Real estate is not just about perfectly manicured lawns, meticulously arranged furniture, and fresh smelling living rooms. These are just the tip of the iceberg; there is a bigger, dirtier part of the business that you often don’t see, and don’t hear anything about. Very often it’s a don’t ask don’t tell sort of environment, after all. They often say that real estate is best described as the survival of the fittest. It’s a dirty fight where there are no referees, and only the toughest survive.
Dishonesty is one of real estate’sbiggest problems. Sometimes to sell a house somereal estate agents conveniently forget to mention important things like say, someone recently was shot in your dream house or that the house has pipes with holes like Swiss cheese. There are certain real estate agents that believe in the old adage - what you don’t know won’t hurt you. So ask questions, as being inquisitive just might save you in the long run.
Take everything that you read about a listing with a grain of salt.Real estate agents often use fancy words that sound very inviting but mean an entirely different thing. Cozy in a listing often means small, tiny, and miniscule! So if you read a listing that starts off with ‘A cozy little cottage…” it probably is just ‘cozy’ enough for Hobbits to live in. ;)
In an attempt to make more commission, certain agents have their own technique of encouraging a buyer to make an offer that’s just a wee bit too high. To avoid this, it helps to visit a lot of homes in the area to find out the prices that comparable homes are selling for.
Unfortunately, real estate agents, in an attempt to convince the home owner to sell or just to beat the competition for the right to sell, will resort to unscrupulous techniques. They will often quote the owner a price way above the market value of the house, and, once the contract is signed, the agent begins to groom the owner to accept a lower price. Sneaky! To avoid this, make sure that you do your own research about your house should you want to go and sell it. This way, you won’t get fooled by the big bad real estate wolf.
