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A Tale of Two Walk-Throughs

By Elizabeth Bolton

Real Estate Agent with RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA

July 17, 2009 02:45 PM

I'll never forget my first final walk-through when I realized that sellers weren't required to leave their home spin and span - just swept and empty. Streaky counters, spots on the bathroom mirror - just a general feeling of yuck as we walked around the empty rooms.

Yesterday I was lucky enough to have two closings - and two very different final walk-throughs.

Final Walk-Through #1

trash next to a trash can I had a bad feeling about this one when I heard that the movers had just left. Sure enough, the condition of the house left a lot to be desired.

Sticky, unwashed counters
Crumb-filled drawers
A fridge that had been emptied but not cleaned
Lots of flotsam and jetsam left behind in the garage
Half a dozen full trash bags left outside
Several switch plate covers removed and not replaced

Final Walk-Through #2

These sellers were moving out of the country and they had a lot of belongings to deal with - the cellar had been packed with their stuff. But what a pleasant surprise!

The house (including the fridge!) was immaculate - clearly the sellers had come back to clean or had a cleaning service in
That full basement? - empty!
Nothing was left behind in the house except toilet paper in the bathrooms (thank you!).
Outside several trash bags were lined at the side of the house. The sellers had arranged for their neighbors to take the bags to the curb on trash day.

hands in yellow rubber gloves with cleaning supplies As real estate agents we always keep our fingers crossed on the way to the final walk-through. It's such an exciting day for the buyers - you don't want them to be disappointed. And since often this is the first time they're seeing the house emptied of all the furnishings and accessories it's sometimes a bit of a letdown. In an empty house any dirt or refuse stands out like a sore thumb.

I often think of the home sale process as a reflection of character. It's certainly an opportunity to practice the golden rule. When you're moving out do everything that you can to leave your home the way you would have liked to find it the day you moved in.

An immaculate house puts a smile on everybody's face and helps to make sure the closing is the happy, celebratory event that it should be.

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Elizabeth Bolton

RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA - Cambridge, MA

Cambridge MA Realtor

Hi Brittany ~ I try to drop as many hints in advance as I can and to be as specific as possible about things that should be done.

Hi Marchel ~ My sellers are usually quite good about this - but every so often when I'm on the buy side it's a disappointment.

One of my own closings was just awful. The seller had moved all of her stuff out - at least most of it - several weeks before the closing and was living with a sleeping bag and eating off paper plates. I didn't do a walk-through because I was busy and I figured how bad could it be. Well every bit as bad as you could ever imagine. To this day I am stunned that that woman (I want to call her something else) sat across the table from me knowing how she had left her condo. It was a pig sty - half eaten food strewn across the kitchen counters, bathrooms so dirty I ended up gutting them both, and three trash bags full of junk I took out. Learned my lesson for sure - ALWAYS do a final walk-through!

Hi Judi ~ Too funny - I didn't see Rich's post. We must be on the same wavelength.

Liz

Jul 17, 2009 03:26 PM

Bridget Cella

Re/Max Connection - Sewell, NJ

e-Pro, Realtor

Good for you having two closings! The walk throughs are always surprises!

Jul 17, 2009 03:31 PM

Chuck Carstensen

RE/MAX Results - Elk River, MN

Minnesota/Wisconsin Real Estate Expert

I am so used to messy bank owned homes I dont recall a clean walk through.

Jul 17, 2009 04:11 PM

Vickie Nagy

Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate - Palm Springs, CA

Vickie Jean the Palm Springs Condo Queen

Our purchase agreements require "broom clean and no debris", but I have been pleasantly surprised for the most part.

Jul 17, 2009 04:13 PM

Jeff Dowler, CRS

eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA

The Southern California Relocation Dude

Liz - this is often a bone of contention. The standard is "broom clean" and some perhaps make it. There are some where I have been totally embarassed that buyers had to move in...and took care of cleaning for them...and others where the sellers did far and beyond what anyone would have expected.Obviously with the bank sales you cannot expect anything positive - you are lucky to have the crap cleaned out.

Jeff

Jul 17, 2009 04:16 PM

Ashley Sharum

972.978.3109 - Dallas, TX

Ebby Halliday Realtors

Agreed Liz! My company lists REO properties, so we try and keep them as clean as possible, but it can sometimes be difficult with so many viewers trapesing through during showings.

I love working with buyers and seeing their reaction to a sparkling clean home before closing, though.

Jul 17, 2009 05:01 PM

Margaret Oscilia

Creative Concepts-Home Staging and Contracting, Salem Oregon - Salem, OR

Home Stager, Salem Oregon

I've never moved into a house that was really clean -- that would be wonderful! I think most people are so busy moving they don't consider that the buyers are going to be disappointed when the home is dirty and requires hours of work.

Jul 17, 2009 05:31 PM

Paula Swayne

Dunnigan, Realtors, Sacramento (916) 425-9715 - Sacramento, CA

Realtor-Land Park, East Sac & Curtis Park -Dunniga

Hi Elizabeth!
It reminds me of that saying...you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. It holds true for houses too.

Jul 17, 2009 05:59 PM

Karen Anne Stone

New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX

Fort Worth Real Estate

Elizabeth: What a treat for both you and the buyers when they walked into the second home. The sellers were great in the way they left the home... but YOU the Realtor ended up being the one they thought of when they saw this immaculate home. What a great source for referrals. Cool !

