I am going to change the name of the guilty because some of these stories are just TOO fuuny!
I am hoping you will share with us YOUR most embarrassing moment as a Realtor! These are just a few from my office ( and me!)
- A guy in my office was showing a home we had toured earlier that day as an office. He was especially impressed with the master suite and could not get ahold of his clients fast enough to see this fabulous home. He left a message with the seller as indicated in the MLS, and was beaming when he was showing the great features of this custom home. As they walked down the hallway to the Master, he said" You are not going to believe your eyes!" ...Swung the door wide open and...your guessed it. Two teenagers who were obviously skipping school were sharing a little "afternoon delight". Mortified the naked teens began to scream bloody murder thinking it was some kind of home invasion. The clients were screaming, the Realtor began to laugh hysterically. BUSTED. He now has a habit of KNOCKING on every door he encounters -even in vacant homes. Imagine the post traumatic stress for everyone involved!
- I was new in the business. I got a call to show a million dollar home. I was super nervous! I offered to pick up the clients at their hotel. After viewing the home, they said they had to get moving because he was speaking at a conference at the hotel. OH DREAD. I had locked my keys in the car. I was so embarrassed. I had to track down my husband who was less than amused to fetch our extra keys and bring them to me while I was stuck making small talk in the freezing cold with these people, who I never heard from again!
- Dan is a distinguished fellow. He was showing upscale homes, when he told his clients he needed to use the bathroom and they could wait in the car. They didn't have the keys, so when he came out he said" Sorry to keep you waiting" He then realized Mr. Buyer was looking down at his feet. He glanced down to see a 4ft trail of toilet paper stuck to the bottom of his shoe. I mean, we all know it, and there is even a book out for toddlers that is called " Everybody Poops" but how embarrassing!!!!!!!
- My assocociate is a long time Realtor. He has some great stories and this is much better told in person, but he met with some sellers and, well, there home reeked of ciggy smoke. As he sat down to explain the market analysis he was fearing they might not like the valuation, so he cracked a joke. The seller started laughing so hard he began wheezing, and that made my associate laugh- and then the sellers wife started laughing and then the BOTH began to COUGH and my associate was losing it and he looked down (TRUE STORY) and the DOG was coughing. This struck him so funny, because it was a home full of hacking smokers, and now the dog was coughing that he could barely regain control. He realized at this point that this was no longer funny but he could not stop laughing. Eventually they all quited down, and he resumed his speech about the house. He got the listing, and it eventually sold.
I bet you have a few good ones too! Do tell...
LOL
BethAnn Long ~ Spokane Realtor- Coldwell Banker Tomlinson South Inc.
509-362-4607
...there's no place like your home!
Thanks for this cute post! There are so many funny moments in our business! I will have to post some of these as well.
A sellers Shitzu wizzed on a buyers shoe in the entrance foyer of the home while she was speaking with the listing agent.
These are too funny. The funniest thing I have had happen was when we got blocked into a parking space because we had accidentally parked in someone's space (the markings had rubbed off). The woman would not move and let us out and we had to call the police. The buyers had actually liked the home to that point. However, after several minutes of arguing back and forth my buyer finally yelled "I wouldn't live next to you if this was the last house on earth".
The most embarrassing so far is after showing a mobile home I dropped the keys straight from the lock down behind the stairs to a place I could not retrieve them. Had to call the listing agent.
Very funny! I will have to post a few myself!
DAVID: ew! that is funny!
STACEY: Ouch...
DEE: sounds like something I would do!
These are funny-- thanks for the Sunday laugh.
Several years ago after being let into a newer townhome for an inspection among a large group of similar looking townhomes, the sales agent stated she had to get her computer out of her car as she had work to do. I replied that I will start the inspection on the second floor and work my way down.
About 45 minutes later the red-faced agent returned and stated that she had gone back into the wrong house and was working at the kitchen table.
I think all realtors should keep a journal and eventually write a book of our experiences. We all have priceless stories.
BethAnn,
These are too funny....thanks for the chuckle....
It was my seller who was embarrassed. She forget it was tour day and stepped out of the shower into a house full of Realtors. She told me later she should have thrown a towel over her head so no one would recognize her.
You have to admit, our profession actually has a lot of humor in it. And we don't always have to look very far!
I've worked with agents for 15 years in the areas of marketing and PR and have to agree, agents have the craziest stories! They just don't have things happen to them that office workers, dentists, etc. would have happen to them.
It was part of the motivation for writing my book that came out in 2009. All In A Day's Work for Real Estate Agents: Humorous & Heartwarming Stories (published by Work Like A Dog Books, www.worklikeadogbooks.com) includes more than 100 true stories--some embarrassing, others bizarre or touching. The stories go way, way beyond the things that often happen to agents (like catching someone coming out of a shower or walking in a sexual moment). Stories here are things like finding a coffin in a vacant listing, getting stuck in the snow with clients in the truck, getting locked inside a bathroom at a caravan event (to the point where the door had to be removed), and much more. Those are just a few I thought of off the top of my head.
Agents are SO under-appreciated. I hope my book helps shed the real light on the non-glamorous side of real estate. I like to say the book is Chicken Soup meets Murphy's Law of selling real estate.
TC I want to order a book!
Glen how embarrassing!
Bob, that is classic!
Thanks to ALL for your comments!
I once ran out of gas when showing houses to buyers. We were in a parking lot and the buyer went into a variety store and an employee there took him to the nearest gas station to get some gas in a gas can.
Needless to say they never did buy a house through me and years later our sons ended up on the same baseball team and they became good friends.
Jenny, good one! But that must have been awful at the time...
BethAnn, you just had me laughing out loud! What a treat after a long day...thank you for sharing and I hope you share more of these great stories soon! :) Kerry
I always thought there should be a sitcom about real estate adventures. Thanks for the great laughs this morning.
