I have been working with a client for a while and we finally found a great horse property that she thought would be great, and better yet, it is a short sale, pre-foreclosure home.  I have had very good luck dealing with short sale homes in the past but this whole deal has been less than perfect.  The buyer is going FHA which is fine except there are certain imperfections to the home that require a little work.  The buyer is even willing to correct the items. 

We originally were going to write an offer on the property and found out there was at least one other offer, or so the agent said.  I verbally told her what our offer was and asked what the other offers were.  She told me she was not at liberty to say.  Isn’t that part of negotiating?  I always try to get better offers for my clients unless it is written in the contract not to disclose offers…which my clients never have requested.  Anyway, she said that the contract was already sent in to the lender and should be accepted in the following day or two.  I spoke to her a few more times and she would not disclose anything.

Two weeks go by and the listing is Active again!! We submit our offer and expect it will be accepted after two or three counters.  Surprise…the lender countered and expressed that this is as low as they go…period.  The home has been on the market for more than 400 days and the gap between offer and acceptance is $7,000.  With my clients’ offer I substantiated it with:

1. Pictures detailing damage to:
1. The roof
2. The ceiling
3. The floor
2. Comparative analysis for the last 6 months substantiating the offer.
3. Cost analysis detailing repairs.

I haven’t heard anything from them.  What would you do?