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But if the OP has an account worth $200K, I don't think that's the realtor's or anyone else's business involved in the real estate transaction by asking for a bank statement.
This is exactly what my husband and I are wondering about! We're in a "hot" real estate market, and our agent tells us it's customary to submit financial data with an offer. We know what we can afford, but our bank balances may leave an impression that we can afford more than we're offering on a property. We're not trying to snag a deal (sheesh, there is no such thing as a "deal" in our market!); we're trying to not get fleeced and/or go over our personal budget for a home. Seems if we disclose too much financial info, the seller might get dollar signs in their eyes!
We're happy to submit whatever proof of funds is needed after we've reached an agreement on the price. In fact, we'd be happy to submit that info practically instantaneously upon agreement of the price...it's just that doing so beforehand has us wary of this practice.
Unlike the OP, though, we haven't been asked for any financial info before even seeing a house. We would never do that (and, thankfully, it's not necessary in our market).
As you say -- it depends on the part of the country. But please refrain from calling me a liar because of how it works in my area. Just as my experience may not illustrate your area, your experience does not illustrate my area.
After having lived in different parts of the country, as a home owner, the laws and what is customary for the area can vary greatly. Even different parts of the same state don't do things the same. You'd think after all these years and real estate transactions they would have an industry standard.
Key word is OFFER....yes, requiring proof of funds would work when you made an offer, but just to see the property? That does not sound good. But again, maybe it's a very expensive home, no open house and different in your area. I personally would never show funds until offer made.
When we gave out kids some money for the down payment, we needed to provide the potential lender with a statement that it was not a loan or a second mortgage.
We are in our mid fifties and in an extremely hot real estate market coming back from the dead.
We had decided to inquire about a home last year and called the listing agent to make an appointment to see the house.................well this was late Friday afternoon heading into the weekend. She requested a pre qualification letter from a lender. We were told that this is the norm now. This stopped us dead in our tracks!
In all the years we have looked at houses and purchased a few this was the first time we have ever been asked this, hence the info on our ages.
Relating this to a few friends and this is how it works now in our area.
I also work with quite a few much younger people and I would not say that some realtors try to sell them on a much more expensive house, but quite a few of these couples purchase right at the top of their pre qualification amount. Not that there is anything wrong with that!
That's just it--time is of the essence. Any delay--especially needless ones--are not beneficial to a Buyer. Not every real estate opportunity can be carefully planned out. Sometimes the best deals are found at the spur of the moment. As for safety concerns, there are steps that an agent can and should take to minimize those risks. However, the overriding issue is simply to make sure that an offer has a high probability of closing, should it be accepted. If an agent can't structure an offer to allay concerns about a purchaser having adequate funds available, maybe they should find another line of work. Submitting "proof of funds" is not the only way to do it.
I had mentioned to a realtor that I may be paying in cash if I liked the property. I've seen the outside and pictures inside and know the area of its location. The realtor asked me to take a picture of funds showing I have it. He said this is standard protocol. Is this true or is this guy bluffing and or lazy to show me the inside first before I show him the money? The house is listed for around $30K. I had asked if I could get it lower and he said sometimes it's possible if it's bank owned or short sale, etc.
Most would want to see a bank statement. Taking a photo of your cash from under the bed would be a huge red flag.
Unless it's a "open house" than everyone is welcomed.
But for a realtor to go out of their way to show you a house, yeah, they want to see proof of funds. It's not like they want to just waste their time showing you the house. I'm sure they deal with hundreds of unqualified individuals wanting to see a house w/o having the means to buy it.
When I am selling, it is extremely irritating to me when agents don't do anything to learn whether or not their clients can actually buy a house. The world is full of lookie-loos who love to go around and look at houses and pretend that can buy, when they can't.
I don't appreciate cleaning the house and getting myself and the dogs out of the house for 2 hours just so they can entertain themselves on the weekend.
It' even more irritating when the lookie-loos do something to damage the house, which has happened several times. I can only assume while the agent looks the other way.
I don't know of anyone who wants to spend time looking at strangers' homes unless they are actually interested in buying. Most people's homes are not very exciting and they're not out of Architectural Digest.
House-hunting is not fun. It's grueling.
I don't feel I should have to prove financial worth with a prequalification letter, but this is the new norm so I am going to have to play the game.
This is what happens in a hot market.......we now have more buyers than we have sellers, and more renters than properties listed for rent. The tables have turned and the housing boom and bust that I thought would never repeat itself is proving a lot of us wrong.
I for one can no longer afford to live in the area I am currently living in if I had to start fresh.
Last edited by JBtwinz; 06-04-2017 at 09:00 AM..
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