Buying a home is very emotional.

I know, the great negotiators tell us to keep it a business transaction, don't muddle the affair with emotions!

But buying a home, especially your first home, can be emotionally taxing.

I remember one of my first transactions back in 1980 something.  It was a young couple with a new baby girl.  He was an engineer, she was a new stay at home mom, having just left her job working at a downtown law office.  Wonderful people.

They had contacted me through my web site.  We set up an appointment to meet at my office. We met and discussed the different ways I could or couldn't represent them. We talked about their needs and wants, and began to develop a plan of attack to make their home buying dreams a reality. Everything was going great. 

Next, we hit the road armed with listing sheets of several properties that interested them.  We looked at several of these homes until we came upon one they loved and that seemed to be perfect for them. 

The house was what they had been dreaming of, a little bungalow in a great location not too far from his work. There was a small park nearby and it was an easy drive to schools and shopping.  And, the price was less than they had anticipated.  Everything was just right.  Yet they were hesitant and I couldn't tell why?

I thought it would be helpful to draw up a list on paper. Two columns, positives down the left, negatives on the right.  I was sure that once they saw all the positives compared to what, one negative? that common sense and logic would win out, we'd sit and write up the contract, they'd move into the perfect home, and I'd make Junior Sales Leader for the month.

So, right then and there, they sat down and came up with a list some thirty strong on the positive aspects of the property, with only ONE negative.

And they decided not to buy the home.

W-H-A-T ? !

What a lesson on the power a negative can have, especially an EMOTIONAL negative. 

Don't they say that fear of loss is a greater motivator than promise of gain?

Thirty, count them THIRTY pros on why they should buy this house, and only one con.  And they decide not to because there was a large wetland/pond bordering the back part of  the property and she remembered a young kid drowning in just such a pond behind her friend's house when she was a young girl.

Well, I learned my lesson.  No, I don't just mean I never used the pro and con sheet again.  No, I learned that buying a home is an emotional deal.  It's the single largest purchase we make.  It is part of our American Dream.  It is a benchmark of our achievement.  It is our family's security.  Home is where the heart is.  Our home is where generations of memories begin, and

we're not going to buy into any property that hits an emotional
no-no button and threatens our dreams.

They say Realtors should move every 2-4 years just so they're reminded of what a chore and emotional rollercoaster selling, buying, and moving is--so Realtors can better feel with their clients the truly emotional nature of buying a home, and realize it's not just a business transaction.  It’s not just about the numbers. It's not just a house.  It's a home.

So what are emotional cues?

Usually they are things we react to in a property that we must accept because there is no way to change them, for example, a wetland on the back of the property or a train track close by. True, a bright baby blue house will have its emotional impact upon first viewing, but it can be overlooked if the property is right, because it can be re-painted.

And usually, they are things that appraisers and Realtors try and put a discount value on when evaluating a property—but find it difficult because each of us weighs these emotionally charged negatives differently. How much do you discount a nearby train or pond or a school yard across the street?

How do you feel about a house with a sump pump in the basement?  Even if it looks dryer than a bone and never used?  I’ve had buyers shy away from a house because of that.

Or a home where after inspection it’s determined there are elevated radon levels?  A problem that can be fixed easily, and inexpensively.  Yet I’ve had buyers back out of a home even though the seller was willing to pay the $900 to remediate the radon problem before closing.

What are your emotional cues?

It’s important to know because your emotions steer your buying, and buying a home is an emotionally charged and emotionally taxing, life changing event.

Fulton Gaylord
Keller Williams Realty
Charlottesville  VA

424-220-2228
Fulton@kw.com

Here's a great way to curb your fear of loss:

My 20% Buyer Rebate Offer !

Get cash back at closing.

Why work with an agent who doesn't offer you this 20% cash back??

http://www.BuyerRebateOffer.com