Elizabeth Weintraub • Sacramento Short Sale Agent • Land Park

Mike Wallace made us better people. Of course, there is the aspect of never in a million years wanting to open the door to find Mike Wallace standing there with a film crew . . . even though I consider myself innocent and unnewsworthy. I'm not alone. Many people were nervous when Mike Wallace was around. Generally for good reason. But it doesn't undercut the impact of that reporter's work on broadcast journalism. I am saddened a guy of his caliber is now only with us in spirit.

I am also saddened that although I put two short sales into escrow on Easter Sunday, I was unable to do so with the last offer. An agent sent me a text message asking if her buyer could ignore the seller's requirement that the buyer wait for short sale approval. She wanted to know if she would be wasting her time to send an offer without a commitment. I affirmed her fears. Then, later in the day, she sent me an offer without the commitment.

Not only did the offer lack the necessary element of commitment, but other elements were missing as well. The price wasn't really the issue, but there was no meat and no substance in this dish. It lacked integrity.

The agent begged us to write a counter offer so she could show the buyer we mean business. We do mean business. That's why we have a short sale home on the market in Sacramento. That's why we have attached to MLS documents explaining how to write a short sale offer that the seller will accept. It's the buyer's agent's job to explain all of this to the buyer.

So, you've got to ask yourself, as a seller, some hard questions. Do you want to go into escrow with a buyer's agent who feels uncomfortable explaining how to write a short sale offer to her buyer? What else will she feel uncomfortable about? Closing, perhaps? Do you want to go into escrow with a buyer who doesn't really want to be there with you? Are you desperate to grasp at straws, hoping one won't break the camel's back?

Not in this Sacramento real estate market. This market is sizzling hot! Besides, sellers are smarter than your average bear. That's one of many reasons they hired this Sacramento short sale agent. They want to close escrow.

Some short sale agents in Sacramento might forget whom they represent. In case you're wondering, if you're a listing agent, it's the seller. Because a listing agent has fiduciary with the seller and because MLS requires it, all offers received by the listing agent must go to the seller. Doesn't matter if it's a lowball offer. Doesn't matter if the buyer's agent pecked it out with a dead chicken's foot dipped into blood, all offers go to the seller.

I try to prepare my sellers for the onslaught of offers they will receive. It shocks some. But I send all offers to the seller because that's my job.

The problem that can happen is when a property attracts a lowball and the seller takes that lowball. Why would the seller take a lowball? Especially a lowball the seller does not believe the bank will accept? There are reasons. Maybe the property is close to auction. All bets are off at that point. Maybe the home is difficult to comp, and the seller wants to see what the bank will do. Maybe the seller is just plain tired of buyers traipsing through, you never know.

But the fact remains a lowball offer is a dangerous offer to send to the bank. As a Sacramento short sale agent, I advise against it. Because you can waste a lot of time if it's headed for rejection. Then, you're going back on the market, changing from active short contingent to active short. This makes buyers wonder what's wrong with the property.

But sometimes a lowball can pay off. Especially if that strategy attracts a higher, market value offer. In all real estate transactions, including short sales, the seller has the right to accept a backup offer. There is generally no point to submit a second offer to the bank. I rarely do it, if ever. It's just plain stupid for the most part. But if the offer that is submitted has almost a zero chance of acceptance, it can make sense to send a higher offer.

Buyer's agents, here is a tip for you when calling on status / progress of active short contingent listings. The question to ask a listing agent is whether the seller is happy with the offer that is submitted to the bank. Don't ask if the seller wants a backup. All sellers want a backup because backups don't really mean anything except to put a buyer's name into second position.

I had one such episode happen last week. A buyer's agent submitted a very-close-to-market-value offer on a home that was active short contingent. The seller was in escrow with a lowball offer, which almost never happens. The seller authorized his agent to send the new offer to the bank. But first, I suggested that we give the existing buyers the opportunity to match it. They got first right of refusal, which was only fair. But the buyers rejected it. This means if it had been the bank demanding a higher price, those buyers would have fled like termites exposed to sunlight. We were better off without them.

And see, this is what makes me a good short sale agent.

Would this home have sold at the same price if we had left it on the market and did not take that initial lowball? Maybe not. People seem to want what other people want.

For more information, read:  If a seller accepts an offer, can another buyer outbid us?

Today, I'd like to share with you two enormous annoyances: Agents who promise to send offers and do not, and GE Profile refrigerators with an interior water dispenser.

Until agents are holding a signed offer in their grubby little paws, agents should probably refrain from sending out emails or making phone calls to say they are sending over a purchase offer. Oh, I know that agents can get even more excited than their clients. They get caught up in their almost-there transactions. They get giddy. And then they share that giddiness. I know they want me to be as excited as they are, so I try, but the fact is I don't feel as giddy as they do.

Because I know the truth. Maybe they'll send an offer on that Sacramento short sale, maybe they won't. Until I have received the offer, I don't pass on this information to my sellers. Why? Why get their hopes up only to dash them? If every agent wrote an offer when promised, I'd have island guys rubbing my feet with palm oil as I sleep on the beach.

Speaking of sleeping, I woke up last night at 1:00 AM. My water bottle was not next to my bed. Probably because my husband put it in the dishwasher. I was way too sleepy to dig through the dishwasher looking for it. Instead, I got up, grabbed a glass from the kitchen cabinet and opened the door to the refrigerator.

Sure, GE Profile refrigerators seduce you with their clever marketing, low-energy ratings and pretty curved design. But my refrigerator has the water dispenser inside and not outside. To make matters worse, the button is covered, so, if you have long fingernails, it's difficult to depress. I shoved my glass under it, maneuvered the door behind my back and pressed the button with my nail. I removed the glass, and the water continued to flow. The stinkin' button was jammed.

I know now that if I need a large receptacle or pan in a hurry, it can't be done. I hope an asteroid never hits my roof during a heavy Sacramento rainstorm. I had to dig through the cabinet to find a pan. This was after trying to fix the jammed button as the kitchen flooded. Water flowed all over my Marmoleum floor, which can't get soaked. Well, not everybody in the Weintraub household gets to sleep. A bit of screaming his name brought my husband running. I don't know what he did but he fixed it.

But I'm betting this won't be the last time he leaves my water bottle in the dishwasher. And it won't be the last time an agent promises she is sending me an offer and does not. Doesn't matter; I am tough. After all, I'm a Sacramento short sale agent.