An interesting aspect of my job as a real estate agent selling homes primarily in La Canada, Montrose, La Crescenta, Eagle Rock, Pasadena, Burbank, Shadow Hills, and Toluca Lake is the people I meet. Real estate transactions are very stressful, and I often see people at their worst. There are a variety of real estate personalities. Fortunately, many of my clients have turned into dear friends.
Real Estate Personalities
The worst aspect of my job is the blame game. The blame game happens when something goes wrong. Previously we had such a strong seller’s market very little would go awry when representing a home seller. There were minimal repair requests as every listing sold in multiple offers. Most of my clients sold for more than they anticipated.
When listing vacant homes, we tape notes on doors reminding agents to lock them and notes asking them to please turn off lights. Recently a client was irate that an agent did not turn off her porch light. Between the time of our weekly inspection and her checking, it had been on for at most three days. Sometimes the buyer’s lender takes too long to obtain loan approval, which can be stressful for the seller as they have movers and packing to arrange. But the listing agent doesn’t control which lender the buyer uses. To minimize my client’s confusion, I keep them apprised of the process and remind them that the closing date is just a target date.
Conversely, when representing home buyers, many had clients who were losing offer after offer until finally grossly overpaying to get accepted. When inspection day arrived, negotiations were rare in our previous real estate market. Once a buyer moves into their new home, other things often come to light. Maybe we have heavy rain and the roof leaks. What now? We will review the buyer’s inspection to learn what their inspector noted regarding the roof’s condition. We then check the seller’s mandatory disclosures to learn if they noted any past or existing roofing problems. Then we help our client decide which course of action to take. Perhaps the inspector overlooked something, or the seller failed to disclose it. Rightly so, buyers are more apt to complain in a heated market where they feel abused by their lack of negotiating ability.
The most significant personality problem in any escrow is a lender or another Realtor who refuses to communicate. This wreaks havoc in an escrow. There are so many moving parts; without consistent communication, there is unnecessary stress.
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