Very cute stories! I was holding onto a key from the lock box and the seller had a cat we wanted to make sure we did not lock in a room. My buyer had 2 small children and I set the key down somewhere as we were moving through the home and I couldn't find it when we were leaving. I was desperate as I had another appointment on the other side of town. I made a game of it and offered the kids a $1.00 for whoever found the key first - after I called the listing agent to report it. I was going to have to go out another door & lock it - hopine there were not other showings soon with no key in the lock box. The son found the key on the floor by a bed, was very proud and happy to have the dollar - lucky he was round enough to think that was a big deal.
I was dual career for 7 years as a cop. During my stint as a burglary supervisor, we had a rash of burglaries, and ended up doing about 10 search warrants in a two day period. So, the next day when showing houses it was only natural to open the door and yell, "police, search warrant!"
Thank goodness no one was home, and thank goodness my client was a cop!
Oh my, I have plenty of stories of my own. Should I start with the tripping & falling in front of my client scenario, or the locking my keys in my car story, the startled, naked homeowner adventure, the unexpected CAT attack, or the doggie pooping on the rug right in front of me...
I won't go into to any gory details, because almost always I am the one who laughed or screamed inappropriately, skinned my knee, or called the wrecker service.
Have a great week, everyone!
Once I was showing a house in a rural area. Opened the door and set all my keys on the kitchen counter (don't do this any more) and we walked around the house. The husband went in the garage and we all followed..you guessed it..the garage door swung shut and was locked. No way to get back in the house..went out thru the garage door. It started to poor down rain and noone had cell service in that area. We had to walk about 2 miles on dirt, muddy road to the highway..in heels!
Thanks for the great chuckles this morning... I needed that
My wife and i went to see a house for ourlelves about 3 weeks ago and when we got in there was a maid at the house cleaning. she started screaming when she saw us cause we were all wrapped up because of the cold weather. I tried to explain that the house is for sale and we are looking at it but she spoke no english. She runs outside and goes and calls the next door person who happens to be the seller's brother who knows nothing about the house being on the market. after 45 minutes of phone calles they all knew i was the realtor and we were not thieves. lol Full Of Suprises.
BethAnn - thank you for the funnies...
With smiles,
Bo in Yukon
I was visiting my niece at college with my sister-in-law and she took us to show us her boyfriend's new condo they were renting. We were discussing the condo complex and how one of the rooommates dad bought it as an investment and were renting it to them, so I guess I got in Realtor mode. When we got to his condo, he opened the door and the first thing I noticed was a small hole in the carpet at the front door. I walked in and without even saying Hello said to my niece....looks like an issue with the carpeting...
I think they all just laughed it off but I was so embarressed I don't even remember what was said.
Those stories are great- we all have good ones. We need to start a group - "You can't make these things up!"
I've always said we'd make a great Reality show! You laugh & so do I; I'm dead serious! I have many stores as well; we probably all have the 'locked the keys in the car' story, & it is of course always when you are with a client you want to impress. How about the time, as my customer was about to get back into my car after viewing a dog-owner home that had been vacant for some time, I noticed fleas all over her white pants. I instantly reacted by slamming her car door shut, stopping her from getting into my car. Or the time very early in this business, when my customer got into an argument with a neighbor on the other side of a fence & spit over the fence on the neighbor. OK one more...I backed up & fell backwards into the outdoor spa! Thankfully it was a warm Florida day! Please keep the stories coming; love it!
Oh yes,
What delightful stories, it is wonderful that you posted them, We all need a good laugh!
Great post. You show the funny side of being a realtor. In a not so funny market. Funny post.
George I love the "Police search warrant!" one. I bet that had them scrambling.
BethAnn - These are all so funny, I'm sure we all have an embarrassing story, whether we admit it or not is another storyl
Laugh out loud funny. We all have them and thanks for sharing.
It was the Thursday morning MLS tour. I was running late, as always, I grab coffee at home and take it with me in the car. Get to the meeting just in time for that 2nd cup of coffee and then take one to go for my car. We are touring homes in Northern Nevada which can be some distance from each other. I am getting desperate to find a bathroom. When we pull up to the house I politely ask the homeower if I could use her powder room. She points to the first door on the left which was a laundry room-bath room combination. I was in such a hurry .... at last I on the potty so happy to have made it without embarrasing myself when I looked up to see the this bathroom had two doors and 30 REALTORS are walking by staring straight at me! My face is still red.
I was driving with a client (and long time friend) to a showing for a luxury townhome in a (described) upscale neighborhood of Houston. As we approached the cross street where the listing was located, my client and I observed a police car and two officers placing a couple under arrest. The male and female were on the ground and being handcuffed by the officers. Needless to say, my client did not want to view the property interior. "I don't care what the place is like inside, I would never live in this neighborhood!"
It's a law of nature that if you haven't had one of these episodes happen to you, you will. I told mine about getting stuck in a ditch last week. I was just lucky I wasn't with clients.
I have set the keys aside, though finally found them without help of a toddler. That's when I start to sweat even in cool weather. Now I hold the keys (and my own keys) on my person throughout each showing. These are great stories, thanks for the post!
I love to laugh! Thanks for a great lift!
Lots of embarrassing and funny moments as a real estate agent!
I was showing a house that was PACKED (and I mean PACKED) with stuff and the homeowner was sitting on the couch in the living room. The buyers walked into the kitchen where several mice having a party in a potato chip bag on the kitchen counter. We screamed and the homeowner told us "Don't worry, they are friendly with people and won't hurt you" When we got back to the car we laughed until we cried and joked about that house the entire time I worked with them.
