I was recently under contract and in escrow with a young couple buying a home. We ended up cancelling the escrow because so many things were going wrong. It was very frustrating to them that the sellers were missing contract deadlines and became oddly non-cooperative.
Unfortunately, I knew exactly what was happening. We were working with fake sellers. Today I’m going to share with you five tips on how to spot a fake seller. If you need to get out of escrow or before you even open escrow, you will know exactly what’s happening.
Tip #1: Unrealistic The most common reason the house doesn’t sell is because of the price. If the sellers say they can’t sell their house, what’s really happening is that they’re testing the market condition. They’re not real sellers. Real sellers may initially overprice their home but very quickly (generally within 5 days) bring their price back to the realistic market value.
Tip #2: Not motivated Motivation is going to look like a wedding, a baby on the way or job transfer. A real seller will always be motivated which will show up front.
Tip #3: Don’t have timelines Fake sellers don’t have a timeline. If there’s a job transfer they have a timeline, if a school is starting they have a timeline, if they’re closing escrow on their next home, they have a timeline. But, if you’re working with a seller without a timeline, you may not be working with a motivated seller.
Tip #4: Not forthright Fake sellers are not forthright. They try to hide things. Real sellers, on the other hand, are extremely forthright. In fact, they are disarmingly candid about the condition of the home, the area that you are buying into, and even the neighbors next door.
Tip #5: Non co-operative Fake sellers are non-cooperative as they have no reason to co-operate with you. Real sellers will be co-operative as much as they possibly can. They want the transaction to go smoothly, they want to work with you to solve problems. They have a ‘let’s make things happen’ attitude. So, if you’re suddenly running into inconsistent behavior, having a lot of surprises, you may be working with a fake seller. You may decide to run and not walk away from such transactions.
