(02/22/2007)Perhaps the real estate market is experiencing a correction? Or maybe it’s a new wave of homeowners cashing out? There are many possible interpretations, but one thing is clear: The landscape remains dotted with signs.

Numerous for-sale signs have sprouted like dandelions across many a well-kept East End lawn. Yard signs are considered one of the oldest and best forms of advertising that a house is on the market.

Good signage, brokers say, is a necessary part of doing business.

“We usually wouldn’t place a sign in estate areas or on properties over $25 million,” said Susan Breitenbach, a senior vice president with the Corcoran Group’s Bridgehampton’s office, on Monday.

“From doing the stats for the last eight years, I can tell you that the tally of ‘ups’ shows us, year after year, that signs are what people call on most, second only to the Internet,” said Kim Norgard, an agent with East Hampton’s Devlin-McNiff, in an e-mail. “It’s tough to keep really accurate records, but just going percentage-wise, signs rank way up there.”

Several real estate professionals report that the number of calls on signs that convert to closed sales is higher than that for Internet-call customers. However, this doesn’t mean signs convert more callers into buyers than any other advertising media, just more than Internet calls.

Signs build awareness, added Ms. Breitenbach. “Brokers show what they know.”

For all the benefits, of course, there are also downsides: first and foremost, the cluttering-up of the landscape.

“They are very effective, yet can become obnoxious if not given boundaries. Such as the case of having more than one per property, exceeding size restrictions, neon, and not being properly maintained,” said Judi Desiderio, a broker and owner of Town and Country Real Estate in East Hampton, Bridgehampton, Westhampton Beach, and the North Fork.

But can tact and good taste be legislated? Several communities across the country have implemented ordinances to curb real estate signs.

“I’ve never seen a sign on the island,” said Terry Norton, an administrator with Nantucket’s Historic District Commission. The department regulates all manner of signs, and real estate signs do not meet the town’s code requirements.

“We have very strict rules,” said Ms. Norton.

“Seeing six for-sale signs in a neighborhood is an eyesore,” said Greg McKechnie, a broker and principal at Great Point Properties on Nantucket. Operating without real estate signs “cleans up the facade.”

In areas where yard signs are prohibited, potential homebuyers and renters depend on agent knowledge, print advertising, Internet, and multiple listing services. “We subscribe to a local listing service that can give addresses,” said Mr. McKechnie.

“Several years ago [my husband] and I approached town leaders about banning signs,” said Lynn Epstein, a co-owner and broker at Devlin-McNiff.

The couple had lived in Westchester, and within their community of Pelham Manor, real estate signs were prohibited. Homeowners were allowed to place a small for-sale sign on their front door.

“The general effect was wonderful,” Ms. Epstein added. “We have recently spoken to members of L.V.I.S. [East Hampton’s Ladies Village Improvement Society] about the same subject, and hope they might take on the issue as part of their village beautification mission.”

“There are several communities in East Hampton (Clearwater, Lion Head) that do not allow real estate signs, and houses have no trouble selling in those areas,” Ann Rasmussen, a licensed sales associate with Devlin-McNiff, explained via e-mail. “I worry about the seller who lives on a street where all of a sudden five houses come on the market, then when we take customers around they wonder, ‘What’s wrong with this street?’ ”

“Add to this a slowed market and signs remaining for 6 to 12 months, it can be demoralizing for the sellers, not to mention the residents on the street,” she added.

“Customers often remark, ‘Wow, there’s a lot for sale’ or, ‘Is everything for sale in this town?’ Sometimes this makes them feel like they can take their time to buy since there is ‘so much on the market.’ In this way signs can be a detriment for sales,” said Ms. Rasmussen.

While East End home sales may appear weak in comparison with record surges from 2002 to 2005, consumers are beginning to respond. However, the apparent ebbs and flows have prompted real estate professionals to utilize other tools in publicizing listings.

“Not everybody wants a sign on their lawn,” said Ms. Breitenbach. “In those cases, it’s important for the broker to get good pictures of the property for the Web and work harder to get the word out.”

“The Internet is an effective means of leads,” said Ms. Desiderio. “But I laugh when I read agent claims that they get 500 hits in a month.”

“In my 25 years of brokering deals out here, I can’t imagine 500 calls in a month, and boy would I be depressed if I were a seller and my house was shown 500 times and not one person made an offer. The Internet is like a child’s new toy . . . it’s just another tool.”

While a majority of brokers agree that signs do bring results, some have voiced a desire to give them up for the benefit of the community and its appearance.

“The point is [signs] don’t need to be any bigger than the size of a license plate or mailbox to accomplish what they need to,” said Stuart Epstein, a broker and co-owner of Devlin-McNiff in East Hampton. “As long as there is a level playing field, I would support sign regulations that would” reduce the size of real estate signs. “It would leave a much nicer aesthetic impression about our beautiful East End.”

“I am for miniature signs or getting rid of them altogether,” said Ms. Rasmussen. “Buyers will use other avenues to find houses: newspaper, Internet, and best of all, us!”

“Regardless of how we personally feel about signs, they do work, and they’re a proven advertising tool that makes the phone ring, and sometimes turns into a sale,” said Ms. Norgard. “Interestingly, our number-one source of sales has always been, by far, repeat customers!”