I'm a Realtor and Home Stager as well. I was driving our truck with my home staging company's name on it when I suddenly saw the flashing lights of a police car behind me. Filled with dread, I pulled over and started getting out my license, etc. The policeman came up to my window and told me not to bother-- he was a part-time real estate agent, saw my home staging sign, and wanted to give me his card! Of course, I gave him my card and some brochures but later thought-- isn't that against some sort of "cop rule?" LOL!
if you haven't seen naked people while showing a home, you havent been in the business long enough. Be patient it will happen.
reading these posts I clearly need to get into a different market. I was with a couple showing houses, the wife and I are at the front door when we hear her police officer husband shouting. we come around the corner and he has a buglar on the ground with a gun to his head!! of course they did not purchase that house. Or how about the time a client/friend and I are looking at investment properties in Chicago and while we are talking to a dishevled woman at the front door we notice a naked man standing in all his glory in the full bay window! of course there is also the time a client and I opened a door into an empty condo to find a unconcious woman on the floor. Chicago police didn't seem to concerned and strangely enough neither did the listing agent!
My Dad was a REALTOR and back in the 1930's a tenant asked him to comey and look at something at the rental. When he arrived and knocked on the door a voice yelled, "Come on in" He did and was told to come upstairs. Up there she said I am in here so he opened the door and she was in the tub bathing so he quickly stepped out and closed the door. She said "Co9me on back in" To which he replied that he would return later when she was properly able to receive him. To which she replied." Now I understand, J. C. Ball, A Gent!!"
I had taken a listing referral through Active Rain and I went to preview the property. The owner was away, so a neighbor let me in. I was told there was a cat there, and I have 3 cats, so I didn't think twice about it. I was walking around the house, and as I exited one of the rooms, the cat attacked me from behind and attached itself to my leg with its teeth. This was a strong cat! It's a good thing I was wearing pants! I screamed and the neighbor helped get the cat away from me. I quickly finished looking around and got out as fast as I could. When I got in the car I looked at the area, and there were bleeding puncture wounds. Cat bites are serious, so when I got home I went to the local CVS Minute Clinic. They told me it should be seen by a doctor. This was a Sunday, and couldn't call my doctor, so they referred me to an emergency clinic doctor. I went there and they of course wanted to know the shot history of the cat. I had to call the owner who was out of town and explain what happened. Keep in mind that I had never met the owner, and now I am speaking to him from an emergency clinic regarding his cat. The cat was up to date with his shots so the doctor put me on an antibiotic. After all this I hoped I would get the listing! The owner apologized for his attack cat and gave me the listing, and I sold the property. I guess it was worth it in the long run. Everybody including the owner and the agent that had referred the listing had said "well at least the cat didn't bite you for nothing!"
Good stories, BethAnn! True Life is funnier than most made up jokes and situations. I've got a few, and will plan to "write them up on a future post." Thanks for these!
I love these stories! Makes me feel better, as I too have had a few of these experiances. I quess we're all human.
BethAnn
SO funny! Thanks for sharing we needed a laugh! it's a reminder of the kind of exciting lives we lead.
A friend of mine just began working as a census worker and telling us about having to walk up to homes that they don't know what to expect. I told her it sounded like our realtor experiences:)
We view our realtor community as family, so thanks 'cuz' for sharing.
Brenda & Don Regan Coldwell Banker Commercial Metro Brokers, Ellijay GA
Great Sunday humor! So many of these things have happened to so many of us! Who says real estate is not as fun as it used to be??? Just yesterday I was calling a half million dollar referral as I took a quick bite off my sandwich. Of course the call went quickly to voice mail and I started choking as I started leaving a message! Haven't heard back from the as of today!
Good sense of humor is necessary to be a Realtor. I've had times that if I didn't laugh I could cry,or die of embarrasment.
Not only funny........but very educational!!! I now have a few more 'what not to dos' in my arsenal. Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!
Moment one, I was feeling a little fatigued in the TX heat during a showing. I went to open the door to a home and passed out. My client had to drive me back. The following week I found out I wasn't hot, I was having a baby.
Moment 2, I represented the sellers of a high priced home. We were in closing, the buyer signed, my female seller signed, and the male seller signed. Then the title office asked my male client, "when is your wife coming in?". I was SHOCKED!!!! The seller had bought the house with his girlfriend, without his wife's knowledge (obviously) and he refused to bring his wife into the picture to sign.
I have a couple to tell, but they are all X-rated. I'll need to wait until I'm out of this business to post them here.
;)
Scott Miller, Realty Associates, Boca Raton, FL
Whenever you mix people and a stressful situation - there are lots of funny moments. Thanks really enjoyed this post!
This isn't funny but relates to your story about the teenagers in the bedroom. A couple of years ago, a listing agent and his assistant were caught in an upstairs bedroom by the teenage daughter of the owners of the house. Needless to say the agent was fired from our company immediately.
I wrote a blog post about this on Trulia:
http://www.trulia.com/blog/karen_parsons-fiddler/2009/01/what_s_the_strangest_thi
some great responses....including mine :)
1) I once had a dog pee on my leg
2) I once stepped outside in the backyard to walk iinto a sink hole of mud
3) I had a teenager let us in and when we got to the master, the seller got out of bed, in his boxers, to open the door for us...then climbed back into bed and continued watching football on TV.
There were some great examples on the blog....
Got stuck in the mud out in a field with a client one time. We tried to get out for about an hour and finally had to call a tow truck. The tow truck got stuck. Finally, after a total of about 3 hours the tow truck got free and pulled us out. We were covered in mud as we went to a restaurant to eat. He did end up buying a nice piece of (dry) land.
The hardest time I ever had stifling a laugh was when a prospect in all seriousness said "You know, it seems like the smaller the lots are the closer the houses are to each other".
I once showed a home that was stunningly beautiful. The whole first floor looked like something out of Southern Living magazine. Music on, candles lit, fresh flowers. I'm thinking this is a great home. The buyer and I went upstairs. One of the secondary bedrooms had a key lock on the knob, but it was unlocked. Enter.....leather carpet....iron four poster bed complete with handcuffs....some sort of bondage apparatus on the wall. Exit Realtor and buyer. I almost didn't believe what I had just seen until the buyer and I had a chance to regroup in the car. Yes, she had seen the same things I had. Funny, but I never got a request for feedback from that agent.
