I do subscribe to the notion that there is a buyer for every house, but the reverse is certainly not true. And there are a few instances where I felt very squeamish about houses my clients wanted to place offers one.
Buyer 1. An experienced buyer, my client had limited funds with which to work. Our search occurred during the time foreclosures and short sales were just making their appearance and in an area where there were multiple offers on nearly every home. After weeks of writing offers, and being beaten out, my client was frustrated and losing hope. So when we saw a rough fixer-upper in a poor location, she wanted to make an offer. Her thinking? No one else will want it. I explained that this wouldn’t be a good value for her with the amount of work it needed, and would have poor resale potential.
Her logic was clouded by emotion. In the end, she listened as I told her that I wouldn’t give up if she didn’t. It took us a total of 7 tries, but she did get a cute little house on a quiet street and she’s very content.
Buyer 2. This first-time buyer loved the location of a particular home but it was in terrible condition. The floor plan had been altered, and from appearances, probably without permits. The price tag was appealing to her, but it took awhile for her to understand what the true costs of ownership would be to bring the property to safe and livable condition. Her two friends who came along for the viewing were signaling me behind her back – ‘don’t let her buy this house! She set her emotions aside, and listened to three voices of reason.
Buyer 3. Another first-time buyer, this young man was desperate to leave his rental status due to 3 landlord prompted moves in a 2 year time period. He spotted a fixer in his neighborhood of choice. But again, a do-it-yourself addition was poorly executed, minimizing all natural light in the center of the house. Two bedrooms were tiny, with no possibility of expansion. And much worse was the noticeable termite infestation. It took some doing, but he did understand that there would be other houses and that his patience would pay off. Happily he ended up with a slightly larger house with no functional flaws. It had a much larger lot, an in-ground pool and a side yard access.
Most owner-occupant buyers have an emotional reaction when purchasing a home, often prompted by timetables and other influences. I’m certainly in the profession of closing home sales, but it’s really important to me that my clients don’t make an emotional decision without considering the practical and long term potential of the property.
Comments (12)Subscribe to CommentsComment