Depression, anxiety, nervous jittery feeling that something is not right.

Maine is getting sunshine..lots of it so every one should be a happy camper here in "Vacationland" right?

But keeping everyone in the wagon that climbed into the wagon doing real estate transactions is not always easy.

     Usually in a divorce dynamic that has dragged on, suddenly the unhappiness and stress of the relationship or derailment of that union spills over into the other life compartments. Quickly the job a person has is not fun. The kids are driving that person nuts. A dark cloud can come over the life of the people we deal with, console, or just plain listen to. Buyers and sellers. Bankers, lawyers and inlaws, outlaws. They are all in the tilting, listing wagon and affect the mood, direction, attitude, health of a deal. Death of a loved one, worry about kids that are not communicating or rebelling can cause the strain, the stress, the down feelings too.

     As real estate brokers, we run into it all because we are smack dab in the middle of people's lives..the good times, the low points. Today, trying to perserve a closing in a situation where there is no money left over to fix last minute wrinkles. There was not enough money to really get to a closing, but thru creative efforts and sheer willpower, it appears to be continuing on a rocky path toward the ultimate real estate plateau, the closing. A house that has garbage piling up, a cat left inside to do what cats have to do, a washer disconnected by a son not really knowing what up and damage being caused from the leaking water because the machine was full when the power got cut off. Damage control, soothing feelings, taking heat from frustrated, exhausted buyers and sellers thru the ordeal of buying a home that is a real value but with lots of issues...house wise, people wise.

     Traffic control and relaying communications with banks, lawyers, creditors, and even extended family of each buyer/seller who have inquiring minds and are buzzing in the background for better or worse. Too many people adding their two cents worth. But the way it is, is the way it is. No one get shook up. Keep a cool head. Relax, keeping focused on the bigger picture...this sale is good for everyone, but a bitter pill to swallow. Medicine that needs sugar. Lots of sugar. The difficult sales where you are Dr Phil, being a good listener and staying postive. Going back and forth. Keeping people on track, with here's the way it is perspective and what the options are when few options exist. These are the sales that when you get the closing to happen are battle weary but rewarding when you think of the kids who need a home, a neighborhood to grow up in. To trick or treat, to have Christmas / Thanksgiving traditions at, sleep overs, tenting in the back yard with neighbor friends. It often for me comes down to tuning out the yak yak yak from eighteen parties and seeing the kids in the final analysis...they need a home.

     You make concesssions to hold it all together when it boils down to just no money left over in the transaction to deal with the extra mine fields that detonate as you get within a day, hours of a closing. Wish me luck for today's 11 am closing. One seller without a cell phone that works, is my biggest concern for his attorney to locate so if the closing happens, it has both players, both owner's on board to sign, notarize the deed. And get on with their lives, with the buyers and their kids allowed to do the same.

It's like real estate turbulence..but everyone buckle up, you can hear the landing gear being lowered, the order for the trays to be put in an upright position, along with your seat. Easy, easy, keep it lined up straight for the airport and watch that descent angle.

That's my latest report with the hand crank phone, bullet riddled artillery helmet from the real estate fox hole as tired troops on both sides, their banker, their attorneys, their creditors all limp along the dusty twisting road behind enemy lines where trust has gone somewhere in a hand basket. A real estate transaction has bumps, dips, twists, turn. Enjoy the straight and narrow, the easy trouble free sales and remember the rough edges, sharp barbs sales. The ones that did not happen, the ones that happened way way too easy with little guidance. Check your arms, legs, mind for the real estate scars any practioners collects during their career.

Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers - Maine, It's Way Way Friendlier, Healthier, Beautiful Than Most Places.