In the spirit of Halloween, Amit & Roy Bhandari will be running a daily anecdote that we are calling “A Week of Real Estate Horror Stories”.  These are real stories that we have heard from our fellow colleges.  These stories are not designed to scare you from buying or selling Real Estate, but rather offer a friendly reminder that the Real Estate Transaction can be extremely complex and without the proper guidance, things can (and have) gone horribly wrong.

This next story is one that we heard from a client of ours regarding her previous agent.  Our client was recently divorced and told us that her previous agent was responsible for her divorce.  This of course, aroused our interest and we dug deeper.

When our client and then husband (let’s call them Maurice and Steven) were looking for their first home they spent a few days searching on their own before deciding to take on the help of a real estate agent.  We are told that the agent was extremely aggressive in showing them homes and even more aggressive in getting Maurice and Steven to put an offer on the first home that they saw.  It was a very nice home, but Maurice and Steven both felt that it was too much and too soon and were not mentally prepared to put together an offer.  Every time they presented an argument against making a purchase, the agent would fire back and the couple almost felt cornered into putting an offer.

The couple did end up purchasing the home, but immediately had buyer’s remorse.  To make matters worse, they had been advised to lock into a variable rate mortgage and rates were increasing.

The home was more than they could afford and the payments were taking up too much of the family income.  Financial strain is the number 1 cause of divorce in North America, and ultimately it became too much for Maurice and Steven who decided to separate.

We met Maurice over a year ago, and just like with any client, it is important to understand the needs and wants of the clients, as well as determining the budget.  It is for YOU to determine when you are ready to buy a home – not your agent.  In Maurice’s case, she needed almost two months before she found her perfect home the second time around, and we were happy to show her as many homes as it took and never pressured her into making a decision.  We still keep in regular contact with her, and we thank her for allowing us to share her Real Estate Horror story!

If you are buying a home here are a few tips:

1) Limit your agent and your spending: If you sign the Buyer Agency Agreement, only sign on with an agent for 60 days at a time. That way, if you feel the agent’s not the right fit, you can move on.

2) Get pre-approved for a mortgage before you start seriously searching. That gives you a clear idea of what you can afford so you don’t end up overspending.(A note however, a pre-approval isn’t a guarantee for approval. It’s a snapshot of your financial situation at the time, and it’s subject to change.)

3) Do not feel compelled to make an offer – only make an offer on a property that you want. Do not let the agent tell you what to do – they should not even give an opinion on whether you should purchase or not. It is not their job.  The agent’s job is to tell you the pro’s and con’s and his expertise, and to allow you to make the final decision.