signs, said Bruce Wagner, the county’s road operations division manger. Nearly half were real-estate related, he said.

Agents who’ve lost signs are lamenting the cost of replacement, inconsistently applied rules and the harm the removals are causing their business.

“The county’s never been this aggressive in doing it,” said Jo Jensen, an owner of the Re/Max Partners office in Gig Harbor. “It’s impacting our business, it’s damaging, it’s very costly. It’s not just the agents that are upset, it’s the sellers. In a market where there’s lots of inventory, signs are one of the things that make their phones ring.”

County staff and real estate agents are meeting today to discuss the sign removal efforts.

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