Detox

In a strange turn of events, Cruella has been ultra professional since I sent the Bless Your Heart e-mail. Now, I am getting, "I wanted to inform you that..." and she is signing it, "Respectfully, Cruella." 

This is a far cry from this text I got two weeks ago--and I'm not making this up: "I EXPECT YOUR SELLER TO **IMMEDIATELY** FIX THE WINDOW SHADE ISSUE!!!!!!!!" 

Of course, there was no "window shade issue." But, that's how I found out Cruella wanted new screens put on the cute little condo for her buyer. 

If she can sustain this level of professionalism, I think I can finish this sale without going to jail. 

Please note: I do expect I will get my own Bless Your Heart e-mail from her when it closes.  I'm not naïve.  

Tuesday Part 2 Cruella and the Bless Your Heart E-Mail

Before I could get a commitment from my sellers to continue with the sale, Cruella was blowing up my phone. She would only text me. So, I wrote her and said, "My seller is evaluating their options please give me a few hours." 

That did not sit well with Cruella. "They have no choice. They are contractually obligated!!!!!!" and other such nonsense. 

My continual, "Please give me a few hours," was always what I shot back with to Cruella's continual, "Tell them they have no other option than to accept the lower price. The contract says so." It was like we were in some sort of surreal loop with the only reality break was the changing number of exclamation marks Cruella used in her all-caps texts to me. 

The contract actually says the seller does not have to honor a lower price if a property fails to appraise they can back out of the contract and start over. But, by now, I was stuck in stand-still traffic on the 51 and I still didn't know why my sellers wanted to do. Every time I called Cruella, the coward refused to take my call. How simple it would have been if I could have just explained I know Doug and Carla have a good contract and could she just give my sellers some time to figure this out! But nope. And because traffic wasn't going anywhere (it took me more than 2 hours to get home from Dad's) I was able to text back. 

In the end, I got the addendum signed. The price was lowered. Everyone is happy. Except, I don't leave well enough alone. I truly do find Cruella's obnoxious bullying coupled with her absolute lack of real estate knowledge a bit disheartening. 

Even though I probably shouldn't have, I sent the following bless your heart e-mail to her in reply to an e-mail she sent me in the middle of this drama, mis-quoting the wrong part of the contract. 

"I strongly encourage you to speak to your broker about the purchase contract. I don't mean this in an unkind way. I do mean it in the Code of Ethics Preamble way, where it says we agents are to help each other be the best we can be.  

This is the second time you have brought it up the purchase contract to me. I have taught the purchase contract and I don't want you to look unprofessional in front of your clients. 

I hope you will take this in the spirit it is offered because I don't mean any offense." 

Ok, I do hope she's offended. That's just my inner passive-aggressive bitch wanting to put her in her place. But honestly, I hope she learns the Arizona Purchase Contract before I see her name come up in the Grievance Committee. 

Tuesday Part 1 Carla Loses It With Me. Again.

Tuesday Doug and Carla got the news: a second appraiser valued their cute little condo at a lower price. That means, Doug and Carla would only be getting $20,000 over asking price instead of $30,000 if they chose to go through with the sale. 

Not gonna lie: part of me was thinking, "If Doug and Carla refused to take a price redetection, I could be done with Cruella!!!!" But the pragmatic part knew this was still a great contract and we are close to the finish line. However, it would take buy-in from Carla, who was once again unnecessarily furious at me for delivering the message. 

All this was going on while I was waiting with my father, who had strapped on his Karen boots, and was sitting in the waiting room of the cardiologist letting everyone in Avondale know how this particular doctor could streamline his practices (by firing members of the office staff, if you wanted to know). So, there was that drama. The good news is my brother gets to handle the next Dad doctor's appointment.  

In the end, cooler heads prevailed and Doug stopped putting Carla and me in three-way conference calls and just handled the communications. Doug and I were able to have productive chats about the pros and cons of the situation that he could relay back to Carla.  

Eventually much later in the day it was decided they would go through with the sale. However, in between Carla's frustration and a decision to proceed with the sale, I had my own Cruella drama. 

To be continued...

My New Job

I have been hired for a new, start-up company. The company employs real estate transaction coordinators. A transaction coordinator is someone who works with real estate agents. Their job is to order the for sale signs, photography, coordinate all of the appointments and handle the piles of paperwork that happen in every sale. 

I won't be handling piles of paperwork. I will be managing the transaction coordinators. I work from home and I doubt I will again see the folks who hired me unless I go to some effort to make it happen.  

