necessary steps of decontaminating the home and ensuring it was fit for resale, in the process costing her a whopping $16,000.
PRESSURE TO SELL FROM YOUR OWN AGENT
Homeowners were selling a starter home in Washington, D.C., circa late 1990s. They were asking $235,000. When they received a $226,000 offer with buyer demands that they cover $6,000 in closing costs, their agent prodded them into strongly considering the offer. Ultimately, they sold for $228,000 while honoring the closing cost request at the behest of their agent. Pre-housing crisis, homes in this neighborhood were selling for between $650,000 and $700,000. “In hindsight, I felt that I’d been negotiating against three people—the buyer, his agent, and our own agent,” said the seller. This is no way for a seller to feel. PRECLOSING ERROR: LARGE BANK DEPOSIT CAUSING DELAY A couple buying a seller’s home deposited $8,000 in cash into their checking account three days before closing. Their father had given them money to buy new furniture and appliances for the house. Their mortgage company checked balances the day before and it was “dinged,” as it required a gift letter. The father had just gone to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for a hunting/fishing trip, and no one could reach him. This delayed the closing by two weeks.
POINTS TO REMEMBER:
• Underpricing is a common error, often undetected, and usually caused by a failure to conduct thorough research of the market or the property. • It is crucial to adhere to timelines, disclosure requirements, and proper documentation procedures, in
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