I have been trying to close a sale on a listing I have since April. We have had an offer since then, and been working with a very difficult buyer and his agent. My sellers have accepted a reduced price, which is common in any market. They have given up the appliances they intended on keeping, in order to make the deal happen at no additional charge. They have paid for a well and septic inspection as required by the county. They even have agreed to pay the buyer up to 6% in closing costs.
We uncovered a legal description issue where the driveway they were using had never been conveyed, so I worked it out with person who legally owned the parcel to sell it to them. The sellers ultimately had to file a title insurance claim to settle this issue, but we navigated through all of this and continued to move forward.
Despite all our efforts, the buyers delayed submitting some of their required paperwork. The agent working for them was allowing them to do so. They delayed the appraisal, and other required actions for their loan until the last minute. My sellers already granted one extension, because they want to sell their home.
The appraisal came back a few thousand dollars less than the agreed upon price, and so the buyers agent came back requesting a price reduction. After much deliberation, by sellers agreed to meet them halfway. Conceding another thousand dollars.
Of recent, because the home is a manufactured home it requires a structural inspection. The house had been inspected by a previous firm several years ago, and passed. The new inspection yielded the information that the straps for the home to the foundation were not properly installed, and therefore it failed. My sellers paid $450 for all the materials and installed the straps, and the second inspection was ready to be lined up.
Apparently the buyer paid $400 for the inspection, and the inspector was requiring an additional re-inspect fee for a second trip of $175. The buyers agent contacted me and informed me that the sellers needed to pay for this. I informed my sellers, and they said 'enough is enough' and held firm.
They are willing at this point to put the house back on the market, and seek other buyers. I am still trying to navigate through all the parties to obtain an agreement to possibly salvage this, but at what point do you have to say 'Enough is enough' and move on?
One can say of course 'Well you have come so far!' Most certainly there is truth to that. However, from the sellers perspective, they need the funds from the sale of their home to be able to purchase a new one, and with every turn this number is getting chiseled away at.
So I find it hard not to agree with them on this viewpoint. I certainly do not want to start all over with a new buyer, but there is a point where I have to ask myself, 'Is this buyer really serious about buying this house, or is it the agent causing all the problems?' Is it time to say 'Enough is enough'?
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