Sometimes Sales Don't Go Through. Sellers Are Wise to Move on Quickly.
There was a Regina REALTOR® in the news this past week for discrediting a fellow Realtor in public after a sale fell through. That's a no-no. The Realtor Code of Ethics says we can't say anything bad about other Realtors publicly. In the pub, maybe, but publicly—no way.
So What Happened?
The agent in question was the listing agent, working for the seller of a home. They received an offer from a (cooperating?) Realtor, which was subject to a home and furnace inspection.
The resulting inspection, it would seem, was not in the seller's favour.
It was claimed the home inspector, even though he's not an HVAC professional, made a risky call and flagged the furnace as a fail.
The buyer's agent attempted to use the inspection report as leverage and informed the seller's Realtor they would not buy the home (remove conditions) unless the furnace was serviced and repaired—a gutsy play by the buyer's agent.
The listing agent, to his credit, attempted to keep the sale on track by arranging for an HVAC professional to come in and have a look. He even did it at his own expense. Turns out the furnace checked out fine with no issues.
He couldn't wait, I'm sure, to send the great news back to the buyer's agent, the deal was saved. Whew! But she wasn't listening.
In fact, he didn't know it yet, but the conversation had already ended.
And then, with a thump, the Notice Conditions Have Not Been Satisfied landed in his inbox. The deal fell through. No explanation from the buyer's agent. No acknowledgement of the furnace.
He attempted to call her several times, but she didn't pick up. Didn't reply to texts either.
So he decided, in quite a clumsy fashion, to drag her on Facebook. He called her an "arrogant, inexperienced agent." And people found out about this.
Next up, an all-expenses not paid trip to Saskatoon for a hearing with the Saskatchewan Real Estate Commission. Then some public humiliation and a $4000 fine.
So, What Can We Learn From This Scandalous Affair?
1. They Didn't Have To Buy the House If They Didn't Want To
Simply, offers have two things—terms and conditions. Terms are what the parties agree on (price, possession date and what's included.) Conditions are events that must occur before the terms come into effect.
Conditions are inserted by the buyer and in favour of the buyer. When the seller signed the offer, they agreed to those conditions.
Conditions are also "satisfied" by the buyer. Not the seller.
Sellers are at the buyer's mercy, really. The buyer gets to say whether or not they are satisfied. And if they are not satisfied, they don't have to explain themselves to the seller.
2. The Sellers Need To Move On
Soon after I started in the business, we had an agent in the office fuming and snorting about a deal that didn't come together. He was going to sue, and his sellers were going to sue. I remember my broker at the time going over to him and telling him to "wipe his bum and pull up his pants." Yeah, she said that haha.
When a deal falls through, there isn't much you can do. It's a lost ten days, your house goes back on the market, and you look for another buyer. It sucks.
Your next buyer is likely going to ask why it fell apart, maybe have the suspicion it's a lousy house. Your next offer may be for less money, and it might be months before another one comes. Or, you could get a better offer the next day. I've seen it go both ways. C'est la vie.
I always make my sellers aware that sometimes accepted offers don't become final sales and that you can't sue someone for not being satisfied.
3. The Buyer's Agent Handled This Poorly
First, she tried to use the furnace as a scapegoat for the fall-through. When the listing agent quickly addressed this, her excuse evaporated faster than twenties at the casino. The seller was, understandably, angered.
All along, it was more likely a collection of things in the inspection report that caused the buyers to back away. Or maybe the buyers were just flakes. Or maybe the buyer's agent didn't do a good job of explaining what to expect from an inspection; after all, every home has problems. Maybe there were real condition issues with the home.
Either way, the buyers didn't want the home.
As a buyer's agent whose clients are not proceeding, and I've been there, it's always better to call the listing agent and explain how you've counselled your buyers about the pros and cons, but they have decided not to proceed, and it's their final decision.
Don't give them a reason—it's not required. And don't give them hope for further negotiation.
Breaking up is hard to do, but the buyer's agent should have picked up her phone and made the uncomfortable call. Instead, she tried to blame it on an innocent bystander, the furnace. When her play didn't work, she pulled the pillow over her head and pretended she couldn't hear anything.
4. Don't Say Things You Will Regret Later
Even without a code of ethics, don't let a bad odour escape the room.
It seems the offending agent tried to blame his lack of computer skills for the publicness of his post. I didn't know what I was doing, your honour, the computer just went off in my hands. Nobody was buying it.
Final Thoughts
This isn't the first time something like this has happened.
Several times a year, Realtors are hauled before the Commission to account for their conduct, but this one got some extra attention after CTV picked it up and ran a story.
Was it the worst thing in the world? No, of course not, but we can learn a lesson from it.
You can find out who the agent was here.
CB
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