MLS instructions said to call first. We called, we knocked no response. We called agent who assured us no one was home and said go on in. Me and my male client are looking around the house and there are two teen girls sleeping it off upstairs. They did not wake up and we got the hell out of there.
I had the first occurrence happen to me in what was supposed to be a vacant condo building. Not quite naked, but definitely, doing something they shouldn't have been. These were probably just visitors. I love the story above me.
Great topic and wonderful stories from everyone. I love the leather rug and iron bed! Haven't run into anything any weirder than a king size bed hung with chains, kind of like you'd hang a a pot rack. I was going to mention how one of our local employing brokers was caught with his mistress in bed at a company listing. (He was let go.) But, someone up above already mentioned this one.
I was taking a listing (for a very cute, single guy) and walking around explaining what changes he needed to make before we actually put the house on the market. I opened the sliding glass door in the living room and noticed that it was sticking and hard to slide. I told him that he needed to squirt some WD 40 in the rails so it would slide more easily. Without even a little hesitation he grabbed a bottle of Astroglide off the coffee table and squirted it in the rail and then just looked at me. I must have turned 20 shades of red. The Astroglide worked well by the way and the house sold very quickly.
I've showed a house where a dog pooped on the floor, and many, many showings where I walked in on people in the bed (always sleeping, thank goodness.) It seems like the sleeping sellers would hear the doorbell and my shouting, not to mention the appointments I made?!?!
Thank you for my Sunday morning laugh! now I MUST read all the comments so I can laugh some more!
There are 2 kinds of home inspectors; ones that have AND ones that will:
Put their foot through a ceiling.
Overflow the jetted bathtub.
Forget to turn the oven off.
Spend the first 15 minutes inspecting the wrong house.
Get bit by the seller's dog/cat.
Find pornography in the closet where attic access is located.
OMG! I feel better. Funniest thing that happened to me lately is needing to use my clients GPS to locate properties and I've lived here for 40+ years! Sometimes LA aren't clear on their directions!
I previewed a vacant house (foreclosure) with my office partner and found a bullet casing in the master bedroom and the door to the deck was unlocked. We locked the door and left. My out-of-state clients were interested in the house and wanted more pictures than were in the MLS, so I took my grown son with me for safety reasons. While in the house, the attic stairs were down and they had not been on my previous visit. I called the listing agent and told her someone had been in the house, but she just scoffed and said no one had been. When my clients came to town and we visited the house, we moved toward the living room from the kitchen and the husband said, "Shh! What is that?" We stopped and listened. Sure enough, we heard it again. He said, "That's a rattlesnake!" We cautiously entered the living room and found the sliding glass door wide open. We kept hearing the noise and pinpointed it to the chimney. Now I'm a country girl, and I know that where there is one rattlesnake, the mate is generally nearby. We tiptoed through cautiously looking everywhere. I couldn't wait to get outside and call the listing agent to tell her not only did she have someone coming into the house, but now she had a rattlesnake in the chimney! She couldn't believe it, and said, "Who in the world am I going to get to get a snake out of the chimney?" I said, "I don't know, but it sure isn't going to be me!" Do you know my clients still made an offer on the house? They didn't get it though--probably a good thing!
We all have those stories.... where to begin? My office mates and I always said we should write a book!
Hello BethAnn, these stories are great! There are many like these aren't there? This made me smile. Thank you for your post. I'm sitting here laughing as I think of some pretty wild stories....he he! Hope you're well. Have a great rest of your Sunday.
So got a call to show one of my listings. I work from home and am guilty from going direct to the computer from bed. I got busy on the computer and realized I had 20 minutes to get ready and be at the property. I ran to the bedroom, threw on my jeans and got to the home just a few minutes late. I met a young man at the property and showed him the downstairs and as we were heading up the stairs he said to me "you dropped something" I turned back and saw he had what appeared to be a small beige rag. I figured it was left from the painters so I took it and to my horror it was my underwear! Stuck in my pants from the night before... OMG I was mortified and being the Italian I am I said "OMG that's my underwear" OUTLOUD! Needless to say the buyer had NO COMMENT.
Too embarrassed to say,
Wow! That is definitely embarrassing! I wonder if he recognized what they were when he said, "you dropped something." If so, that was an excellent way to approach it on his part!
Went to view a empty foreclosure with an investor....opened the door and it reeked!!!!!!!!!!! 6 feet into the house, covering my mouth...I refused to open it to the stench...........I decided I had enough...........but the investor..being an investor said he wanted to explore further............I said go ahead I will wait outside........several minutes later, he came running outside....you see while running he tripped over a rolled up rug that had feet sticking out of it..................we called the police!
yes the longer in the business the longer the list of stories, which we all need to recall and recant to especially newer agents so they don't think it only happens to them, alot of my stories will have to be saved for my book after real estate retirement...but one young couple I was a Buyer's Agent for had a very long work day so our outings usually took place in the evening on winter nights...in showing a house they had extreme interest in we went outside, I could tell they were disappointed they couldn't see the neighborhood and home in the daylight so trying to make light of the situation I told them this was really a good time to see the neighborhood as most of the lights were on in this tight neighborhood and you could get a really good feel for the way people lived here. A funny expression came over my buyers face, I was facing the home they were interested in, they were facing the house next door, I asked "what's wrong?" their reply, "there is a woman with just a towel on in the window next door" with a giggle, I said "see she has no idea you are looking at her", their immediate response"Apparently not, the towel is on her HEAD!" and yes they did buy the house!
Beth Ann, I have never seen a dog coughing!! I would have been laughing hysterically, too! :) #72...now that is scary!
I had just listed a house for my niece. I stopped in to take pictures and put up a sign. I stopped at the end of the driveway to get a nice exterior picture. My digital camera did not want to open up. I was switching batteries and playing with it for about ten minutes before finally getting it to work. I stepped out to take a picture when my niece came out of the house shaking and crying. I was in a new car that she was unfamiliar with. I was in a sweatshirt and baseball cap. She had no idea who the man was in her driveway. She had called her husband, mother and the police.
