OK, here’s the scene; I meet the Buyer, my client, at a house a week ago to re-inspect the repairs per the inspection addendum. (We closed 3 days later. Yeah!!!!)
Hard to describe the home, but it’s an open, hacienda type home, with lots of lawn and parking. You can walk all around the house to a giant deck in the back without going thru the house, itself. Really nice grounds, flowering bushes, and view on about an acre. There are about 6 doors from the outside leading into the house; garage, front, side, a couple of sliders on the deck and bedrooms.
So, my client is there and we look at the few repairs, which all look great.
Doorbell rings. It’s the Buyer’s daughter, with her husband and two children. They just want to look around and see what Mom’s buying. No worries. They have a Labrador retriever with them and I tell them he must stay outside (they really want to bring him in). So, he’s chained to their pickup truck. Barking, of course…
Next thing I know, there are 4 or 5 more folks milling around on the back deck, looking at the view, and making their way into the house. I ask who they are, and yep…they are relatives/friends of the Buyer, just wanted to come by and look at the house.
15 minutes pass. Now there are at least 20 people there and I’m expecting someone to break out the wine and cheese (or carry a keg in). I’m going around locking all the doors and trying to herd everyone out, and others are slipping in behind me, unlocking the doors and looking around.
I pull my client aside and say, “You don’t own this house yet. Although it is vacant, neither you or I have authority for all these people to be here. They need to leave now.” She says, she can’t tell them to leave as she invited them. And she won't.
I’m walking around saying, “Sorry but we all need to leave, now. Now. Yes, we need to leave now. Well, this is not Betty’s house yet..so you need to leave, now....” And they are all totally ignoring me. And I’m not a little guy and I can get pretty direct. And these folks are just lookin’ right through me…
This was a difficult purchase, as it was an estate and the heirs/children were very, very hard to deal with, get responses from, and I know that should they stumble upon this shindig, it is really going to hit the fan. I called the listing agent and got voice-mail, left a message and never heard back. Still have not (imagine that?!).
After about an hour (actually OVER an hour!), I got everyone out, and not without a few harsh words from them, and some pointed return fire from me. I mean, it’s by virtue of MY license that my client and I are there. It is my responsibility to protect that property.
Whatcha think? Did I over-react? What would you have done?