You can't stop people from killing themselves. I'm not going all Kevorkian here. I'm actually thinking about the story in the Sacramento Bee this morning about protecting people from themselves.
Not to try to understand how newspapers work, but I imagine the Sac Bee had an editorial meeting about how to run the story about preventing people from killing themselves at railroad crossings. We had a tragedy at Sacramento light rail on Saturday. A family of three, including a toddler, were killed when the train struck their SUV at a railroad crossing. Authorities say the SUV driver was trying to drive around the gate arm. The family rejects this theory.
As a result, the Bee ran a story about gate jumping. The reporter who wrote the story about risk-takers who try to jump the train will now have to monitor a live chat and address community concerns. It's a touchy situation. Whether this driver was at fault doesn't negate the fact that many drivers apparently try to jump the train. Part of the solution offered is to install double gates so drivers can't get around them no matter what.
How far do we go to protect people from harming themselves? You would think a simple stop, do not cross, would do the trick. Stop in the name of love, before you break my heart. Stop, only YOU can prevent forest fires. Except today you've gotta get your smokey on to get the message across. I saw that billboard at the downtown Sacramento mall and thought, oh, give me a break. Get your smokey on? You can tell I'm an old cranky person.
Cranky enough that I don't purposely try to alienate myself when working with other people. Sometimes, I see agents sabotage their own efforts. Especially in a multiple-offer situation. Earlier this week, I received 4 or 5 offers for a short sale. Short sale offers carry requirements and not all of them were met. But, still, I sent every offer as it arrived to the seller, like I am required to do. If agents were testy or argumentative, I passed along that information to the seller as well.
I believe we can protect other people only so much. Somewhere along the line people might want to take responsibility for their own actions. Sellers don't always choose the highest offer. Sellers choose the buyer and the buyer's agent with whom they want to spend 2 to 4 months in escrow.
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Certified HAFA Specialist
My Sacramento Real Estate Listings
Elizabeth Weintraub is an author, home buying columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento. Weintraub is also a Sacramento Short Sale agent who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.
The Short Sale Savior, by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.
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The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.
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