The difference between a good Realtor vs a great Realtor often falls into a category of the unknown… stay with me here. A good Realtor brings a problem to their client and solves it with them, a great Realtor solves the problem on their own before the client is even aware – no risky business here, it’s all above board. Maybe this is why every year one or two of my past clients get their real estate license. All too often I hear, it was so fun and… ’easy.’ It being the process of buying or selling their home.
Sure, some transactions could be classified as ‘easy,’ but the reality is I often keep the challenges from my clients and handle these potential stressful or anxiety inducing issues before they reach my people. (Insert the assumption here that these items don’t require their permission.) My job is so much greater than opening doors or answering basic questions. Any real estate transaction involves 10-15 people with schedules and challenges, their own goals and don’t let me forget the personalities!!
Most recently, I dealt with two very challenging situations that involved a difference in interpretation our Oregon real estate forms. In both circumstances, my sellers have no idea this happened and were absolutely unaffected - because one, I know the forms, and two, I don’t make errors on them.
Situation One
A buyer’s agent on a property I have listed opted to allow their client to ‘self-inspect’ the home, selecting an alternative option to the professional inspections and therefore waiving their right to walk away due to inspections. This alternative form of inspections should have been clarified to the buyer, as it not only limited them in their negotiations but also their overall protection in the purchase. Behind the scenes there was significant back and forth as to what was allowed, and what wasn’t, per the mutually accepted sale agreement. Ultimately, while there is no ‘winner’ here, I handled the confusion behind the scenes and kept what could have been a very stressful situation off my first timer sellers back by knowing the forms and communicating clearly to all parties involved.
Situation Two
My seller is in an occupancy after closing, renting their now sold back for 6 weeks, and the new owner is requesting to take last minute photos of the interior of the home so they can rent the property. The seller is in the middle of packing, it’s her birthday the next day, and I know for a fact she does not want anyone walking through the home as she’s trying to move out. So, I reference the paperwork – lines 91-93 of the Agreement to Occupy After Closing require reasonable timing but also that access should be either repair related (certainly this is not) OR previously discussed and listed in the sale agreement under ‘additional provisions.’ Neither of which apply here.
My seller has already been nervous about the occupancy after closing, they not used to ‘renting’ and don’t want anything to go wrong. Since I knew this situation would stress them out, I handled it… and trust me, there was plenty of pushback. But the answer was no, they would not get access because it was not discussed in writing nor repair related. And my client goes on with their day, absolutely unbothered by the situation they know nothing about.
This is what makes a great Realtor - I make my job look easy, because I’m damn good at what I do.
Amanda
* Photo - Touching up paint in North Portland for an out of state seller. *
