Real Estate Closing Disasters, and how to avoid them.

Buying or selling a home is a very emotional experience for many people. Everything can appear to go smoothly  during the negotiations, but  when you go to the closing table, it seems that the Dr. Jekyll /Mr. Hyde buyer or seller comes out. What exactly just happened?

It's either a lack of communication that causes the last minute closing debacles, or quite frankly, it's someone's ego. It  doesn't have to be intentional, and many times it isn't. What may be very important to you is not as important to someone else. When you find out some tidbit of information just prior to the closing, when emotions run high, it's not unreasonable on your part to get upset,  especially when you feel that you should have known something previously. And yes, sometimes, it just feels malicious.

Yes, there are laws in Connecticut about disclosure, and I have found it very rare for something of extreme legal importance not to be disclosed. I'm talking about what was supposed to stay, what was supposed to be gone, what all of a sudden doesn't work, who doesn't have the funds wired into their account, etc. etc.

All the more reason to hire a professional and  experienced real estate agent  to represent you. I have talked to countless buyers and sellers who had purchased a home without the expertise, guidance, and negotiating skills  of a real estate professional,  and they ALL say that they would never go it alone EVER again. Yes, these last minute snags can happen when you are working with an agent, but that agent also acts as an intermediary on your behalf. What can easily blow up a deal without intervention, can be handled quite readily by a competent Realtor. And I just happen to know someone!




Timing, and Negotiating the sale of your home

Your agent just called you, and you have an offer on your home. When should you get back to the buyers with a yes, no or a counteroffer?  As quickly as you reasonably can, period. There is nothing worse for a buyer who has placed an offer on your home to have to wait DAYS for you to get back to them, especially when there is no excuse for it.

Have you ever heard the expression to "strike while the iron is hot"? If you have good reason to wait to reply, let your agent know, so they can inform the other agent that they will have an answer on such and such a time, and stick to it! Now I understand that you may want to, or  have to call your attorney before you respond, just communicate that. That's all. Let your agent know. The lack of a quick repsonse indicates disinterest to the buyer.  All of my clients have been wonderful, but it has always bugged me to no extreme how some agents (and attorneys, btw) will not return your call if they have nothing to report.

I just wasn't brought up that way, and a phone call to say, "Hey, I'm thinking of you. Just wanted to let you know that I haven't heard anything yet" goes a long way with me, and I always keep my clients up to date, or communicate with them so they are not left hanging.

Just to reiterate, no one is saying you must give an answer in 5 minutes- just don't wait days if you don't have to. You might want to respond in "strategic time", but that's a conversation that you and your agent will have had already, (or should have). One of the best rules of negotiating is to put yourself in the other's place, and imagine  what they would think of your reply. The goal is to make your negotiations a win-win. So when you need a top notch negotiator, call me. I'll negotiate for you, like I would for me, and my family :)
 


The Art of Negotiating Your Home Purchase

So you found that special home, and it's time to put in an offer.  Advice?  When your agent writes up the offer, make sure you include all of your optimum terms, and conditions right from the get-go.  That may seem like basic  knowledge to you, as the widely used offer forms have allotted spaces to include that information, but theres more to it than that.

Basic Terms and conditions  are the price, downpayment, mortgage amount, mortgage contingency date and proposed closing date. Other terms and conditions to be included in your offer to purchase are building inspections (including wood destroying insect,  radon tests, septic tests, and well recovery tests, etc.)
 
Here's an example of some additional terms that I am talking about. Maybe you like that dining room chandelier- if so, you better include that in your offer.  Maybe you would like the refrigerator, window treatments, or the washer and dryer, which was not included in the listing- you better include that, too.
Maybe you want to lower the downpayment amount, or you need to store some items in the house you are buying prior to close.

If you do not include these items in your initial offer, and request them later on in the negotiation, the seller may think that you are going to constantly ask for extras after the building inspection, and up until the time of closing.  You just look like you are nickel-and diming them if you don;t tell them up front, and asking for things later on in negotiations just sours everything, and it can very easily kill the deal just because of the timing.

An honest omission on your part would most likely not be a problem, however if there is some term, addition or contingency you want to add later, which in fairness, really should have been done at the beginning , you might as well just say goodbye to that house. Be smart. Your agent should be asking you questions, and should know you enough to know what is important to you. So trust your agents advice. Need an agent? Call me!  I've got 26+ years of experience, and have successfully negotiated Hundreds of sales.  I'll negotiate for you, too!

Multiple offers in a buyers market? OH, YES, it happens!

Most people think that if it's still a buyers market, then the possibility of  multiple offers doesn't exist. Just get that thought right out of your head right now! Multiple bids on a property happen in any type of market!

Just yesterday afternoon, I showed a client a home that had only been on the market a few hours.  It was a nice home, and she liked it  as soon as she walked in. I knew immediately that this home was priced very well, and I told her so. We made another appointment to go back  this morning, and came up with a few questions for me to ask the agent, who could then ask the owner, with pretty  much the intent of submitting an offer if all of those questions were answered to our satisfaction.

When I called the agent to find out the answers for what we needed to know, she told me there were already two offers on the property, and they are expecting one more tomorrow. So while the property is available today, it will be sold to someone tomorrow when the seller makes a decision.

I have to tell you, as for me- I hate telling a buyer client that they are in competition for a house that they love. And then there's that lingering doubt, is the agent telling ME the truth? Sometimes I think they are just trying to push a sale. A few questions to the agent after that conversation can usually tell me whether or not that's a truthful statement or ( a hopeful one) As for this house, I believe this agent was truthful with me. The property is priced VERY well.

So what  is some good advice that I could give you as a buyer, when you are in a multiple offer situation?

PUT your BEST foot forward! You are in competition with other buyers, and the sellers are  looking at the bottom lines of the offer. They won't have to negotiate with you. As a matter of fact, they can just accept one of the offers on the table, and not even bother to ask you for your highest and best bid.

When you hire me as your agent, I'll give you the best representation, and  I'll do my very best to get you the house of your dreams for the very best price.  You can bank on it.

Real Estate and Psychological Impact

Real estate can be a funny animal sometimes. Take for instance, the subject of Psychological Impact. That  is considered a non-material fact as it relates to  real estate transactions. A few examples of a psychologically impacted home  could be a home which is the site of a homicide or a suicide, or some type of felony took place there, and it could also mean that  the owner or occupant suffered from an infectious disease. Supernatural occurrences also fit into this category.

There is a  Psychological Impact Law in Connecticut that has been in place since 1990, and in laymans terms,  it pretty much states that if a buyer or lessor has a concern over a property's psychological impact, he must submit a request a writing to the seller, and the seller must return that answer in writing.

It is NOT a seller's duty, nor an agent's duty to disclose  any psychological impacts unless the request is made in writing, so if any of these instances trouble you, seek legal advice from your attorney, and discuss your concerns with your agent.