I asked a lot of questions when I met with them (they hired me over the phone and I insisted on a face-to-face interview before I agreed). My questions took them by surprise. It was obvious none of them have ever owned and run a small business before. 

Now then, in the event I don't sound totally psyched, it is because: 1) I start mid-September and 2) after looking at their business model, I'm not sure their service is long-term sustainable. I mean, I'm willing to give it a go, I have nothing to lose and it could be a lot of fun while it lasts. However I recognize this might be the kind of company that is only around when the real estate market is good.   

Incidentally, I'm keeping my license active and my brokerage open. This job is part-ish time. 

Julie Update

Late last Sunday afternoon I stopped by the cute little condo to pick up my "For Sale" sign. Because it was on the way, I swung by Julie's house. I wanted to see if there was a sign in her yard. If there was, she no longer needs me. Her yard looked exactly as it did before. The only difference between last time I saw her house and Sunday was that there was a tarp over her entryway, telling everyone who passes by, there is a roof leak. 

Anyway, with no for sale sign in Julie's yard, I called on Monday to say hello. As soon as she heard it was me, the phone mysteriously went dead. 

Now then, I would never dare think someone who repeatedly says they are a "Christian" and "lives a Christian life" would hang up on me (and never call back). So, let's just blame the cell phones, ok? I followed up with a text message saying I was reaching out and I hope all was well. 

Then I decided I've done enough following up and reaching out. Julie knows where to find me. 

Julie was referred to me by a friend who has given me a lot of business. I think very highly of my friend. That is the sole reason I hadn't let Julie go. But to be honest, if Julie never comes back, it won't hurt my feelings. Sometimes the agent and client aren't a good match. And sometimes the agent has enough experience to know there won't be enough money to cover the therapy bills if she takes the listing.

Of Course He Did

Tuesday, I got a job.*

Wednesday, Buckaroo got a job. 

Thursday, Polly got a job. 

Friday, Marty got a call for an interview from Fort Myers.  

*More on this later. 

Drat

Well, Cruella is still hanging around. She wasn't happy at all--and I mean AT ALL--when I suggested if her buyer disapproved of the cute little condo, please let us know as soon as possible so that my sellers could put it back on the market. 

Though this was in an e-mail, she reiterated to me in a text her buyer was none-too-pleased about the,  "refrigerator water line issue" that isn't really an issue. And what was I going to do about it? 

I suggested in my return text that this was covered in the e-mail I'd sent her that morning before 7 a.m. Then I added, "Please let me know if they are backing out. The seller would like to get it back on the market as soon as possible." 

That didn't sit well. Cruella's reply (in all caps with lots of exclamation marks) to my text was, "I never said they are backing out!!!!!" She's right. She just inferred it. 

My text back to that one was simply, "Please let me know if they are backing out. The seller would like to get it back on the market as soon as possible." Then, I went on with my day.  

To her credit, she actually let me have the last word. 

Hours later, I got the prescribed form from Cruella, letting me know two significant items: 1) her buyers were accepting the property in the as-is condition, per the agreed upon contract and 2) the buyers waived the remainder of their inspection period. Therefore, they can't ask for any other repairs.* 

So, it looks like I am stuck with this woman for another few weeks. 

*Of course there are other ways to back out of the contract, but I am sure Cruella knows what they are. 

Here's Hoping

At 6:30 Thursday morning, I got an e-mail from Cruella. "The inspector noted that the water was not hooked up to the refrigerator." She then cited obscure lines from the purchase contract that say if the water and power aren't on at the property, the inspector will go back out on the seller's dime to reinspect. Of course, the water and power are hooked up. Just not to the refrigerator. 

At 6:35 Thursday morning, I was on the phone with Doug and Carla, who informed me the water to the refrigerator was never attached in the entire time they lived there. They have a whole-house water filtration system plus they have dollar store ice cube trays. In fact, there is no way to hook up the water to the refrigerator without doing some major modifications. 

I wrote Cruella back, explaining that water pipe was never attached to the refrigerator to begin with. I also told her because she is so familiar with the purchase contract, please review lines 191-192 where it says the buyer is buying the home in the same physical condition from when they first saw it (and the refrigerator water line wasn't hooked up then) and also line 59 which denoted the refrigerator is personal property, not real property, therefore this particular part of the contract she quoted doesn't really matter. 

Then with Doug and Carla's blessing--and this is the BEST part--I told Cruella if her buyer disapproves of the whole-house water filtration system and will be moving on, could they please let us know as soon as possible. My seller wants the home to go to the right person and if her buyer isn't it, they'd like to get it back on the market as soon as possible. 

