How is selling a newspaper like selling a house?

The question of who will be the next steward of the Boston Globe is big news. My former writing space, Boston.com, is up for sale. New York Times Vice Chairman, Michael Golden told Boston Globe employees (from the Globe):

“We will take what we consider to be the best bid,’’ Golden said, describing a process that he estimated would take six to nine months. Price is important, he said, but leaving the Globe in capable hands will be a consideration.

So how is selling a newspaper like selling a house?

For house sellers who are investors, it’s all about the Benjamins, period. Their goal is to get the most money, then about how quickly and securely they will get it. So, the highest offer with solid financing wins. The Times doesn’t intend to act solely as an investor. It has reason to care about journalism and its reputation. 

For owner-occupant house sellers, price is important, but leaving the house in capable hands matters too. Many are attached to their houses and the memories of events that took place while living there. If given a choice, sellers will choose a buyer who seems to be the next set of capable hands to care for the house. Being the right steward can get you a house, when in competition. It may even get you the house at a slightly lower price. Being disrespectful can lose you a house, or cost you more.

As a buyer’s agent, I am all about getting the best house at the lowest price. Keeping the seller’s motivation in mind is part of that process. For owner-occupants it is price first, but then, that something else. Everything you do and say in front of a seller or a seller’s agent is part of the picture of who you are as a buyer and as the next steward of the house.  As a buyer, you should be aware that negotiation begins with “hello.” There are things you just should not be saying, ever.

Sellers can be turned off by aggressive buyers who openly criticize the property, talk about renovation, or discuss tearing it down. Your snarky opinions may be clever, but that joke could cost you thousands. If you want to make fun of the 50’s decorating, do it outside. If you include a letter about how much you love their house, it better be honest. If it sounds like a buttering-up job, it is not going to work. Sellers weren’t born yesterday.

I have been lucky that my business has grown to attract people who are smart and respectful. I can’t teach respect, but I remain mindful of their communication and its affect on negotiation. With clients like this, I can fine-tune the negotiation from the first phone call.

What you say on email can be a binding contract

Last week, the New York Times reported on a court appeal regarding email communications. I sent the link to one of my clients, who was in a transaction with a seller, and a seller’s agent, and a seller’s attorney who did not understand the importance of email communication.

Here’s what happened:

The seller and the buyer had email communications through their agents regarding chattel (personal items) and some built-in items that could stay or go after closing. In the course of that conversation, the seller offered two small mounted TVs. The TVs were a distraction from the negotiation at hand. My client, the buyer, frankly didn’t care if they stayed or went. A deal was reached regarding some other, more expensive, items; the more expensive items were included, specifically, in the Purchase and Sales Agreement.  

However, the fur started to fly when -- several weeks later -- those same TVs were offered, for a fee, along with some items that were clearly built-in and part of the property. When I explained to the seller’s agent that these TVs had already been offered, agent said that offer was not binding because it was not in the Purchase and Sales Agreement. My client was annoyed that the seller was going back on his word. My client was also annoyed that the seller was attempting to sell built-in items at the last minute. 

“Not in the Purchase and Sales Agreement” does negate the written offer, by email, to my client. As of last week -- at least in New York State -- email promises are confirmed as binding. “As much as communication originally written or typed on paper, an e-mail retrievable from computer storage” is proof of a deal, according to the court’s opinion, which was written by Associate Justice David Friedman.

The Times, quotes an attorney who is using a disclaimer to avoid email backfires:

In most cases a disclaimer can inoculate senders from having e-mail backfire, real estate lawyers said. Mario J. Suarez, a lawyer at Thompson Hine who handles many commercial transactions, suggested that the wording might say the communications “shall not be deemed an offer, as no documents are binding unless and until executed.”

Should real estate agents have a disclaimer on all their emails? I vote, “no.” I like the idea of saying or writing what I mean and I don’t mind being held to my word.