As a real estate professional, I've carefully assembled a group of great people to help to help my clients buy their new homes. They are home inspectors, lenders, and title attorneys. They've been providing great service to my clients for a couple of decades now.
Some of my clients have assembled their own groups of homebuyer helpers. These include parents, co-workers, girlfriends, old girlfriends, siblings and astrologers - all experts on real estate.
So, Mom and Dad live in Topeka, Kansas, where you can buy a house with pillars and room for a pony for the price of a small Washington condo in Dupont Circle. When you send them the on-line tour, they'll freak. Then, your boss offers to teach you everything he learned when he bought his house thirty years ago. He has no idea that everything about agency and househunting has changed. Your girlfriend has pretty strong ideas about your new place, like, she's thinking she might be moving in. She'll be checking out "your" closets to make sure there's room for her shoes. And then, if the moon is in your second house, it might not be an auspicious time to buy your first house.
Sometimes it's a good idea to wait until your housewarming party to get your family, colleagues and friends involved with your new home purchase!
Oh yes... I remember my 1st deal - when my buyers Father was an "expert" at Real Estate contracts. EVen though he lives hundreds of miles away and hadn't been to law school or bought a home in 20+ years.
It was Best of times... It was the Worst of Times....
Patricia,
I have been through almost all those situations. One client wouldn't sign any paperwork until 4:13pm exactly, because that's when the stars were in perfect alignment for his decision. I guess the seller wasn't aware of it though and rejected the offer. One other tidbit if you don't mind me saying. I also have a group of qualified people to help my clients, but I caution you to let them know they can choose to use anyone they would like and that the ones you have are certainly competent and I am not telling you to use them just letting you know who typically does a lot of work for me. The reason I say that, is if you recommend and one of these parties misses something, you can bet you'll be named in the lawsuit. Don't want to sign off on that note though so, sell on!
I love it! But ain't it the truth. Every other person is a Realtor or has been a Realtor or is a has been Realtor.
Don't you write offers with the "third party approval" contingency? Not the bank as in a short sale but the parents, girl friends and co-workers? :-)
To be fair, a house is a big deal and it's probably a good idea to get people who are gonna say "I told you so" to at least give a little nod of approval (ala Carol Culkin's experience) so that the home buyer doesn't have to listen to "I told you so" later down the line.
It kills me, though, that everyone's an expert except the, er, experts who do this all the time.
olucmof the story. LOL