Put plainly, the risk as a buyer is losing the deal, and/or your negotiating power.
With a myriad of technologies in our home, sellers can listen (and watch) what a buyer and their realtor are discussing. For that reason we always advise our clients to wait until AFTER we’ve left the premises to discuss opinions/fixes/staging/pricing. You wouldn’t want your counterpart to know your negotiating power before you start discussing the agreement, would you?
It is not currently an Arizona law to require a seller to disclose using these mediums as a tool for observing. However, our Residential Listing Contract does include a line (Section 8, 176) stating “Owner is advised to post notice disclosing the existence of security devices on the Premises.” (Advised being the key term, as in “not required.”) As you may have already guessed, the most commonly used models are doorbell and security cameras, baby monitors and nanny cams.
Statistic time: three in 10 sellers say they’ve used a hidden camera during an open house or showing at their home, according to a new LendingTree study of more than 2,000 consumers.
The most common reason, cited by nearly half of those who provided reasons, is to understand what home buyers do and don’t like about the homes – 36% of those respondents said they wanted to use the camera to gather information that could be useful during negotiations; 23% of them wanted to see what their real estate agent was saying about the home.
Put plainly, the risk as a buyer is losing the deal, and/or your negotiating power. Examples to consider: 1) It’s a custom home and you are verbally unimpressed with the woodwork and are planning to rip it out, however, that was a major pride for the seller who is emotionally invested. You just lost out on that deal. 2) You are incredibly impressed with the architecture and in your excitement you verbally express that it’s priced low, now the sellers know to counter much higher. 3) In Flagstaff, sellers are focused on paying their home forward to a fellow Flagstaff resident and if buyers are openly discussing the home is to be an investment property, the sellers will no longer consider your offer.
In conclusion, wait to discuss points of negotiation and impassioned enthusiasm until you are in the car or back at the office with your realtor. Remember, during real estate showings, you are only a guest in someone else’s home until you sign at closing. Treat real estate showing appointments as if the seller is right there in the home with you. Electronically speaking, they might already be watching you LIVE. Our advice: don’t be paranoid, simply be security smart. Use this information to obtain your power position in finding your next home. FBN
By Valerie Core and Kyle Jones
Valerie Core and Kyle Jones are realtors with Russ Lyon. You can find out more by going to www.russlyon.com/flagstaff or calling (928) 779-5966
