If Looks Could Buy, Road Blocks Fly By

Cell phone ring tone “If you”re happy and you know it clap your hands”

Pause……

Ring tone again “If you”re happy and you know it clap your hands”

Call answered:

“Hello, CTX, how can I help you?”

“Oh hi, this is Agent Realtor”

“Hi, Agent, how are you today? It’s pretty hot out isn’t it?”

“Yeah it is, I’m doing good, thanks… hey I have a buyer, we’ve been driving around looking for a home all day today and he needs to be pre-qualified for a loan. We’ve found this fantastic, four bedroom, three bath place near a good school district and they absolutely love it! It even has a Jacuzzi”

“Great. Let’s take an application and we’ll be on our way”… “oh boy”….

What is wrong with this conversation? Do you even see anything wrong with what just transpired? Is this a mistake of a rookie agent? Or, a first time home buyer unclear about how to go about the purchase transaction? I don’t know. All I can say is plenty of agents and buyers call me at the end of the day after a long day of window shopping. I guess traveling in the heat not knowing how much you can afford to buy must be a worthwhile experience for many people. I certainly will not argue against their preferences. Hey, some like it that way!

However, my advice to home buyers and agents is that they need to first talk to a mortgage person and obtain a credit approval if possible before spending any time looking for a home. I work with an agent in North Phoenix who is pretty good at this. Anytime he’s made contact with a buyer he sends them to me first to be qualified. Once I told him that the buyer he sent me couldn’t even afford a $50,000 home. He was stunned. These folks pulled up in a very nice new vehicle and were impeccably dressed he said. I guess looks can’t kill – or buy a home for that matter!

Why would you ever want to spend a whole day of your life driving around town looking for something you have no idea how you would buy. Not only is time money, but think of the heartache of coveting something you can’t have! If the buyer says they have already talked to a lender, then I suggest asking to speak with the lender. It is important to know the questions to ask and evaluate the strength of the approval. Remember, a stone unturned today can be a road block at underwriting tomorrow!