Mr. Home Seller, Don't Ask Your Agent To Lie For You!

Mr. Home Seller, Don't Ask Your Agent To Lie For You!

It happened again last night.  Checking out the new listings for matches for our buyers and one caught my eye.  Four bedrooms in a development I know they like.  The price seems a bit low.  Marketing remarks mention "4th bedroom in newly finished lower level".  Zoom in using bird's eye aerial shots and rotate home around all four sides, no sign of a basement walkout or egress windows. This isn't looking good. 

Next step is to contact the listing agent to query if there's an egress window that I missed.  Response:

"It has a standard basement window, but he says an egress window could possibly be installed in that room, if the Buyer wants to do so."

And that's when I had to take my fingers away from the keyboard to avoid a HUGE case of snark attack.  That statement and MLS offering is a recipe for disaster in more ways than one.  Let's just ignore the potential firetrap you're calling a basement bedroom....okay, actually we won't, because if I take a buyer through they're NOT going to be happy!  You know why?  They've now decided both the home seller and agent are liars.  Been there, done that, buyers get irate because they're in the home under false pretenses.  That buyer will NOT be buying your home.

Seriously, by the same principle as long as we're being creative, why not advertise the home as having granite counters (after all, the buyer COULD install them), as having a pool (the buyer COULD install that too), and having any other feature the home doesn't have, because the buyer COULD add it as long as zoning rules and money aren't an object.

Bottom line, don't ask your listing agent to create "features" your home doesn't have.  Either add the features for real or don't claim them.  Puffery is one thing, outright lying is another.  Don't go there, and don't ask us to.

Serving Warren County's home sellers and buyers,

Liz and Bill aka BLiz 

P.S.  When CAN a basement bedroom legitimately be a bedroom?  When you have a minimum of TWO ways out!  Can a firefighter with an airpack make it through the window? NO?  Then you can't count that window as an egress.

REALTORS(S) Serving Warren County Ohio & Adjacent Areas

The Liz Spear Team of RE/MAX Elite
Elizabeth & William Spear
Ask for us by name if you visit the office!
Two locations: Lebanon & Mason, OH
Liz direct:  513-265-3004
Bill direct: 513-520-5305     
Fax: 866-302-8418
MailTo:  LizSpear@Go-Concepts.com
Our Website:  www.LizTour.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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