Dawn Whalen, Realtor, GRI

So you've received a call and an agent wants to show your house. Fantastic! So you scurry around and make sure everything is picked up, but being the great seller you are, the home is always show ready, so there isn't much to do, other than a quick dusting, and making sure everything is as it should be!

You anxiously await to hear from your agent with feedback. At the time you listed your house your agent told you that feedback is generally provided within 24-48 hours and it would be sent to you as soon as it was received.

24 hours go by and nothing, so you check in with your agent to see if they've heard anything. And they haven't.

48-72 hours pass with no feedback. And your agent is trying to get something to no avail.

Unfortunately not all agents provide feedback, and many of them have valid reasons.

It may be that their client is very interested in the property and they don't want to give away how much interest there is. The client could be checking into financing, prior to deciding to make an offer, or comparing your home with another and trying to come up with a decision that makes sense for them. And their agent, who is working in their best interest is not going to tell the seller "We love the home, it's perfect everything we've been looking for & we think it is priced below market value" because they want to be able to negotiate fairly.

It may be that there was no interest at all, and many agents act on the belief that if they aren't going to send an offer on the property, that is feedback enough.

There are agents that feel it is not up to them to tell a seller that they are overpriced, the home needs cleaned/updated etc, because they feel the listing agent should do that. On the flip side of that, sometimes they look at feedback as critiquing a home & if it is priced right, in great condition, they feel the seller and sellers agent should already know that.

While it is discouraging to leave for a showing and then get no feedback at all, it does happen. I'm not saying its right or wrong, unfortunately its a fact of the business.

But if you look for the positive, you have just let at least one agent and one consumer take a look at your home, and if it isn't the right one for that buyer, the agent may have another buyer it would be perfect for, or the buyer may have a friend/family member who is also looking that the home may be perfect for.

If you or anyone you know are wanting to buy, build or sell with an agent who is a stickler for providing the good, bad & the ugly in feedback, then feel free to contact me at www.dawnwhalen.com, or 317-893-0648

***Originally posted on www.dawnwhalen.blogpsot.com

Today while out showing homes, I was once again reminded why I love my job.  Every day is different, and you never know what is going to happen.

It started out well, but as the day went on, things got a little scary.  We arrived at one home, where the seller was still home along with his two kids, and three cats.  I knocked on the door before entering as we did see a vehicle in the driveway, and the garage door was open. 

The seller answered the door, and I introduced myself & verified that the showing service had notified him of the showing.  Yes they had he told me, but we’d caught him at a bad time, as he was trying to make the kids clean the house.

I told him we would be quick & the buyers and I made quick work of taking a look at the house.  Unfortunately they probably should have started cleaning the house long before they did, because the sink full of dirty dishes, full litter box, overflowing trash cans & toys scattered thru out were not as bad as the cobwebs, and the white doors and walls that the filth completely stood out on. 

A quick look thru, and we were gone.  On the way to the car the buyers said that they will pass, not sure if it was filth or the strong smoke smell that turned them off, but on we went.

We went to another home in the same subdivision that was on our list.  Unfortunately these sellers hadn’t shoveled their driveway, and there was still about 6 inches of snow from the latest two snowstorms we’ve had.  We were prepared for this one though, as the listing agent had put in the showing instructions, “home does not show well, needs cleaned”.

What we were not prepared for was the door being open, no cars in sight & a pit bull that came running out of the door growling & barking at us.  And it wasn’t a friendly bark, we immediately turned around and went back to the cars.  So, not sure how bad the interior was, but I did let the agent know that we didn’t make it in due to the dog.

At the end of the day we decided these two sellers did not really want to sell.  Fortunately there are other homes to choose from out there, so we will keep looking. 

If you’d like to have an adventure while looking for your next home, feel free to contact me, I’m only afraid of spiders!!

Dawn Whalen, GRI

317-893-0648

www.dawnwhalen.com