I bought a new camera.
Some of those stories were SO unbelievably funny! I loved the one about the undies falling out of the jeans!!!! Nice way to start a Sunday, with a chuckle.
What a great post! Thanks for the laughs!
I was showing a house next to my sister in-laws home to some buyers. We were in the back yard of the listing and I decided to peek over the privacy fence to check out the progress of my sister in-laws new pool and enclosure. That is when I saw my sister in-law topless on a raft. She saw me, I saw her. She yelled Roy, and I was in shock as I ducted as fast as I could. I replied from behind the privacy fence Sorry!!!! We got the heck out of there ASAP!
I had just purchased a GPS device when they first came out. I was showing buyers homes in an area where there were several homes for sale very close together. The GPS announced "You have arrived". I didn't realize the GPS wasn't spot-on-accurate, so I got out, went up to the door, took the key out of the lockbox, opened the door to a large family gathering of surprised people eating dinner. They didn't seem to know anything about me showing the house. I retreated, looked at the address and quickly realized I was supposed to be at the house next door. Uh, sorry...
Oh, I should be out the door by now, but these comments are just too funny!
I've shown up with buyers at a property where we had an appointment; the very plump, past-midde-age woman answered the door in a see-through negligee. It was a hot day, but geeze!
OMG Some of these are just too funny and I can't stop reading...sometimes you have more fun taking people around to messy houses, grow houses, meeting all sorts of characters etc. I had an elderly wheelchair bound woman once who insisted upon "seeing" houses before she moved into them and complained the whole time that doorways weren't wide enough, etc. The best was lugging the sheet of plywood out of her handicapped van, putting by the front door over steps and getting a good running start and zipping her in the houses. The things we all do!!!
It's actually quite nice to know that ridiculous moments don't just happen to me....
My contribution...I was taking a quick video on my Flip for my buyer who couldn't view a listing. I fell. Yes, there I went in all my glory down to the ground...on camera. I didn't bother to edit, I just sent it as was. Yes, we closed escrow.
BethAnn,
Too funny! Thanks!
very cute stories, thanks for the chuckle
Similar to the teenager story...I was scheduled to show a commercial bonded collection business. It was my listing and I had called the owner to confirm a showing for shortly after closing (5:30PM). When the buyer and I arrived the door was locked and lights were out so I figured everyone had left for the day. I unlocked the door and we entered. There was a walk-in safe with a huge, heavy door. I went to open the door mentioning how heavy it was...so the buyer came to help pushing it wide open. Voila"! There was the business owner...sitting on a chair with his pants down and his secretary sitting on his lap. I turned eight shades of red and the buyer simply chuckled. We quickly exited the building. The buyer did buy the building. Imagine how it felt presenting this offer a day later! Owner said nothing, I said nothing. Owner divorced his wife one year later.
While instructing one of my sellers on how to prepare her house for showings, I told her to take down all the messy post-it notes she had pinned to a message board on the kitchen wall. When I noticed my business card on the board I joked and said she could leave my card on the message board. We laughed.
I joked further and told her I had an 8 x 10 head shot of me in my car and that she could post that on the wall if she wanted. We laughed again. She turned, darted out of the room and told me to hang on a second, and promptly came back with an 8 x 10 photo and said, "How about this one?" It was a full glossy photo of her int eh buff getting busy with another woman.
I have to admit I was totally taken by surprise, that was a first (and last) for me!
While instructing one of my sellers on how to prepare her house for showings, I told her to take down all the messy post-it notes she had pinned to a message board on the kitchen wall. When I noticed my business card on the board I joked and said she could leave my card on the message board. We laughed.
I joked further and told her I had an 8 x 10 head shot of me in my car and that she could post that on the wall if she wanted. We laughed again. She turned, darted out of the room and told me to hang on a second, and promptly came back with an 8 x 10 photo and said, "How about this one?" It was a full glossy photo of her int eh buff getting busy with another woman.
I have to admit I was totally taken by surprise, that was a first (and last) for me!
I had a short notice request to show a $10M beachfront home to a visiting couple from another country. Since I live on a farm, I don't invest in a lot of nice shoes, and the cleanest ones I had were a brand new $5 pair of sandals from Walmart. Here in Hawaii when you enter a home for a showing, you take off your shoes at the front door. Those cheap-ass shoes looked really bad next to theirs! Since then I make sure to have some nice shoes ready for an "emergency".
BTW.... No they didn't buy it! Maybe it was the shoes!
BethAnn:
Well these certainly made me laugh. Can't think of anyting that is worth sharing at the moment, but if I do I will be back.
Jeff
So many embarrassing moments...so little time!
1. Driving buyers to a neighborhood that was unfamiliar, I was looking for a "for sale" sign. Pulled up in front of the home for sale, opened the door and the alarm went off. The buyers immediately ran back to the car, laughing. I was on the phone to the listing agent to get the alarm code when the police showed up, along with the next-door neighbor holding out a portable phone with the owner on the line. Oh yes, I was in the wrong house. The correct one was across the street.
2. Had a showing appointment at a home, rang the doorbell and got no response so used the key to open the door. The owner was inside, obviously unprepared since his toupee was on what appeared to be sideways. We viewed the home and he followed me back to the car and stood by the driver's side window giving me the home's attributes but all I could think about was that his zipper was down in my immediate purview. Couldn't wait to leave!
3. Had a delightful "mature" couple who had just married and I learned very quickly to let them look around homes on their own. They wanted to check the master shower in each one to ensure they both fit. It was a tad awkward for me.
4. At a recent new vacant listing for out of town owners, the stager and I were preparing a proposal for the sellers. The seller accidentally locked the back sliding glass door and we were outside. And yes, keys and purses were in the house. It was freezing but thankfully, there was an outdoor kitchen and fireplace which I had taken time to light to demonstrate the ambiance to the stager. She, fortunately, had her cellphone in her pocket. I used it to call another agent who provided me with the name of a locksmith, who spent over two hours trying to find a door lock he could pick to get us back in.