Jul 17, 2009 06:15 PM

Andrea Swiedler

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties - New Milford, CT

Realtor, Southern Litchfield County CT

Hi Liz, first of all, 2 closings, way to go!

If I have a feeling about this as a listing agent I will drop by the house in the days before the closing. I usually try to beat the buyers agent to the walk through because I want to know what I am facing at the closing. I have been known to be hauling crud out of the house, cleaning counters, etc., before the buyers see the home at the walk through.

Jul 17, 2009 11:41 PM

Leesa Finley

RED Properties - Wake Forest, NC

RED Properties - Raleigh NC Real Estate

Oh my, I have had some doozies for final walk-thrus. What a terrible way to leave a home! Interesting how both of yours were such polar opposites! Great post for us though to use as a reminder to educate our sellers prior to closing!

Jul 18, 2009 12:19 AM

Monique Combs

Royal Shell Real Estate - Bonita Springs, FL

Royal Shell Real Estate - Monique Combs

I can almost tell from contract time what the final walk-thru will be. In Maryland it just needs to be broom swept. So, it the sellers are messy during the showing process chances are it will be the same at final walk-thru. So, I do prepare the buyers for this. It saves face at settlement.

Jul 18, 2009 12:48 AM

Elizabeth Bolton

RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA - Cambridge, MA

Cambridge MA Realtor

Thanks Bridget! And you know how people hate surprises - except good ones.

Hi Chuck ~ I can only imagine given what they look like when they're on the market.

Hi Vickie ~ Ours are supposed to be "broom clean" and beyond that is up to the good will of the sellers.

Hi Jeff ~ The difference can really set the tone at the table that's for sure.

Hi Ashley ~ Good for you to try to keep the REOs in order - no easy task.

Hi Margaret ~ As I wrote this I tried to imagine what my first house *really* looked like when I pulled away - in tears, with a packed car, and the buyer idling in the driveway. I kind of doubt it was sparkling but I hope it was presentable.

Exactly Paula! And for the people who own/ed them.

Hi Karen ~ It really did make for such a nice experience all the way around - a very happy closing.

Thanks Andrea! Thank goodness trash disposal is so easy around here for most things - and that I have room to stash paint cans until hazardous waste day. My station wagon comes in handy some days.

Hi Leesa ~ My own remains my worst story - and a good cautionary tale to share with buyers.

Hi Monique ~ I made sure to call my buyers as we were heading over to the house. We did have low expectations as a matter of fact.

Liz

Jul 18, 2009 01:31 AM

Myrl Jeffcoat

Sacramento, CA

Greater Sacramento Realtor - Retired

Elizabeth - Your post reminds me of a walk-thru memory from a few years ago. The sellers moved their things out of the house. They painted all the interior walls (asking the buyers what colors they wanted first). And then had a cleaning service come and professionally clean the home and windows. It was left in turnkey condition. . .That's a very rare sight in todays world of short-sales and foreclosures.

Jul 18, 2009 01:46 PM

Renée Donohue~Home Photography

Savvy Home Pix - Allegan, MI

Western Michigan Real Estate Photographer

We never ever know. We don't have to worry about this too much these days as the amount of vacant homes we sell is very high. Short sales has a ton of extras walk off at the end. We even had a house vandalized in April three days before doc signing (growl!)

Jul 19, 2009 02:35 PM

Elizabeth Bolton

RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA - Cambridge, MA

Cambridge MA Realtor

Hi Myrl ~ That's a wonderful story - talk about going the extra mile - or several.

Hi Renee ~ It's such a feeling of relief to turn over those keys - especially when the house is empty - you worry the whole time.

Liz

Jul 19, 2009 05:03 PM

Sandy Shores FL Realtor®, Melbourne Real Estate

M & M Realty of Brevard Inc. - Melbourne, FL

Brevard County Real Estate, Florida's Space Coast

Hi Elizabeth, It is interesting to see how different sellers leave their properties when they move. Some are not so tidy and others are immaculate. I have cringed a time or two in walking through a property and wondering how the sellers could leave the home they way they did.

Jul 22, 2009 06:14 AM

Elizabeth Bolton

RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA - Cambridge, MA

Cambridge MA Realtor

Hi Sandy ~ No kidding, huh?! I know that moving is a crazy-making time but sometimes it does boggle the mind.

Liz

Jul 22, 2009 01:03 PM

Kathryn Acciari

Central One Federal Credit Union - Shrewsbury, MA

Mortgage Loan Originator

At the final walk-through of my own first house, there was egg on the house because the property had been attacked at Halloween, furballs left from the dog, litter everywhere. After closing, we arrived with keys in hand to find a police car on the curb and the sellers in a fist fight on the lawn! Hopefully, I can help my buyers avoid this. Great post (love your formatting and graphics too).

Jul 23, 2009 06:16 AM

Elizabeth Bolton

RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA - Cambridge, MA

Cambridge MA Realtor

Oh my goodness Kathryn - that takes the cake!! A fist fight on the front lawn - yeegads!! One for the books.

Liz

Jul 23, 2009 03:37 PM