A DEAL IS A DEAL IT’S JUST THAT

How many times have we heard over the last 5 years about buyers defaulting on their deals? It became really prevalent, post-covid when buyers decided they didn’t want to live up to the expectations placed on the deal. It’s very clear. When you sign on the dotted line, you are committed to the deal, whether you want to admit it or not. Ask any judge. I have seen a lot of deals fall through in the last few years from buyers that just decided they didn’t want to complete the transaction. Well, there ARE ramifications. And they could be shallow or deep, depending on the listing party’s demeanour. If they want to work with the buyer, then a resolution could be achieved. But if the buyer is just being unrealistic then good luck. And what needs to be explained to both parties is that this could take years to sort out. Take, for example a buyer who buys a place they like with a long close. The market changes in the interim and the buyer decides they won’t close the previously agreed to deal. Now the seller has the property back on their hands. They have to re-list and sell in what could be a drastically different market. So the buyer could lose their deposit. They could also be on the hook for what’s called “Loss of difference” The seller re-lists the property and if it sells for less than the previous sale price, then the original buyer is on the hook to pay the difference. Nothing hurts more than paying for a house you just don’t live in. But THAT is where the Realtor needs to explain the ramifications and come up with what I have always called the “B-Plan”. Do you have relatives you could shack up with short-term. Do you have other places you could stay. Maybe a cottage or some mid to long-term rental. As a seller, should you drastically reduce your asking price? These are all factors that would mitigate the hurt of simply not closing a deal. And it works both ways. Buyer OR seller. This needs to be established very early on. Far too often the agent just wants to fly by the seat of their pants. And there is the fact that many times agents offer bad advice that the client simply should not take. OR they offer good advice that the client simply won’t listen to. Because they know more than the Realtor and they KNOW what their home is worth! That’s dangerous territory. And that’s not good. You are playing with what most likely would be your client’s largest purchase ever. So do your homework. Put a game plan in place and follow it. Don’t get sucked in to looking at a place and buying it on a whim. Stay with the program. You’ll be glad you did. And realize that when you sign an agreement, that is a binding document that you must live up to. Like it or not.