We fight for our clients…and we win!!!!
Just hours before the holiday weekend we received a call from the agent that represented the buyer on one of the homes we had on the market. We were literally a week away from closing and they wrote an offer that had no property or appraisal contingencies. The call I received was because the buyer wanted us to lower the price due to the appraisal coming in lower than their purchase price.
As I spoke with the other agent it became clear that she did not understand that her client could NOT cancel the contract due to a lower appraisal. I explained this to her over the phone by going through the contract and explaining to her why this was not possible. Nonetheless she sent over a request to lower the price and then sent email after email telling me why we should do this and that if we didn’t they would cancel their contract.
I become a Mama Bear with my clients, the money they receive from their homes is typically all the money they have for the rest of their lives. It is imperative that I do my job, and do my job well, so that they see the highest return on their biggest investment.
This particular situation required an agent that knew what they were doing in order to make sure that the seller did not end up sacrificing for the sake of the buyer and a mistake made by both she and her agent.
Upon receiving the request to lower the price, and several emails back and forth, I finally laid it all on the line and told the buyers agent that if they did indeed cancel their contract the seller would rightfully keep their deposit. Long story short…we won and the buyer is moving forward and closing escrow.
This is a perfect example of why you need an experienced agent on your side. The buyer in this circumstance is working with an agent that didn’t understand the possible consequences of going into a purchase with no appraisal or property contingency. Because of that she ended up in a rather precarious position as escrow drew near to close and she faced putting out more money than expected or losing her deposit.
For the seller it was important because she had a bottom line dollar amount she needed…it would have been easier for me to tell her that she could just meet them halfway by lowering her price or even giving them everything they wanted. Instead, I went to bat for her. I pulled each clause directly from the signed contract that pertained to this situation and told the buyer we were not only not moving on the contract price but furthermore we were prepared to put the home back on the market and keep the deposit. I did not give in to what was easy…I fought for my client and I won.
Experience matters folks, don’t use someone just because they’re a friend or family member and you feel obligated. Make sure they are not just knowledgeable but that they are fearless in negotiating for you…there are huge consequences to face if our aging population is not adequately represented, don’t let that be you and/or your family!!!
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