First Time Home Buyers and the 49 Page Addendum
October 25th, 2007 Categories: Real Estate Ramblings
I’m working with a great couple, first time buyers and newlyweds purchasing their new home in the Virginia Run subdivision in Fairfax County. We met a year ago at an open house and after looking at a few places last year they decided to wait until after their wedding to begin a serious search. Fast forward a year and lo and behold they found a home that will meet their needs for many years to come.
Of course buying your first home is scary enough but when you find the home you want and discover that it is owned by a relocation company the process gets even more complicated. In this case the complication is a 49 page contract addendum, all small print that needs to be signed and included with the already lengthy Virginia contract. Honestly it is 49 pages!
Fortunately the listing agent is fantastic to work with and despite both of us having out of town trips that coincided with this process we managed to put together a contract with only ONE minor issue that the relocation company asked us to revise. It shows why taking time to get to know the parties on the other side of the transaction important.
So many times in our business agents feel that they need to dominate and force a deal down your throat with threats. However, real estate is a business built on relationships, relationships with our clients, our lenders, our appraisers and most importantly our colleagues. Without the two of us putting our heads together to make this a win/win situation we would still be exchanging paperwork and everyone would be ready to rip their hair out. Instead she and I sat together and made sure that when the contract was presented that it had the best chance of being accepted by the relocation company.
In a market where we hear about the lack of cooperation among agents and deals falling through due to unrealistic expectations this contract has seemed like a breeze, despite that blooming 49 page addendum!
Isn’t this the truth! I don’t think the relo companies ever coonsider the numbing effect their addendum has on buyers - especially first-timers. Excellent post!
[...] Cindy at VARealEstateTalk helps out first-time home buyers as well with her post on the 49 page addendum. Should be required reading for all buyers, and real estate agents as well. [...]