Ah, lessons learned!!!!
This is a great post and good way to spend a quiet afternoon. We have all had our moments and if you are new in the business just wait your time is coming soon!!
When buyers are less than impressed with the condition a home is in that we are viewing, I like to tell a story of a multi million dollar property in an upscale golf community that I have always referred to as the "meat house"
It was a Sunday open house when I was showing my clients the home and it just happened to coincide with the open house which was FULL of people viewing the home as it WAS an oppportunity to see this seemingly gorgeous home. However, it was a blustery Spring day and even with all the windows open, you could still smell the rancid grease from high heat cooking odors, the wind was blowing the custom drapes so they were flapping and snapping inside the home from the wind but the worst part was on the edge of the white porcelein sink was a thawing roast with blood dripping down into the sink and pooling onto the edges of the coutertops. It was weird and gross and fascinating all at the same time. The mysterious thing was that this was a Sunday openhouse and the listing agent was nowehere in the house with all these people walking through!!!
Hi Beth Ann! Congrats on the newsletter feature--I'm just now getting around to it but, it was certainly the best first post I've read in a day!! The dog coughing got to me--I can watch America's Funniest Videos and cry from laughing so hard and I know that feeling that you just can't stop--you keep rewinding it in your mind over and over!
Thanks for the laughs! Have a wonderful week...
OMG. This is too funny. I haven't been in real estate long enough to collect any funny stories yet...maybe this should be a sort of semi-annual series: Tales from the Real Estate Front...
I love the storries and thought I would share two of my own:
- Story 1: I was showing a home (listed by a realtor in my own office) to the clients of another realtor from my office(I was covering for her) when their child said "I need to go to the bathroom" So they asked if it was ok and I said sure shouldnt be a problem. About five minutes later I here "OH OH!". You can guess what happened their little darling overflowed the toilet and I wound up unclogging cleaning and washing the floors and towels... It was a huge mess, the potential buyer was mortified and I had to call the seller to tell them what happened. I got everything cleaned up and the other realtors and I had a big laugh over over never using the toilet in a sellers home haha.
- Story 2: I was taking clients of my own out to show houses to when all of a sudden my car filled with smoke! Something had snapped on the engine block causing a rapid over heating and I had to call my husband to come get us then had to finish the showing in the clients car. I bought a new car the next day.
I love the storries and thought I would share two of my own:
- Story 1: I was showing a home (listed by a realtor in my own office) to the clients of another realtor from my office(I was covering for her) when their child said "I need to go to the bathroom" So they asked if it was ok and I said sure shouldnt be a problem. About five minutes later I here "OH OH!". You can guess what happened their little darling overflowed the toilet and I wound up unclogging cleaning and washing the floors and towels... It was a huge mess, the potential buyer was mortified and I had to call the seller to tell them what happened. I got everything cleaned up and the other realtors and I had a big laugh over over never using the toilet in a sellers home haha.
- Story 2: I was taking clients of my own out to show houses to when all of a sudden my car filled with smoke! Something had snapped on the engine block causing a rapid over heating and I had to call my husband to come get us then had to finish the showing in the clients car. I bought a new car the next day.
I love the storries and thought I would share two of my own:
- Story 1: I was showing a home (listed by a realtor in my own office) to the clients of another realtor from my office(I was covering for her) when their child said "I need to go to the bathroom" So they asked if it was ok and I said sure shouldnt be a problem. About five minutes later I here "OH OH!". You can guess what happened their little darling overflowed the toilet and I wound up unclogging cleaning and washing the floors and towels... It was a huge mess, the potential buyer was mortified and I had to call the seller to tell them what happened. I got everything cleaned up and the other realtors and I had a big laugh over over never using the toilet in a sellers home haha.
- Story 2: I was taking clients of my own out to show houses to when all of a sudden my car filled with smoke! Something had snapped on the engine block causing a rapid over heating and I had to call my husband to come get us then had to finish the showing in the clients car. I bought a new car the next day.
I LOVE this! There are so many great stories and I'm having a great time reading them all! My craziest story was a couple looking at a new home. They finally decided to write an offer but wanted to meet the builder first. We set up the appointment and met at the house. After a few minutes, the wife asked if she could run out to the car and bring the kids in. WHAT? Why had I never even heard of these "kids?". Of course, bring in the kids! I nearly fell over (and so did the builder) when the buyer walked in with her 2 CATS. They raised holy hell for 2 hours. One climbed up on the top of the cabinets and we couldn't get him down. It was priceless. Thank GOD they bought the home or the builder would have killed me :)
Too funny but I think I can top the "keys locked in the car" story. My buyer and I had just returned to my office after looking at several houses to write an offer on one of them. From there my buyer left and when I got to my car I realized that I had locked my keys in the care. So I called my husband who had to take off work to bring me the other set of keys. How embarrising when he pulled up to the right of my car and saw the passenger window rolled down ... my windows had a dark tint and I never thought to walk around the car. I had to hear that one for a long time!
BethAnn, thank you for the post, it reminded me of the time I received a call from my neighborhood from a couple who wanted to know how much their house was worth. I did prepared my CMA and run out the door, went to the property and when the husband come to the door, I just told him that I was there to do his property evaluation, I simply walked in, started asking questions about the house and I remember him calling out his wife who was taking a nap upstairs, he was eating a sandwich, so I told him, just to go ahead and finish, that I will take a look at the house. Later I found out, she thought the husband had called me, he thought she had called me.
After about 30 minutes, the wife come downstairs and I sat down with both of them and started going through my paperwork,, we chatted, connected I gave them the evaluation, another 30 minutes went by and then I realized I was at the wrong house!
Antonio
THANK YOU! I WAS WORKING ALL DAY AND CAME HOME TO 100 COMMENTS! GEESH I LOVE YOU GUYS!
