Be Prepared for Surprises When Buying, Selling Home

Be Prepared for Surprises When Buying, Selling Home: "

In today’s housing market, things can shift in a moment. This is something you need to remind yourself of constantly whether you are buying or selling a home says McLean Virginia Realtor Frederica “Freddy” Barney.

“Be prepared to be disappointed, and you won’t be.

Buyers can change their mind, and often do in this market. I have seen them sitting at the table ready to sign the offer and then they start asking me “If I change my mind how can I get out of this?” Of course at that time I caution them to get out now instead of putting all parties through a few days of an emotional roller coaster. Also, financing terms can change (and have recently) overnight making yesterday’s solid buyer unable to perform. If you are selling, your neighbor can decide they really need to move their property and drop their price 10 percent below yours, driving down market value, literally, overnight.

On the other side, even in this “Buyers Market,” I have seen things go under contract with a few contingencies outstanding and then another buyer comes along offering more. In this case, it often forces the existing buyer to drop any “claims” against Home Inspection or Radon Contingencies if they really want the contract to stay in force; otherwise the seller could walk (be careful here, however, as the language can be subtly different on different agency’s contracts).

And why is it in today’s market the sellers become so floored when any of the above occurs? Denial? I am not sure, but during the “hot market” buyers had to be prepared for the very same thing. If they were not outside of the sellers home ready to initial any last changes while contracts were being presented, they may have been passed over for the buyer who was available, even if their original bid was not as high. So whether you are a buyer or a seller, know that Real Estate is very fluid. In any market, conditions do change over night. So, hold your breath until settlement date!”

Click here to read more blog posts by Freddy Barney and the Keller Williams McLean Team.