By: Danielle Varno
I interrupt your regularly scheduled program to remind you that we are truly all in this together!
The Real Estate industry is demanding! Plain and simple, it is demanding of our time, our energy, our hearts, and our minds. It pulls us in many different directions every single day and at times it can be, dare I say it, downright overwhelming! Most of us spend our days trying to coordinate transactions that consist of buyers, sellers, other real estate agents, attorneys, title companies, inspectors, home warranty companies, and the list goes on. We hustle and grind day in and day out so that our clients can have the absolute best closing experience possible. After all, purchasing a home is the biggest investment most of our clients will ever make, right!?
So, what happens when that “perfect closing” starts to go off course or falls off the tracks altogether? No, really, what happens to YOU? I think it is safe to say we have all been a part of a transaction that has not gone according to plan (and if you haven’t, you will!). I am talking anything from a fence encroachment to a missing notary acknowledgment on a deed from 20+ years ago (don’t worry, we did find the notary, in Hawaii, and received a corrective document back within 48 hours – crisis averted!!!) and everything in between. We would like to believe we have seen it all, but alas, there is always the next “unbelievable” situation!
If you are anything like me, you have probably allowed these types of issues to keep you up at night. Will the buyers be stranded in our parking lot spending the night in their U-Haul, six dogs and three kids in tow because they cannot close tomorrow!? Will the sellers be left out in the cold streets, halfway across the country, because they will not have the proceeds from this sale in order to purchase their new home!? Will the buyers be mad at ME for something out of anyone’s control? While I could most certainly continue down the rabbit hole of sleepless thoughts, I imagine you get the point!!
Recently, I was part of a roundtable discussion with a number of real estate agents where I shared how for the better part of my career, I let the majority of title issues (resulting in closing delays) keep me up at night and how luckily, I have been in the industry long enough now to know that not a single minute of missed sleep over a title issue or other delay in a closing has ever eliminated or otherwise changed that title issue or delay! This group quickly thanked me for sharing and all too many of them said, “Wow, it is really refreshing and reassuring to know that you, as an attorney, have felt this way before. It is reassuring to know that you care for our clients the same way that we do!”
As shocked as I was, it made me realize that maybe we all need a reminder! You see, ultimately, it will not matter how mad someone COULD be at you or how put out a party might be when issues with closings arise. You know what will ALWAYS matter though? The expectations we all set from the beginning, how we respond to turbulence in transactions, the way we communicate with each other and most importantly, the way we treat each other.
So, I challenge you as I challenge myself: Sleep at night; be the cool, calm, and collected agent that your clients (and the transaction) need, and trust that TOGETHER we will make sure things are done the right way, in the right time, for the right reasons – ALWAYS!
I hope you can Rest Easy knowing that we are all in this wild, chaotic, absolutely wonder real estate industry… together!
