Buying a home is a huge investment, so keep your eyes peeled for these tactics!
1. Paying a bishop to pretend he thinks the house is St. Peter’s Basilica: Having a bishop stumble in and confusedly ask where in this majestic cathedral he could find the pope is a classic realtor scam to drive up your offer. Don’t get taken for a ride.
2. Putting a mirror by the pipes so it looks like you get more pipes: No one wants to get shortchanged on pipes, so if you aren’t sure, bring in a plumber to tell you if they are real pipes or just a reflection.
3. Implying that the family inside the house is included: Watch out for realtors making subtle suggestions that the family inside the house during the viewing will be yours to keep if you buy the house. It’s usually not true.
4. Claiming that it’s the birthplace of modern jazz: Realtors know that a house will sell instantly if people think it’s where modern jazz was born. Do your research and see if it really was the house where modern jazz was invented before signing anything.
5. Slapping a few extra houses on the bill: Check to see if what you’re paying comes out to be three or four million more than expected. Realtors will always try to unload some extra houses on unsuspecting buyers.
6. Hiring the Red Hot Chili Peppers to keep walking past the house so it seems like they live in the neighborhood: Don’t fall for it. They live in California somewhere.
7. Promising to come over a bunch if you buy it: Realtors love to act like the two of you will be spending a lot of time in the house together. Don’t be fooled, though: After a sale, most realtors won’t even come over once.
