You will probably meet the owners on one of
your visits. As all of you stand around feeling awkward, watch
carefully for non-verbal communication among home owning
family members. Did Daughter blush when Dad said the tap water
was fit to drink? The owners may offer coffee or a soda, but
watch out if you're offered alcoholic beverages. They could be
trying to blunt your powers of observation and resolve. Beer,
wine and sherry, of course, do not count as alcoholic
beverages.
Be as charming as you can when you meet the owners. Remember,
your goal is to make them divulge the worst secrets of the
house and then let you have it for a fraction of what it's
worth just because they like you so much. Failing this, you
want to undermine their confidence in the value of their home.
Do this by pointing out obscure problems in the form of
compliments.
Example: "I love the way you've handled the space in the
living room. It makes the room look so much bigger than it
really is."
Caveat: Never suggest that anything is wrong with the taste of
the owners, even if there are acrylic fur seat covers on all
the toilets and a portrait of Elvis over the hearth with eyes
that follow you around the room.
This Homebuyers Tip was excerpted from:
The House Trap, by Alfred Gingold, Workman Publishing, 1988.
ISBN# 0894806157
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