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I rush, I rush, feeling the heat through the window and as I get in and out of the car. 30 min in a home, circle the first floor, up the stairs, down the stairs, walk around the yard, back inside, another look at the kitchen and overall layout, then back in the car for a 15-45 minute drive to the next home, then circle the first floor, avoiding other buyers then up the stairs, down the stairs, check out the deck on this one, then where was the laundry again? Off to the next and on and on and on.
Baby spit up again, time to change his clothes, his diaper before the next one. Funny noises to make him smile and stop the fussing, as I reach down to pick up his toy (will his mother ever remember to bring the clip to keep it hooked to him??)
I’ve lost track of how many homes we’ve rushed through today, much less in the past month, but we have no choice. They come on the market on Thursday, showings, if we’re lucky start Thursday evening or Friday, then offers often due in Sunday evening at 6 (I’m still on the road with 2 more houses to go!!), a blessed few are due Monday morning (oh how I want to sleep in by then rather than get up early to write the offer). With seller responses due back either Monday night or occasionally Tuesday noon.
GRUUUUU – Someone is forcing a faster timeline, hoping that the listing agent won’t let the competing agents know, hoping he’s written a contract that’s just great enough that the sellers won’t want to lose it, and will accept right away. Instead, the listing agent, now pulled away from reading bedtime stories to his children for the first time in a week, has to notify the other agents, and they in turn have to rush rush rush to get their offers in now instead of Sunday evening. Their buyers harassed and hot and so tired of having to decide on such a major purchase immediately, without the ability to really discuss the home and sleep on their decision, praying they are making the right decision and more, that this time, this time, their offer will be the better one that the seller will accept. Feeling a bit ashamed but gleeful when the one who caused us all to rush rush rush – missing Easter Dinner with our family, missing Mother’s Day brunch, not being able to tuck our children into bed at night, all to satisfy his willingness to push the envelope of the set deadline, wasn’t the one that was accepted.
A few sellers start out saying they want their home to go to a buyer who will love it as much as they do, but emotions fall away when someone waves $30,000 over list in front of their face. Oh, but this one has no inspections, and this one no appraisal rider, but this one has an appraisal gap rider, saying he’ll guarantee the seller that he’ll bring $30,000 to the table above the appraisal price if it doesn’t appraise (not to exceed the agreed upon sales price, of course), and this one will even give me a 2 week stay in his timeshare if I accept his offer!
Buyers trying to balance their budgets as much as their fear that they won’t be able to compete with other buyers, trying to calm their fears that if they buy a home without inspections, it won’t turn into a money pit a month after closing.
And here I am shoveling dinner into my mouth so I can get back to writing the next offer, often up at 1 am, waiting for signatures so I can send it on to the other agent, who has assured me that they will add it to the stack, since I called and talked to them before their self-imposed deadline to say I just couldn’t make it. But I understand their reasoning, they have to get the offers in, review them, go back to the submitting agents if something isn’t clear or is missing on each offer, then put them in order to present, often printing off at least one if not 2 copies of each offer so the sellers can read them over or have a copy of whichever one they accept. With one or two offers, it doesn’t take that long, an hour to an hour and a half, but when it’s 18 to 20 or 40 offers simply because the sellers refused to accept any more after the 40th one came in, it takes quite awhile to know what each one says so you can present it correctly.
Cherishing the few evenings that I don’t have to show property, flooded with happiness that it’s not pouring down rain as I drive and show homes, praying that the ice won’t melt in my tea before the day is over, being grateful when we finish a home early and can run through a Starbucks drive-through to pick up an ice tea (loads of ice, please), before heading to the next home. All for the rush of WE GOT IT!!! My client’s offer was the one that was accepted!! Short lived, as I head to the computer to process the contract, create the to do list to get to closing, negotiate the inspections (if we were able to negotiate doing them at all), coordinating with the other agents, title companies, lenders, municipal inspectors and and and
So often buyers fill the evenings, but the days, those are just as busy. Filled with my sellers, helping them get their homes on the market (take care of repairs upfront, make it look “pottery barn cute”), let’s get the municipal inspections done, let’s set the timeline that works best for this seller (can you go stay with relatives while we show your home???) When do you want to close? What perks do you want the buyer to give you in the contract?
Sorting through the offers, making sure I have everything and each offer is in order as I outline them and prepare to present them. Doing the paperwork to accept the one the sellers like the best, then it’s time to notify all the agents whose buyers got beat out once more that they will have to be back on the road tomorrow, while I’m processing the accepted offer and starting the coordination with the other agent, title companies, lenders, inspectors, and and and
Praying that the heat will break, and the a/c in the office will get fixed and I will get everything done to get to that closing 30 days from now.
