For example, did you know:
- that buyers who look for "FSBOs" usually
offer 6-10% below the price of comparable properties because
they know you are not paying a commission?
- that there are substantial risks involved
when a seller agrees to "carry back" a note from the buyer;
risks that can cost you thousands of dollars?
- that your good credit rating can be ruined
by your buyer's default, many months, or even years, after
that buyer "assumes" your loan?
- that a clever buyer can stay in possession
of your property for many months after he defaults on the
contract, and in effect "live for free" at your expense?
- that most buyer complaints involve alleged
damages of less than $10,000, yet you could be forced to
spend thousands in attorney's fees to defend such a claim?
- that alleged failure to disclose such
things as previous repairs, insects, exact lot lines, and
the presence of certain types of mold/fungus in the property
are the source of many lawsuits against sellers?
- In short, a lawsuit can ruin your whole
day! Even if you know that the buyer's claims are completely
bogus, it can take many months and many thousands of dollars
to prove that you are "innocent." What's worse, you have
no "malpractice" insurance to pay these bills; you will
have to write all the checks yourself. And, of course, you
could lose ... and losing a case like this can be disastrous.
You and the buyer have a contractual relationship, and sellers
who lose such suits can find themselves having to pay not
only the amount of damages awarded to the buyer, as well
as their own attorney, but they may also be ordered to pay
the fees of the attorney who sued them!
Experienced, professional real estate agents understand these
kinds of risks, and they can help you to minimize them in
a variety of ways. They devote many hours to training and
educational programs which emphasize risk reduction, and protecting
their clients' interests.
Now, there are any number of reasons why your buyers may
decide to take action against you (sometimes, they just don't
feel like making the payments any more). However, most of
these complaints allege problems with the condition of the
property, and/or representations made to them about the property
or the transaction. An experienced agent knows how to reduce
the risk of these types of complaints, by including effective "AS IS" and other clauses in the contract language, and by
providing for such things as a professional home inspection,
and a home warranty.
When a problem arises in the transaction, an experienced
agent can move swiftly to "nip it in the bud." Their thorough
understanding of the myriad facets of modern transactions
can help them to identify the real problem, and to either
solve it themselves, or by calling upon resources that the
typical seller simply does not have access to.
There is no escaping it: the best way to deal with a complaint
is to prevent it in the first place. The organized real estate
community has spent a lot of time thinking about how to reduce
the likelihood of claims, and has responded to this threat
in a number of ways. For example, the standard contract forms
that most agents use are chock full of language which can
help protect you, and reduce your exposure to claims and litigation.
Of course, I don't mean to scare you with all this! But hey,
it is a jungle out there. Indeed, I've only touched on a few
of the pitfalls of selling your home on your own. Take it
from someone who knows: selling your home without professional
help is very risky business indeed. Yes, it costs money to
employ a real estate agent, but if you find the right one,
you will likely be able to sell your property faster, while
at the same time reducing the chances that your buyer will
come back to haunt you.
About the Author
Phoenix, Arizona, attorney Robert N. Bass is a nationally
known authority on broker liability defense and risk reduction
for real estate brokers and salespeople. He concentrates his
practice in defending errors and omissions claims and license
complaints against licensees. He can be reached at Robert@BassLawFirm.com
|
Unfortunately,
residential transactions have seen an alarming increase in
the number of claims and lawsuits. Of these claims, the majority
are filed against sellers, by their buyers. Home sellers who
think they can "go it alone" might want to seriously ponder
the observations of a lawyer who has defended many sellers
and real estate agents against claims made by "Buyers from
Hell."