These are great stories. It is good when we can take tiem to laugh at ourselves.
I will share a story. I sold a young couple a home with a spa tub in the master bedroom. We were in the process of doing the home inspection and testing the spa tub. I was excited to show my client how their spa tub worked. I did not notice one of the spouts in the tub was pointing up. I pressed the button to start the spa and the water shot up and splashed all over me. The inspector with a straight face said "well the tub works".
I was showing a house a couple of months ago and the sellers were at home. They were just hanging out in the kitchen while the buyers and I looked around the place. After viewing the master suite we crossed the house and asked if anyone else was at home. The husband said they were home alone and go ahead and look in any room we liked. So I look in a couple of bedrooms and then went to look into the jack and jill bathroom. I open the door and there is a teenage girl standing there just out of the shower. I think I turned blue as I slammed the door shut and yelled out my apologies. Then I hear the husband yell out to me "oh yeah, I forgot, my daughter is in there." Just a little bit late, thanks alot.
Mine is a story of wild rabbits. I was showing a distressed condo to my brother as a flip investment. We had been told the owner of the condo had rabbits but the listing agent assured us that the condo carpeting had been cleaned. I thought, how bad could it be? When we arrived in the hallway (outside the condo) we could smell the amonia smell of the small varments. At least we thought they'd be small. When we opened the condo door we soon discovered small round pellets covering every two to three inches of floor space, a receipt on the counter for the "just cleaned carpeting" and the lower half (first foot or so off the floor) of the wallpaper around the room chewed up. We then realized that those rabbits we assumed would be 'caged' were left free to roam throughout the condo and we wondered, were they free NOW?
My brother and I were scared straight and soon stunned. Curiosity got the better of us. Just how big were these rabbits? Holding our noses and looking through teary eyes we encountered our first of many super-sized rabbits. They were behind the furniture. To this day, I have never seen such enormous beings. They must have been a unique type of rabbit and we both freaked out at their size. We wondered if they would jump and attack. I can see it now, "Realtor attacked by Giant Rabbits!" We made a quick exit and laughed the whole way home.
Early in my career I set a showing for a condominium through the listing agent. It had just been listed so no sign or lockbox........owners would leave it open. Upon arriving I was miffed that they had left the property so messy and potty lids up!!! Of course after turning all the lights on and putting the potty lids down I realized that I was in the wrong condo. I quickly ran around turning off all the lights and bolted out the front door as the poor elderly owners pulled up in the driveway. They were shocked and confused as I tried to explain. I don't know if they ever did understand what had happened. I was just grateful that they did not call the police. (I did make the sale.)
I have also had the experience of investigating the back yard of a home as I was waiting for the buyers to arrive to discover that I was locked out of the house in freezing cold. There was a tall privacy fence that was also locked so I had to call my buyers to instruct them to enter the home and rescue me.....I love this business!!
Wow thanks to ALL OF YOU AND YOUR FUNNY COMMENTS AND STORIES!!!
Great stuff. Yes, in my 13 years in the mortgage business, I have had my share of wierd stories, everything from a house with cigar smoke and the LADIES smoking the cigars, blowing the smoke in my face while their 4 cats were walking on the table on top of my disclosure documents to meeting clients in my branch and my laptop crashing on me, thus preventing me from inputting an application, getting pricing for them,etc. I eventually had to take their application on a piece of paper and call them later in the week after my laptop finally got fixed.
Thanks for sharing
Paul W Thompson
Home Mortgage Consulant
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage
Oh my. The coughing dog got me too! I finally had to stop reading these stories so I could get some work done. I sell condos in downtown San Diego. I once had to "dumpster dive" because I accidentally dropped a key card and fob down the garbage chute while cleaning up a tenants mess before a showing. And then there was the time a tenant walked in while I was standing on top of his bookcase to fix a stuck window blind. Or the time I knocked and knocked, no reply, opened the door of a loft with the bed right in front of the door with a completely passed out young woman on it. I thought she was dead. We just quietly showed ourselves out after the client whispered, "she's breathing."
Yes, a realtor reality show. Too funny.
I thought I had some weird things happen on showings, but I they don't hold a candle to any of these. Gotta love the "Police, Search Warrant!"
This is just all too funny. All these stories,and they took me forever to read. I could repeat a lot of them, but I will just tell you the one that is different.
Several years ago I took my inspector, as a buyer to look at a fixer property to flip. We walked up to the house, and knowing that the sellers were expecting us and would be home, I knocked on the door. they told us to come on in. When we opened the door, we saw two very strung out adults on the couch just siting there in their birthday suits, just acting like nothing was wrong and happy as can be. they told us to feel free to look around and if we had any questions, to just ask. After we overcame our initial surprise, we were in for a lot more. As we looked around at the house, there was garbage, shit, junk, and rats everywhere. Believe it or not, my client bought that house and made money on it!
Okay, I had to log out to do this anonymously. Before I was I real estate I did home improvement project bids for home owners. In one instance a key was hidden and I was to enter the home on my own, do my measurements and leave my bid. No one was home so I decided to make use of the bathroom. Little did I know the plumbing was off and when I got up to flush, nothing happened. I left more than just my bid. L
WOW...thanks for the laughs! It's 3am and I'm seriously busting up-- gut laughing.. I'm about ready to wake the whole family up.
I can relate to Mr. Underwear guy.
As I was showing a younger couple a home, I would get a glimpse of something 6-8 inches long...it was brown... down by my feet. Then, I wouldn't see it. I did this 2 or 3 times and finally reached down to the floor to pick it up.
It was my PANTIE HOSE left in my jeans from the prior day. LOL (It gets worse.) Unlike Mr. Underwear Guy that could just reach down and snatch'em in one swoop.
As I pulled a little bit on them. They just kept coming, and coming and coming. :-) I'm still pulling trying to get to the end of them. When I realized they were caught I tried stuffing them back up my pant leg to hide it from my buyers. They entered the room I was in and we started talking and the panty hose fell out of my pant leg. A little pile on the floor but they were still attached somewhere.
