Land of the brokers: show only if you have an offer in hand
MA PASS is a property showing service that many brokers use. When I call MA PASS, they verify that I am a member of MLS, and then the operator arranges the showing for me.
I have gotten used to how bored the operators can be. They read the instructions out to me in a dead-pan voice. Usually, the instructions will be things like, “in wet weather, please remove shoes upon entry,” “please lock all doors, including the one to the porch,” “the dog’s name is Fred; he will be crated in the office.”
One request is still making me scratch my head. It was in a three-family house:
First floor showings only with an Offer.
My buyers were puzzled, too. I put the best face on it. I hypothesized for them: Maybe the seller doesn’t want to be bothered because most people don’t ask for a second showing. Maybe the tenant (or owner) on the first floor is old, or infirmed, or has young children.
We saw two out of three units at this property. The former was true.
I frequently am told to not show a certain unit until the second showing. That screens out people who have no interest after seeing some of the place. I think that is a reasonable way to protect tenant or owner privacy in a multi-family home. But to require an offer is over-the-top to me.
In this market, how can a seller expect that a buyer will make an offer contingent on seeing the whole property? Is it just me, or do I have the right to be incredulous about this request?
Tenants, is limiting showings a good way to protect you while the house you are in is being sold?
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I don't know about a multi family situation but what is weird is that my agent is trying to get us into see a property that has been on the market for over 270 days, and when I did a drive by of the neighborhood to see if it was something I would like it looks like the place is empty. But my agent cannot get a confirmed time out of the listing agent to sell the place, what gives? How do you expect to sell a home with just a picture of the outside on the listing sheet and not confirming appointments? Why won't they schedule?
I almost have half a mind to ask a friend to call the listing agent and try to schedule a showing, could it be that the listing agent doesn't want to show the place unless the other broker is in his company? I also wonder do I still care about this place, or at this point do I want to see it just because it has been illusive? Will the run around we are getting to see the place color our view of the place?
I think that some agents and sellers are making a huge mistake when they do not make their property easy to show. I have been taking 2 of my buyers around for the past few weeks and I am amazed at how hard it is to get showings scheduled, coordinate with agents, tenants, etc.
All of my listings go on MA Pass, and if the owners allow lock boxes they are on the property! If you want to sell your house you have to make it easy to show, even if someone wants to see it with short notice or at any time of day. That is the way the Real Estate game is played.
Show me, take a pass on this one. In this market you shouldn't focus too much on one property, time is on your side and the best deals (especially for multis) have yet to come. Save your money, be patient. and ask for the world, otherwise let the bank or underwater seller continue to carry the albatross...
My previous apartment was in a building (6 unit) that was bought by a guy who didn't even see all of the units before buying it. Boy, was he in for a surprise.
I'd have gladly shown my unit (with the crumbling plaster, mold problem in the bathroom, and seriously sagging floor) if the ower or agent had made any good faith attempt to schedule a showing, but instead she just went around with prospecitve buyers at 10 AM and knocked on doors asking to be let in with no notice. The only people home were sleeping medical students who told her to get lost. A great lesson in how not to buy or sell a rental property.
Hung- we did get an appointment for today and it is a SF and not a muli. I don't have any high hopes for it but at this point I just gotta see it. Had the listing agent actually put up pictures of the inside, even a few I probably would have had my curiosity satisfied.
That is one of my pet peeves, why only post an outside picture, we all know it is gonna need work so let us see that before we get out to see the place. It will save a lot of time and effort.
yet another way in which people don't treat real estate as a real business.
When selling real estate (my own) I've been happy to show it any time day or night to a buyer. Pain? Yes. But financially worth it.
People who make it hard to buy what they are selling are usually rewarded with a lower price. Yet amazingly the average seller seems amazingly entitled during the process (judging from people I know and agent commentary). There really is this attitude that they are doing the buyer a favor, which just boggles my mind.
I think asking to have an offer before showing all the units is extreme, but I do think that the access you might expect for showing a multi-family home is different from that of a single-family home. The tenants, after all, didn't ask for the building to be sold and have a right to a fairly normal existence. And if you want to ensure their cooperation (keeping things neat and not badmouthing the owner out of annoyance), you probably want to minimize disruption and be as attentive to their peace as possible. And you have to assume that the sale of the building can be very unsettling to tenants (particularly long-term tenants) who may be uncertain of their status and may be worried that they may be forced to move.
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
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