Yea-ow! I wasn’t expecting single digit temps this morning, but when in the midst of a North Iowa winter, you gotta expect the unexpected. You can bet I kept myself bundled whenever having to be outdoors. At least it did get up in the 20’s, and by the looks of it, the wind has now changed directions which means we just might get up to the highs they’ve predicted.
I did finally get an answer on that offer I wrote yesterday, which was a disappointment because the seller is out of town and likely thinks there’ll be buyers fighting over it in the coming weeks. How unfortunate it is when sellers just don’t understand that oft times the first offer is the best offer. Without a doubt, I’ve heard enough of those “Should’ve” and “Could’ve” comments from sellers months after their listings have sat on the market with no activity, or later having offers even lower than the first one they turned down.
I get it, when sellers counter or reject offers that were ridiculously low, or had unacceptable contingencies, but when there’s a clean offer on the table that’s well within the realm of being fair, then it’s better to take it, rather than turning it into an emotional tug of war which usually ends poorly for the sellers. I fear the seller on this transaction is one of those “Emotionals”.
While out, I received a return call from a buyer whom I’ve been working with on and off for a number of months, and the reason I wanted her to call me at the beginning of our marketing season, was to inform her that I felt it best she find another Realtor to work with because the dynamics between us just wasn’t there. I wished her all the best while insisting it being the better course for the both of us. There was a bit of silence at first, but in the end, she understood, and did thank me for all the time I’d spent.
I speak about this because it’s important for buyers and Realtors to have a good working relationship which I usually speak about during our first encounter, but there’ve been those rare occasions where the longer I’ve worked with someone, the more polarized we become, which is never good thing. You can bet I do everything I can to acclimate myself to all walks of life, but again, there are those few times when I find there’s nothing I can do to bridge those gaps. I think most of it can be blamed on that “5%”.
I’m sure you recall me telling you that I once read that within our society, five percent of the population harbors an instant dislike for you for some reason or another. If you’d confront them, they’d either go into denial, or you’d be hearing obscure excuses that wouldn’t make any sense. For me, I’d say it’s less than five percent, and likely because I’ve learned to put aside any unpleasant thoughts I would normally have because my profession calls for it.
I had to laugh when another professional who works with the cross-cut of society once said, “You may think I share their likes and dis-likes, but you can be sure, after they’ve left my office, I’m in the restroom scrubbing myself clean of their handshakes.” I wickedly said, “Do you use a bar of Lava soap just to make sure all the sub-atomic particles are sent down the drain? Because if they’re still there, you may unknowingly be collecting jaded handshakes.” He didn’t find it as funny as I did.
Having a light afternoon, I spent more time on my year-end duties, and managed to get several more time-sensitive reports completed. I’m not so sure, but I think I’m a little farther ahead than normally, which means I’ll be able to close out 2019 all the earlier.
Oh how I hate getting taxes prepared, but it has to be done, so I trudge onward until I can finally breathe a big sigh of relief.
I had a short visit this afternoon with a seller who’s in the first stages of readying her home for sale, and to my surprise, she asked if I was related to a girl she went thru grade school with. After my initial shock, I announced that it just happened to be my sister who passed away some years ago. After we spoke a little about her, I was happy she also had fond memories of her while in school, of which I thanked her for mentioning.
My listing at 415 – 1st St. SE had a good showing on it today, and I’m hoping the buyers will wake up tomorrow morning with similar feelings, which will likely produce a call for a second showing. I’d say that home is a perfect fit for them because of all the features it offers they’ve been searching for. In this weather, a heated garage is definitely a plus.
I have two showings scheduled for several of my listings on Friday, which is an indication that the buyers are out looking again. Unfortunately, there’s not much inventory to choose from at this time, but I’m hoping there’ll be more coming on the market in the near future.
I’ve scheduled a public open house for 1026 – 2nd St. NW this Saturday because that value-priced 3 bedroom home isn’t getting enough activity. It’s certainly priced right for the neighborhood when considering it’s only listed at $89,500. Please tell friends and relatives about it.
Tonight’s one-liner is: It’s best we surround ourselves with only those things that speak to our hearts.