Haiku

Cruella is nuts.

I mean batshit-crazy nuts.

Patience is not me.

I hate this agent

Substance abuse issue? Yes?  

Or, she's just evil. 

Unprofessional 

Lies. Types in shouty red caps 

A long transaction. 

Cruella

I spent last weekend combing the former offers of the cute little condo, asking agents if their clients were still interested. One--the one I really wanted to say yes--said he'd get back to me. The other agent did get back to me. She made my Sunday a living hell. 

Now then, could I please put this in perspective. I have a cute little condo for sale. It is priced at the bottom of most homes for sale in the Phoenix metro area. There is a lot of interest in such a place. The agent--let's just call her Cruella--informed me that she, "needed to protect her client" with some bogus terms and conditions in the contract that honestly, nobody but her cared about. Like who the title company would be. Or when contract acceptance was officially happening. And damn if she didn't feel like she needed to be the alpha! If she wasn't so annoying it would have been funny. 

I mean, ok, your buyer can ask my seller to pay some piddly fees to "protect" your clients. But at some point you advised your client to pay $30,000 over asking price. So, how is THAT protecting her client? But what do I know? 

This woman barked at me and honestly was so nasty, I almost called back that other agent and begged him to find his client (who happened to be on two week backpacking trip in some remote mountain somewhere and did not have internet and cell service). And there was no reason for such weird ugliness. We all have the same goal. 

It wasn't just about the title company, it was that Cruella had to have the last word in every text. She even gave me one weird text in the middle of the day: "I expect your sellers will perform." 

Perform what? They are offering a place for your homeless buyer to purchase. Buy it or not. I don't care. But I didn't respond. Let her have the win if her ego is so small.  

Plus, she (not her buyers--who probably didn't even know) threatened to back out TWICE over me explaining I was pretty sure getting my sellers' signatures (there are four required, two of whom are older and don't use the computer as much as Doug and Carla) in the time they gave us, which was three hours, might be a tad difficult on a Sunday afternoon. I mean, who gives two jolly darns about such things if the buyer is getting the condo either way? And more importantly, why annoy the listing agent making sure no other favors might be forthcoming? Because, there won't be any more favors. 

But whatever. It's Cruella's karma. 

Nothing to Read Into Here

There are at least five folks in Marty's team of 13 who are actively seeking new employment and/or retirement. One of whom is Marty. This drama got old too long ago and all of us are frustrated over it. I keep threatening to start a support group for Marty's team's significant others. 

Personally, I've kind of gotten used to the idea that at some point word might come down that Marty has been hired with another company and we are uprooting. 

Or not. 

There are personal reasons a change is good for my family. 

There are personal reasons why this is unnerving.  

Every once in a while, I breathe a sigh of relief. This company said no. We are staying put for now. This round of job searching is over. Then, two weeks later, Marty puts on a tie and a collared shirt and zoom-interviews again. And the whole cycle starts over. 

Last month he had three interviews with two companies.  

This past week the big-boss of the company in Fort Myers where Marty accepted a job two years ago and then declined it, wrote him. Big-Boss said something like, "We have a position available and I thought of you. Would you consider applying for this job?" The job was a somewhat reasonable fit, so Marty applied. 

Of course nothing has happened thus far. That's usually par for the course. Marty tends to hear back from anywhere he applies for about a month after the job is posted. I'm trying not to read too much into anything except: 1) they hired him once before 2) the big-boss asked him to apply for this position. But, those are two facts. Another fact: they haven't called him back. 

As I have refused to get too sucked up into Marty's job search any more. I am not googling this and that. But frankly, I'd already done a boatload of research before. I know where the Costco, Trader Joe's, the closest baseball stadium and the Catholic churches are located. 

Marty did ask me to please look into the current housing market in Fort Myers this time. "There's a housing shortage." I said, without turning on my computer. 

"How do you know?" He asked. 

"Because there's a housing shortage everywhere." 

Plus, this position is in Florida and my brother just went through his own housing shortage drama there. My true feeling is we will find what we find--if and when we need to look for a house in the future. We will adapt to the market and make the best choices for the family if and when that becomes an issue. But, to make Marty happy, I looked on that bastion of accuracy, Zillow. There was nothing there that convinced me otherwise, but at least I could tell him I saw homes allegedly for sale. 

