I attended a home inspection with my buyers this weekend. They are in escrow on their new home after having searched for two years with another agent.
The buyers have been a bit restrained in their enthusiasm as the transaction proceeds through opening escrow, ordering the appraisal, reviewing disclosures. Well, it's not like those tasks are all that exciting, but since they will ultimately lead to the buyers taking possession of their new home, they are milestones that bring the transaction step by step to closing, and I could tell that my clients are being cautious not to get too attached to this home, just in case something were to derail the transaction.
"John", the husband, has always been friendly enough, but just a bit impatient. When viewing homes, he would want to know how many we would see, and he seemed to be counting down to his freedom, which would come only after we viewed the last home.
When we viewed the home that they are purchasing, I could tell that he really liked it. It has everything they were looking for, and he commented that there isn't a single project he'd have to do after moving in. Still, he wasn't optimistic about the offer being accepted.
We wrote the offer that day, and by the next, we had an accepted contract. Still, "John" was waiting for the axe to fall. We had discussed the possibility of appraisal challenges, but the original offer was wrritten in such a way that we had a really good chance of overcoming that challenge. Even with a low appraisal value, the deal is still on because the challenges were anticipated and addressed.
The buyers brought in an excellent lender, who has already obtained loan approval. The approval came in so quickly, that we still hadn't done the home inspection.
When we arrived for the home inspection, "John" was impatient, as usual. He spent time doing something on his iPhone, pacing a litte. As we walked through the home on Sunday, with the seller showing us how certain items operated, I began to see "John" get excited about the home. I commented about the first real smile, which came when the seller demonstrated the built in surround sound speakers in the family room. He said, I'm just not going to get excited until I know it's a done deal.
The next smile came as we went through the back yard. The seller demonstrated the cascading built in fountain at the corner of the yard. He mentioned how he and his wife will turn on the waterfall at night, as they're going to bed, and fall asleep to the sound of the water. "John" seemed to like that idea. I didn't comment, but I said to myself, "That's two!".
The third smile was also outside, when we were walking through from the back yard to the front, and I mentioned how nice it was to have gated access for a car or RV from the front to the back. He agreed, and then came that smile, the one that is different from the generic, "Hi, how are you" smiles - the polite, conversational ones. I guess he has something specific in mind for that spot.
Finally, the best and biggest smile came when an outlet at the outdoor bar area was pointed out. The seller mentioned being able to plug in a radio, or additional lighting. Well, "John's" daughter knew better, she said, "Or you could plug in a blender!". Yup, you could tell he was picturing himself floating on the pool, margarita in hand, and just loving life in his new home.
When I finally had a moment alone with my clients, I let them know that with the successful home inspection, and no major repairs needed, or work to be negotiated, since their loan approval had already come through, it was TIME to start getting excited. We had past all of the major hurdles that could derail the deal, and now we'll be sailing through to the closing.
For a second, I thought that "John", not necessarily the hugging type, just might grab me for a hug.
With all of the headaches that this job sometimes entails, I sure loved counting smiles this weekend. These buyers had just about given up on getting a new home, and now are just days away from obtaining the keys to their dream home. Being a part of that process with these buyers has renewed my excitement about my work. My job is more than researching properties, opening doors, and pushing papers. Today, real estate is AWESOME!
