The one that got away...from SOMEONE ELSE!

Way back when... I was a Realtor, This is the one that got away. (From someone else)

I arrived at the office on a Saturday morning, and parked in the farthest, DISTANT corner of the lot. (Leaving room for customers near the front of the office). As I exited my car I noticed a really bad smell. PHEW!

There was a really beat up car parked near the front door of the office. The closer I got the more pungent the odor became. (I was really glad I skipped breakfast). The car was such a clunker, dented, paint peeling, dirty, donut tire on one wheel, a tent tied to the roof, JAMMED PACKED with 5 LARGE dogs, clothes, boxes, bags, a small Bar-B-Q tied to the trunk, a scraggly, dirty man sleeping in the driver's seat, and a scraggly, greasy haired woman in the passenger seat. They were asleep, and the dogs were hanging out the windows wanting to be petted.

I tried to approach, but SERIOUSLY the smell was so bad I couldn't. I hollered to the man, "Can I help you?" He startled and said "Yes! Please! Help us! We want to buy a house, we've been camping and living out of our car for almost 2 years. No one will help us!"

At that moment 2 gals in the office peeked out the door and motioned me to come in. I told the couple I would be right back.  As I was yanked into the office, the gals said "OMG! We called the cops to get those bums out of here." I said, "they want to buy a house". The girls said, "Yeah, right." Others in the office had gathered and were again calling the police. I said I was going back outside to talk to the OBVIOUSLY HOMELESS people.

Just then the police arrived. The police and I conversed with them (from a distance - because of the smell). They hadn't committed any crime, and just wanted help buying a house, so the officer left. I contacted a motel manager I knew and he said they could come and use the shower. The maintenance man at the motel gave him an old CLEAN pair of coveralls to wear and the woman some clothes from the lost and found.

Now that I was finally able to get close and converse with them the man told me his story: He had a business and a partner 2 years before. They got sideways with each other, and closed the business. Fighting over the assets brought them to court, which FROZE every dime they had. They eventually lost their home, cars, and all their furnishings and belongings they had put in storage; (It was auctioned when they couldn't pay the bill). Lawyers cost them every dime they made at a job he had taken. They attached his wages, so he quit working. His wife was disabled. They were depressed, they gave up, and wound up camping in the hills, homeless.

Back to the present day...On the day before, Friday, as this was Saturday, his assets were UNFROZE by the courts. He had $186,000 CASH and wanted to buy a house, THAT DAY! The CASH WAS IN THE CAR, in a duffel bag! (He refused to keep it in the bank - can't say I blame him!)

I knew the perfect little house in the country! He put down the FULL AMOUNT of the purchase price as earnest money, the seller let them move in THAT DAY, at 4:00 PM and the deal closed in 2 weeks. I had BOTH sides. The buyers OWNED the home FREE and CLEAR, and had $36,000 leftover. The dogs had a HUGE fenced yard to play in.

So the OTHER agents learned, not to JUDGE people, and to reach out to those in need. I learned how great it feels to HELP folks in need.

Side-note: I took a job selling cars years later, a scraggly homeless guy rode up on a rickety bicycle. I had just had my "UP" so I was last in a line of 5 salesmen that had to take their turn before me. All 5 salesmen in front of me laughed and joked about the "bum" looking at cars. I said someone go see what he wants. The sales manager, acting like an idiot, laughing it off said, "Why don't you!!!" So I did.

The guy lived in an abandoned shed, worked hard doing odd jobs, and had $14,000 cash in his backpack from helping a local contractor remodel a house. He had JUST got paid at the END of the remodel job, and I sold him a truck! The salesman that originally had the "UP" actually had the nerve to demand I split!  LOL, LOL, LOL, I didn't!