Passing the Cases

I believe we had the shortest Grievance Committee meeting on record this month. There were four cases, and we were done in 20 minutes. In addition to my peer review we had the following: 

1. An agent last year offered to renew their client's home warranty a year after they moved in. He put it in writing. He hasn't renewed it at this point, but he isn't denying he offered. The buyer is unhappy. They feel they were cheated. We are letting the High Inquisitor Squad figure this one out.

2.  An agent wrote a contract for a buyer on a house. The buyer then decided they didn't want the house and told the agent they were going to rent. The buyer then found another agent and had them write the offer. The buyer got the house. Which agent gets the commission? I don't know either. Let the High Inquisitor Squad figure that one out too.

3. An agent who has some pretty visible and colorful billboards around town took to his business social media page to put up a tasteless and off-color video about his opinion about women of a certain ethnic group. Someone, who just happened to be a female member of this certain ethnic group, complained. My take is the agent was as an idiot. But is being an idiot an ethics violation? It seems to me he could still be the agent with visible and colorful billboards around town and also keep his opinions about women of a certain ethnic group to himself and still make it through the day. The Grievance Committee's take was that the High Inquisitor Squad could figure this one out as well. 

We are a passive aggressive bunch, aren't we?

Cute Little Condo Chronicles

Well, the honeymoon period is over with Doug and Carla. They no longer think I'm a wonderful person or a competent agent. Carla had lots of opinions about me she screeched into my ears Friday afternoon. They all boiled down to: "You need to stop breathing and go die somewhere." Or something along those lines. And she wasn't shy about sharing them. 

You see. Doug and Carla got an offer $30,000 over the price of their cute little condo. The offer came with this verbiage: if the condo didn't appraise, the buyer would pay up to $15,000 over the appraised value, up to their offer price. 

Do you see where this is going? Yep. It didn't appraise. The difference was $10,000. So, instead of getting $30,000 more than the offer price, the max they were getting now was $20,000 over the asking price. And Carla was pissed! How dare the appraiser not take into consideration all the blood, sweat and tears they poured into this darling place? Why didn't I make more of an effort to hunt down the appraiser (I don't even know the guy's name!), show up at his door and badger him until he raised the appraised value? Or at least--and Carla was very clear this was a perfectly reasonable option--I should die trying. 

And she went on from there. 

When she was done yelling at me, she had Doug call. He said, "Carla is emotionally invested in this and feel the appraiser is wrong." Ya think?! 

Truthfully, the buyer side thought the appraiser was wrong too. We all thought the appraiser would take into consideration all the upgrades and cuteness this place had going for it. In fact, the buyer backed out Friday night because they could not fathom this appraisal being the highest this condo complex has ever seen so far and being so much lower than their outrageous asking price. 

So, that leaves Carla and Doug with no money over the asking price. 

Update: Carla called me and apologized for being--her words--ornery. I wish more clients who chew me out for what I'm not responsible for would be so kind. 

All Grown Up

 

This one turned 21 today. She still dances, sings and does all sorts of Polly-like things that make her the wonderful young woman that she is. 

She has a bright future ahead of her.

Thisclose

 I was thisclose to not peer reviewing for this month's Grievance Committee meeting. 

Thisclose!

And then they threw in a new case and guess who's name came up as the peer reviewer? It was only 37 pages. 

Basically here's the gist: Keep track of your own sins, because when it is your turn, Saint Peter isn't going to ask about your neighbor's wrongdoings. 

Otherwise the case goes like this: Jimbo is an agent. He made a few mistakes in his past that have nothing whatsoever to do with real estate or real property. He currently has a listing and is selling a house. Bubba, who is also an agent, sent an e-mail to everyone in the subdivision where Jimbo's listing is located telling all the world Jimbo is a creep. Jimbo may or may not be a creep. But Bubba is a complete jerk. 

The committee's job is to decide if Bubba has committed a violation of the Code of Ethics by blasting possibly true (and entirely unrelated to real estate), but maybe not true, dirt to the general public about Jimbo.   

My head hurts. 

The Aftermath

 

My Monday

One of the drawbacks to being the designated broker is the mountains of paperwork that come with receiving 10 offers. I have to account for them. Sign off on them. Make sure the right signatures are obtained. And that's for the rejected offers! 

I spent Monday morning combing through the 9 rejects, making sure I was sending the right seller-acknowledged rejected offer to the correct buyer's agent. I wrote notes with all of them, thanking them for their offer. When I thought appropriate, I gave feedback that I hoped would set their buyers' expectations. Buyers tend to blame their agents when they don't get their dream home. Knowing they lost because their very own loan officer told me it wasn't "realistic" to expect the loan to close by mid-September or (in another case) the loan officer said they are using a down payment assistance program and/or only offering the purchase price was not going to get them into this cute little condo. 

