It's Not Over Til It's Over
Bill, my husband, got the good news that we were moving to Atlanta, Georgia, to work with a manufactured housing firm in 1977. It meant a raise in salary for us. $19,000 a year. It also meant we'd be selling our Red Oak home and moving...er, I'd be selling our home. My husband had to go on before me to start work. We had no idea what selling a home was like--the ups and downs. People selling a home for the first time need as much help as someone purchasing for the first time. We were property virgins, for sure. We found a realtor familiar with our area, put the sign out front and Bill left on a jet plane while I managed with a three-year-old and eighteen-month-old to keep everything going. Here's the thing: our little family waited with bated breath every evening for Bill to walk through the door for dinner. Single moms and dads will know what I'm talking about. I was the whole shebang now. For what turned into months. Red Oak wasn't Shangri La, so there wasn't a well worn path to our door. Bill came home once or twice during this time, but we were becoming discouraged.
Finally our realtor came over with an offer. The people purchasing our home had another couple purchasing their home, so it was more iffy than I realized at the time. Now, as a realtor, I know how tricky this can be, but I don't remember our realtor telling us this could go south. There didn't seem to be issues. The buyers loved the red and blue bedroom; wanted my coordinating bedspread, which I promised to give the wife when we closed. Two days before we were to sign escrow papers, I was wading through packing paper with the woman sent by the moving company to help me fill boxes with our belongings. The truck and Bill were due the next day. The doorbell rang. There stood the buyer with a large bedspread in her hands. I could tell by the look on her face that she had bad news. "We aren't going to buy your house," she said. "The people buying our home aren't giving my husband what he wants for it."
Stunned, I just looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "Excuse me?" And what's the deal with the bedspread?
"Yeah, I'm sorry, but we aren't going forward." She handed the bedspread toward me. I didn't take it.
"I have the packers here," I said. "You have to buy our house." Pushing the bedspread away from me, I said: "And I don't want your bedspread. You need to convince your husband to buy our home and keep your word."
With that I closed the door (didn't slam it). I went immediately and grabbed the woman packing our stuff. "You need to pray with me," I said as she looked in wonder at me.
"Ok." I had her hand by now. Told God about my desperation, asked Him to fix it. "Amen."
I also called the realtor and told her to fix it. She hadn't yet heard the news. I didn't know what else to do but keep packing and trust God. I had a house full of packing paper and dishes everywhere as well as two toddlers crawling through it all.
Late in the afternoon, our realtor stopped by. By then the house was packed up and the girls and I were exhausted from the day. Bill was to arrive in the evening. And our house wasn't sold.
"Kay, you and Bill have gone through so much with the sale of this house, the waiting and now this," she began. "Four months is a long time to be without each other and you guys have such a sweet relationship..."
All that was well and good, but I needed to hear what she'd done. This was taking forever.
"I couldn't stand to think of you going through this any longer, so I gave up my commission for you. The buyer is a difficult, but I made the decision to make up for the shortfall on his end." There were tears in her eyes.
Oh, man! Such relief! I can't even express how thankful I was to her...to God...for working this out for us. My own tears flowed...relief. Sweet relief.
What I know now that I didn't then was what it cost my realtor to do that for us. I didn't really understand how she got paid, all the things she did, how hard the conversation with the buyer must have been, how she had to negotiate even with giving up some or all of her commission with an obstinate man, how much she cared about a young family who needed a break. What she might have done better is to make us more aware of the process each step of the way. What to expect and what to be warned about. However, even realtors can't always anticipate all pitfalls that lay ahead. People are unpredictable and capricious.
I went ahead and left the woman my bedspread. I mean, why not? Where was I ever going to find another bedroom with red and blue shag carpet? It was one less thing to move.
Bottom Line: Selling a home can be extremely stressful and unpredictable. It's not over until it's over...last paperwork signed and money transferred. Anything can happen. Make sure you have a realtor who is on your side no matter what. Good realtors know what is happening on the other side, too. They keep up with the buyer loan schedule, know about repair request scheduling, keeping track of when everything will be complete for final walk-through and coordinate with escrow for closing. Buyer and seller should count on the realtors they select to get the transaction across the finish line!
Finally our realtor came over with an offer. The people purchasing our home had another couple purchasing their home, so it was more iffy than I realized at the time. Now, as a realtor, I know how tricky this can be, but I don't remember our realtor telling us this could go south. There didn't seem to be issues. The buyers loved the red and blue bedroom; wanted my coordinating bedspread, which I promised to give the wife when we closed. Two days before we were to sign escrow papers, I was wading through packing paper with the woman sent by the moving company to help me fill boxes with our belongings. The truck and Bill were due the next day. The doorbell rang. There stood the buyer with a large bedspread in her hands. I could tell by the look on her face that she had bad news. "We aren't going to buy your house," she said. "The people buying our home aren't giving my husband what he wants for it."
Stunned, I just looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "Excuse me?" And what's the deal with the bedspread?
"Yeah, I'm sorry, but we aren't going forward." She handed the bedspread toward me. I didn't take it.
"I have the packers here," I said. "You have to buy our house." Pushing the bedspread away from me, I said: "And I don't want your bedspread. You need to convince your husband to buy our home and keep your word."
With that I closed the door (didn't slam it). I went immediately and grabbed the woman packing our stuff. "You need to pray with me," I said as she looked in wonder at me.
"Ok." I had her hand by now. Told God about my desperation, asked Him to fix it. "Amen."
I also called the realtor and told her to fix it. She hadn't yet heard the news. I didn't know what else to do but keep packing and trust God. I had a house full of packing paper and dishes everywhere as well as two toddlers crawling through it all.
Late in the afternoon, our realtor stopped by. By then the house was packed up and the girls and I were exhausted from the day. Bill was to arrive in the evening. And our house wasn't sold.
"Kay, you and Bill have gone through so much with the sale of this house, the waiting and now this," she began. "Four months is a long time to be without each other and you guys have such a sweet relationship..."
All that was well and good, but I needed to hear what she'd done. This was taking forever.
"I couldn't stand to think of you going through this any longer, so I gave up my commission for you. The buyer is a difficult, but I made the decision to make up for the shortfall on his end." There were tears in her eyes.
Oh, man! Such relief! I can't even express how thankful I was to her...to God...for working this out for us. My own tears flowed...relief. Sweet relief.
What I know now that I didn't then was what it cost my realtor to do that for us. I didn't really understand how she got paid, all the things she did, how hard the conversation with the buyer must have been, how she had to negotiate even with giving up some or all of her commission with an obstinate man, how much she cared about a young family who needed a break. What she might have done better is to make us more aware of the process each step of the way. What to expect and what to be warned about. However, even realtors can't always anticipate all pitfalls that lay ahead. People are unpredictable and capricious.
I went ahead and left the woman my bedspread. I mean, why not? Where was I ever going to find another bedroom with red and blue shag carpet? It was one less thing to move.
Bottom Line: Selling a home can be extremely stressful and unpredictable. It's not over until it's over...last paperwork signed and money transferred. Anything can happen. Make sure you have a realtor who is on your side no matter what. Good realtors know what is happening on the other side, too. They keep up with the buyer loan schedule, know about repair request scheduling, keeping track of when everything will be complete for final walk-through and coordinate with escrow for closing. Buyer and seller should count on the realtors they select to get the transaction across the finish line!
Comments
Post a Comment