I am smiling as I realize how bountifully blessed that I am. Current and past clients seem to have a knack of sending me the right note at the right time. The following brightened my morning:

He Said, She Said... He said...What have you been doing with all the grocery money I gave you?
She said...Turn sideways and look in the mirror! On a wall in a ladies room..."My husband follows me everywhere"
Written just below it... "I do not" Q.How many honest, intelligent, caring men in the world does it take to do the dishes?
A.Both of them.

Q.What is the difference between men and government bonds?
A.The bonds mature. Q.Why are blonde jokes so short?
A.So men can remember them. Q. How many men does it take to change a roll of toilet paper?
A.We don't know; it has never happened.

Q.What do you call a woman who knows where her husband is every night?
A. A widow. Q.Why are married women heavier than single women?
A.Single women come home, see what's in the fridge and go to bed. Married women come home, see what's in bed and go to the fridge. Q.What is the one thing that all men at singles bars have in common?
A.They're married. Man says to God: "God, why did you make woman so beautiful?"
God says: "So you would love her."
But God," the man says, "why did you make her so dumb?"
God says: "So she would love you."

Now we know that she got this from somewhere else, passed it along to many people, I received and also passed it on. Men, please don't be offended, just smile and enjoy.

So, what's the lesson behind the email? If you are looking for the right home--don't give up, and don't be afraid to change from your original plans.

There are points for buyers and for agents in this transaction.

#1: This client called me from cruising the Internet.

#2: I still can't figure out where she got my name, but she originally called on a piece of land that I did not personally list. when I researched the MLS had been sold. She did not call from my website with P2A where I also have agent handshake. I still can't figure it out.

#3: They wanted to buy land and install a modular home on it and willingly became my clients--the search was ON! *This client had complained that she couldn't seem to get service from agents she called. Buyers--make a note here: There are differences is levels of service we can provide to customers, and to clients. If you feel that you are not being served you most likely need to formulate a committed Client-Agent relationship. If you are calling listing agents, their 1st duty is to their Client, the seller. However, if that agent also works with buyers, you can become their client as well. However, I would not choose to commit myself to an agent who did not ASK for a committed working relationship.

#4: It became a bit frustrating with as what was available did not meet their needs or desires.I began sending them SF resales that would meet their established budget. They were pre-qualified with an out of state lender. They asked me to look at their proposed loan break down. I ran it by some local lenders who were more familiar with MS Home Corp funds. They saved tons of money! (Kudos to Sunny Mortgage)

#5: Depending on the time they had available for shopping, I would map out showings from 2 to 8 homes at a time.

#6: We looked in Gulfport, Biloxi, N. Gulfport, Woolmarket and Long Beach. One objective was to try for an easy commute to Keesler Air Force Base.

#7: At the end of a long day with dusk falling on us, I mentioned 1 last home in my own town of residence, Long Beach. The home was vacant and had been on the market about 9 months. We were able to get showing permission on short notice.

#8: This home welcomed them. It was a far cry from the original goals, It was a far cry from the goals that had been redefined, but it was the right house. We all knew it.

#9: By now we all had an almost immediate sense of value by looking at all the homes available that we had viewed. Even though the home had been on the market a long time--we decided to offer list. Did that make me a bad buyer agent? You decide.

#10: The clients felt the value was there. I felt the value was there. Could it be that the reason it had not sold was because the owner also knew the value was there and was simply not entertaining lower bids? 

#11: The Listing Agent let me know that there was another offer that came in almost the same time that ours did. We won by a couple of hundred dollars. She felt the reason it had been on the market so long was because the owner had JUST finished putting in new  of which she, the agent had recommended from the very beginning. The owner had hedged thinking that at a reduced price, buyers would prefer to put their own new flooring in. To our advantage, past prospects had not seen the "value" without the updated floors.

I usually close with a summary of points made. Instead, for this time I ask you to see if there are any lessons here that could be useful to you. This happened in Mississippi, but in my opinion applies to real estate transactions everywhere.