Every agent thanked me--which was nice. A lot of times there is an agent (or three) who get kinda pissy. 

Additionally, I had offer number 4's agent call me. He's the one whose buyer offered money to the seller (the "tip"). He asked what he could have done differently. I could tell he took this one personally. I shared with him that it is my experience sellers don't always care about buyers paying their closing costs. They want the most money with a lender who can close the deal. In his case, this particular buyer had an out of state lender and a long closing date, neither of which appealed to my seller. 

The buyer's agent and I chatted for a bit, and he asked if he could take me out for a glass of tea sometime and pick my brain. Sure! Here's to new friends. 

Adventures in Florida Real Estate Part 8

Darwin sent Squirrel and me a text and a video Sunday. He said, "This seems like something the sellers should have disclosed." It was a picture of a water moccasin--on the other side of his enclosed patio--with a frog half-way consumed. 

Now there are two things you need to know about me and my two brothers: first we were traumatized by a rattlesnake when we were little. We are the only ones who truly understand our snake phobia (and Heaven knows our spouses have tried to comprehend this). And second, we will take any and every opportunity to capitalize on each other's snake phobia. 

Now then back to our story... 

The conversation took many turns but I did suggest he just set his entire yard on fire. Because that was the only way I could see this ending successfully. 

Squirrel pointed out there were probably other snakes around the corner, so be on the lookout because it was inevitable the first snake and his thuggy friends would jump Darwin. The frog was just an appetizer. 

I told a story about how I heard of someone in Miami (where Darwin lives) recently finding a water moccasin in his washing machine. 

Squirrel mentioned they can get in under door cracks and live in between the walls of homes. 

I told Darwin about how last time I was in Florida I found out they can climb trees (true story). And it went on from there. 

At one point Darwin contacted his super-useful real estate agent and asked why the seller never mentioned the snake. And THERE WAS A POISONOUS SNAKE IN HIS YARD! She replied, "What's the big deal?" Darwin hates his agent. We all agreed she was an idiot. 

I am going to send him a hoe and a shovel as a housewarming gift.  

For the Birds

 The good news: I've seen worse. 

The bad news: Julie liked me. Actually, I liked her too, in the we had a few things in common kind of way. But selling a home where it looks like Costco and the library had a vomit contest is not my idea of a successful real estate transaction. At least the place was clean! But if your family room has rows and rows of plastic shelving--from one wall to the opposite--filled with food and no other furniture, and if your living room has books stacked so high that it would take four life-times to read everything, it is not an ideal way to get top dollar for your home--which is what Julie wants. 

Oh yes, the last time the place was updated was probably 1980, but honestly, I don't know because I couldn't see past the stuff. Wait! Not true! Remember when faux painting was all the rage in the 1990s? The master bathroom, including the ceiling, is faux sponge painted--and I am not making this up--black. 

And even more interesting, they are planning on bringing all of their worldly belongings--including the chickens--with them when they move out of state. I desperately wanted to ask if the state they were moving to might also have chickens they could adopt, but I was already straining my filter. 

At this time, I don't have the listing. She tells me she has talked to a few less than reputable "we will buy at some low-ball price" kind of brokerages and another agent who works for a bigger company than mine (she didn't seem comfortable with the idea I was a one woman show). I am pretty sure we have also all told her the same thing: declutter first and then let's talk. Because there might possibly be more space in the chicken coop than inside the home. 

Under Contract

I had 41 phone calls on Saturday and 20 text messages. It sure seemed like a lot more.  

In the end, there were 10 contracts. When it came apparent that some buyers were not going to be the winning bids, I asked Doug and Carla to just reject those offers outright. Why let the buyer dangle when they had zero chance of winning? One of the buyers that was rejected submitted a second offer. It was a final contender. 

In addition to the ten offers, Saturday afternoon, I took the place off the market. I called all the remaining agents who were to show it and told them they were welcome to do so. But, there were 10 offers at this time and my sellers needed to make a decision, so show it and please let me know if the buyers wanted to be offer 11 through 16. All the agents I called thanked me for not wasting their time. 

