The other side of the transaction
October 4th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
I recently represented a buyer in a transaction and toward the end of it, I got an opportunity to meet the sellers and I was quite moved.
The deal’s negotiations had a couple of “starts and stops” throughout as the two sides had a difference of opinion on the market value of the home. And once we got under contract we had even more negotiation on inspection items that, although civil, was a little unsettling for both parties.
As we were performing the final walkthrough prior to closing, the sellers agreed to show our buyers some of the maintenance aspects of the home. During this time I had a chance to talk to one of the sellers for about 30 minutes, which turned out to be an amazing conversation. During this time, I found out that the sellers have had some striking challenges in their business that paralleled some of the experiences that I encountered in my not so distant past. They were also going through some tough family issues as well. I was so touched by the grace, compassion and sincerity of the seller that I couldn’t get the discussion out of my mind for the rest of the day. Despite the very tough time this person was having, there was a sparkle in the seller’s eye that showed tremendous inner strength and a zest for life. What an amazing person I had just met!
Although I have no regrets on how hard I negotiated on my clients’ behalf, this experience was a reminder of the human nature of our real estate negotiations. Obviously some folks that are selling in this market are experiencing rough times. As Realtors in our community, we should remember that there is a way to negotiate hard for our clients, but respect and understand the human element of the negotiations on the other side of the transaction. There are some wonderful folks on both sides and if we’re fortunate enough, we might just learn something from some of the folks on the other side.
