It Was Just Like HGTV!
A young couple attending university called me one day to see a duplex we have for lease. So I met them there and showed them a sad and neglected apartment. Such is the state of the market where I live and work, having gone through the hurricane last year, many residences are just not what they used to be. And that is not a good situation in a community of university students looking for a place to live near the school.
So I asked them if they had thought about buying a place instead of renting and that it might actually be easier and more financially sound in the long run. I told them about the $8,000 tax credit for first time home buyers. I think that is what sold them on the idea.
We sat down at the office and I explained to them how buying a home worked, from getting pre-qualified for a mortgage, the search, the offer, negotiations, the acceptance, appraisals, inspections, closing and filing for their tax credit. They had lots of questions and did lots of research on their own. And off we went to find a condo that was walking distance to school and in their price range.
The only bump in the road came when my first time buyers went off on their own and found a FSBO condo that they just fell in love with. I knew something had happened because I didn't hear from them for a week. Little did I know that the FSBO sellers were trying to convince my buyers that they didn't NEED a Realtor and that they would be able to buy this condo with the seller's guidance.
OMG. I could feel my heart start racing with the shot of adrenaline coursing through me when my buyers came to me for advice. Thankfully, they had talked it over and had come to the conclusion that yes, they probably could do this on their own, but they would feel so much more comfortable and confident having someone trained (and trusted) in real estate sales on their side!
We worked out how the commission would be paid in a FSBO situation, crafted an offer and I called the sellers to present it. I told my buyers that it would be best if they left the room while I talked to the sellers. (My buyers were very nervous!)
Well, it was not pretty! Neither buyers nor sellers were on the same page about anything even though they had talked together amicably and smiled at one another as they talked over the particulars of the sale. (That's why you need representation). Thankfully I had sent my buyers out of the room while I presented the offer to the seller. So they weren't there when the seller, exasperated, asked to speak to them (so she could harangue a commitment from them). I simply said they aren't here. After the phone call, I sent the sellers an email expressing my apologies for any misunderstandings and inviting them to make a counter offer.
Needless to say the FSBO deal didn't work. But that's okay because I quickly took my young buyers back out and showed them a Bigger, less expensive condo (it didn't have all the pretty things in it) and they were able to see the value even in the empty spaces!
We made the offer on the bigger unit and by now my newbie buyers felt like veterans of the process.
The closing was last Friday. They brought me cookies and I ate them all. They tried to read every word of the closing documents and the closer gently nudged them on. And afterward we hugged and took pictures.
And it was, Just Like On HGTV!