I tucked them back in my pant leg and continued talking. When they stepped in to the next room I frantically pulled and pulled and got them unstuck and quickly wadded them in a ball to put them in my blazer pocket. There was no room in either pocket and there I stood with my panty hose in my hand when the female came back into the same room as me. I stood there like a deer in the headlights.
She winked and said "I don't know how many times I've had that happen to me." I just busted up laughing and threw them up in the air.
We continued to view the home, then got in our cars and I realized I left the panty hose in the bedroom. I emptied my pocket, excused myself, went back in the house and picked up the panty hose. Can you imagine if I would have left the hose there and the seller wife walks in to her bedroom and finds someone elses' undergarments. (How would Hubby explain that one?)
I love my job!
I was showing a $2.5million dollar ranch home and we went out on the 2nd story deck. Little did I know but the fancy sliding doors had locks that we didnt operate right. When the Buyer closed them behind us, yoiu guessed it, we were locked out on the 2nd story deck. Without many options I took my shoes off and had to scale down the brick pillar to the first floor, get them to throw me my shoes and run around the front of the house and back up the stairs to let them back in. I got away with just a hole in my sock and it was pretty embarrassing at the time, but it could have been a lot worse.
Thanks for the funny post!
I really needed these stories to help me remember things are not really as serious and important as they seem to me at the time! Thanks so much! Loved the panty one! And the toilet one with everyone filing by the open door! Fabulous!
very fun to read, made me laugh
Great Stories, here's mine.
I listed a luxury home on the beach to die for, it was also a vacation rental, so completely furnished and gorgeous. I get a call at 10pm from my seller, asking me to check the house the lights were on and no one was booked in that week, his neighbor had called him.
Usually I would have called the police to check on the house, but since the house had been shown that day, I figured the agent just left the lights on and it was only a few miles from my house. I drive there and a car was in the driveway, so I called the police. As I waited i could hear giggling and laughing coming from the pool area, when the police got there I told them and I followed them around the side of the house to see our rental agent and her boyfriend naked, drinking wine by candlelight in the spa. YIKES! I had to go get some towels to cover them as they got out, the cops were laughing, I did laugh later but at the time....
My lister declined to press charges but my broker wasn't so nice and fired her.
Beth Ann, what great stories you have and how fun that the comments are as interesting and funny as the original post. I actually have to bookmark to come back as I am laughed out and only about 1/4 through the comments!
These are too funny for words! I only got half way through but I am bookmarking to come back and read the rest when I am having one of those days! Thank you for posting a little humor.....it is great for the soul!
These are too funny for words! I only got half way through but I am bookmarking to come back and read the rest when I am having one of those days! Thank you for posting a little humor.....it is great for the soul!
LOL... poor doggie living in that smoke filled house. I loved the one with the teeangers!
I have walked in on just about everything - I learned early on to knock and yell "REALTOR" when entering a home!
I once had buyers who I showed about 100 homes to - nothing was working. So this one house, I opened the door and it was wall to wall mothballs. ALL over the floors. I've never seen so many mothballs in all my life. I instantly had an asthma attack and had to leave. They stayed in there for about an hour and even made me take them back for a second showing.
I once, when brand new into real estate, locked the owners keys in the home, as well as my own car keys. No cell phones back then. I had to knock on a neighbors door and asked to use their phone. The buyer was not pleased. We were stuck there until I got either the owner... or my own car keys.
Oh -- these are so funny - as are so many in the comments. Gave me a great laugh for the day! thanks.
Maybe this could be mandatory reading for all new people before they enter real estate! They may think twice if they do not have a sense of humour.
Ty
Great post, BethAnn.
It is always good when we can laugh at ourselves. Thanks for sharing.
Boulder City Steve
This happened to me many years ago before I was a Realtor. My husband and I were looking to buy our first home. We had toured a FSBO early in the day. It had a great back yard that bordered a public park. We had really liked the house, so that evening when friends came over, we wanted their opinions. Not wanting to disturb the owner, or more likely being young and stupid, we decided to go to the park and look at the house through the fence. As we walking back to the car, a voice behind us shouted, "If you don't stop right now, I'll shoot!" We turned around to face the homeowner aiming a shotgun at us. When he recognized us, he was highly embarrassed and apologetic. He told us he had had so many thefts via the park, he had taken to guarding his yard in the evenings. We were so frightened, it never occurred to us to report to the police that a man had threatened to shoot us in a public park. Needless to say, we did not make an offer on the property. And, we hired a Realtor!
Great post...and follow ups!!! Thanks for the laughs!!!
This is great !!!!!!!! I am never going to get anything done because I keep checking back for more great stories!!!!!!!
Great Stories! I have so many crazy tales of my 20 years in the biz...but probably the most embarassing was when I was showing gorgeous high end properties and looked down at my feet to realize I had two entirely different shoes on... Being that my clients were being tranferred into our town with a big mining company, I didn't know how to test thier humour with my confession before they noticed. So, I just out right said "Good soldiers look up - they don't look down" Well, talk about being an icebreaker! We all laughed so hard, they bought a lovely home from me, and we have remained great friends - probably because I could laugh at myself!
Boy I laughed so hard at the dog coughing and the whole family and realtor coughing. I've seen that too where the family all cough because there's a family smoker in the home. I can relate to the guy who dropped the key in a place where you can't get it. That happened to me and my husband had to come with a magnet on a string and fish it out for me. Funny. We need a good laugh after being out showing all day and the parents say, keep looking, and you know they just love the home they saw! Take Care.
My stories are all concerning unplowed driveways, knee deep snow and bad key cards. I have learned to always get to a house early!
I really can't think of any embarrassing stories to share, but the ones from your post were hilarious. Someone should assemble a book of these types of stories. There are a million realtors along that could make it a best seller.
So many great stories...we could right a book!