Doug and Carla had four offers to choose from that were $30,000 over asking. One offer included $5,000 to the seller to pay for seller's closing costs (think of it like giving a tip), however that didn't make up for some of that buyer's other contract terms, including an out of state lender and a questionable prequalification form. All the rest of the offers had various forms of handwriting and that was about the only difference. Frankly I was of the mind that any offer that included a trip to Fiji for the listing agent (me) was going to be the winning offer. Some of the agents had their loan officers call me personally to tell me the buyers were qualified, the agents for those buyers were rock stars and yes, they could close this loan. The one who told me they could close the loan the soonest, ended up winning the contract.  

Nerd Words

I said to Marty Sunshine Saturday morning--before 8 a.m., "You know how in statistics a sample size of 30 tells you everything you need to know? Well I think in real estate contracts, a sample size of six contracts tells the seller all they need to know." 

I Spoke Too Soon

Remember when I said, I hoped I didn't get 8 offers? 

Yea. Well, I didn't. I got 10 offers in 24 hours. I took the condo off the market by 3 p.m. Saturday and called the rest of the agents who were scheduled to show it and explained, they could show it, but there were already 10 offers and the seller had already rejected the four lowest. 

Adventures with the Cute Little Condo

At 8 a.m. Friday--less than 24 hours after it went active on the market--Carla was texting me asking for "all the feedback" I'd received on the place. Would you believe, I hadn't really received any just yet? Carla didn't. 

Actually, not true, I was told an offer was coming in. But, until the offer was in my hands, I wasn't sharing that. Buyers change their minds. Often. 

___________________________________________________

I did receive an offer on the cute little condo. It wasn't exciting. The buyer wants the seller to pay for all sorts of things that I am surprised they are asking for in this market. But, whatever. Everything is negotiable. And if there is a multiple offer situation, this probably won't be happening. 

But you know what really won't be happening? Me presenting an offer with a loan prequalification letter that expired more than six weeks ago. Additionally, when I called the loan officer to find out if the buyer really was a rock star, the loan officer's voice mail says she has been on an "extended leave of absence" since July 1. 

I sent an e-mail to the agent telling him once he got me a non-expired prequal letter I'd be happy to present the contract. I didn't add, please see page 2, section 2.a., line 69 where this is addressed. 

That would have been showing off. 

___________________________________________________

The agent who has repeatedly called me asking "how high" their offer should be to win this condo is still calling. She says she is writing an offer. To her credit, she is asking great questions, including what "needs" to happen for her clients to win ("Do you think if the buyer throws in an all expenses paid trip to Disneyland it would help get her offer accepted?" Maybe.)? What I suggested was a clean offer and make sure if she is prequalified her loan officer isn't on an extended leave of absence.   

Happy Problems

Gratuitous Cute Little Condo Pictures

Doug and Carla's cute little condo went active around 1 p.m. yesterday. We had 8 showings in 7 hours. One agent--before showing her client, mind you--called me asking me to help her write the "winning offer." She then gave me the life history of her soon-to-be homeless clients and asked me pretty please to let her clients have the best contract.  

"Breathe," I told her. She had time. Even if I got 8 offers today it doesn't mean Doug and Carla would be making a split second decision. They might want time to sleep on it. So, I told her, "Go show your client, if they are interested, write your best offer and I will present it." 

Meanwhile, all I could think was, please don't let me have 8 offers.  

Amen

Well, Julie and I finally connected. Now then, don't get me wrong! She's super-nice. And given where I got the referral from, I am not surprised that she is looking for a "Christian" realtor. I'm a practicing Catholic, but perhaps that might not be Christian enough. I didn't really explore that with her, because, honestly, I didn't think it was relevant to what I do for a living. She did quote Scripture, but I'm not sure what that has to do with getting the best dollar for her home and possibly getting realistic real estate advice. But, love thy neighbor. 

Anyway, I'm meeting Julie today. I am going to go over armed with facts, figures and a bunch of papers and talk to her about houses and other relevant real estate related business. Will it be Christian enough for Julie? I don't know. Thy Will be done. 

The Realtor's Kid

Polly had a class recently where she had to draw a satirical portrayal of how the public perceives a certain section of society. This is what she came up with. 

 

Adventures in Florida Real Estate Part 7

Darwin and his bride closed on their home last Friday. Their agent couldn't be bothered to be involved at all for the past two weeks. However, she did pass the buck to the unlicensed seller--who was beyond gracious in helping and answering Darwin and Mrs. Darwin's questions. The agent did ask the escrow officer if her commission was on the settlement statement. So, I guess she was in touch with the people who mattered. Darwin found this out from the title officer, because the agent couldn't be bothered to actually show up to Darwin's signing. 

As Darwin said to me, "The barrier to entry in your profession is too low." Well said and very true.