Maybe I care too much. Funny way to start a blog, but sitting here thinking about all the hours I have lost, not to mention tears...worrying, obsessing over a house, a client, a lost deal, the jerk agent who stole my client, the one that got away...
But you know what...I think it's better to care too much, rather than not enough. Especially when you are dealing with a person's BIGGEST asset...their home!
Here's a little story that proves my point:
Back in June, I had a client who was looking for a great home in town for herself and her family. After weeks of looking, the "right" house just popped up. A cute bungalow, on a quiet tree-lined street. One little kicker however...the sale of the house was "SUBJECT TO SHORT SALE".
For those of you unfamiliar with this term, it means that the house is in a pre-foreclosure state. The bank that holds the mortgage on the home MIGHT be willing to sell the house for less than what the actual mortgage amount is, rather than face going to foreclosure and dealing with all of those fees, not to mention red tape.
So I explained this to my buyer. That she was welcome to make an offer, but needed to understand that the BANK who held the mortgage to the home would have the final OK on if her offer was accepted and that it could take some time. Maybe months.
We went ahead and made our offer. The sellers were happy to have an offer, the buyer excited to have found a home, and the listing agent assured me that she dealt with short sales all the time and this should be a slam dunk.
Here it is...October 18th, and you know what? We STILL don't have an answer. My buyer decided to move on to greener pastures. She has found the perfect home. It's great for her. And shoot..its great for me. I told my buyer that before we would give up on the short sale home, I would do everything I could. And I really feel like I did.
I called the listing agent almost every single day, asking for updates. I talked to my broker, the Ohio Association of Realtors, shoot...I even sent out a mass e-mail to 25+ higher-ups at the bank, begging for someone to please get this deal pushed thru. I got thru to the assistant to the CEO of the bank. Not good enough. They had to talk to the listing agent. Who NEVER EVEN FOLLOWED UP.
And this morning, I called the listing agent and told her that my buyer has decided to move on. The listing agent never even tried to talk us out of it. Frankly, I dont feel like she did anything. Did she care TOO much about this deal? certainly not. But instead, she didn't care at all.
And do you know who the real loser is in this case? Those poor sellers. You know..the ones who owned that little bungalow. That loved it and took care of it, even when they knew it wouldn't be theirs much longer. He lost his job months ago due to downsizing. They could not keep up with the payments. So they turned to an agent hoping for one last shot...a short sale. They handed in paperwork as soon as it was requested. They answered all of the personal and embarrasing questions about their financial situation. They kept the house clean and even left a nice note for my buyer...just so she would love the house even more. THEY did everything they could. But did their agent?
I'm really not trying to toot my horn here. I guess I just have to ask...when it comes to YOUR biggest asset...do you want the agent who plows thru the business like a duck in water, or one who maybe "cares too much"?
* If you are facing a financial hardship, there IS help available to you. Please call me to talk privately and confidentailly.
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