Funny home viewing stories

[NilaJones]

Some of the stories in this thread amaze me.

I sure cannot top them. But I have seen some crazy homeowner remodels: Bedrooms only accessible by going through the only bathroom in the house, exposed wiring, ceilings 6 foot or lower... I think there was one with a room where you had to go through the bathroom AND out onto the sloped, shingled roof.

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

A friend was buying a historic home in New Orleans and I went with him to see it. The 3rd floor attic had a door that led out to a small balcony. The balcony (on the back of the house) had a door with an outside padlock on it that led into a small room, maybe 8x8'. Empty except for a straight-jacket lying on the floor. Clearly, in the early 20th century someone had kept their crazy relative there!

[cully]

Originally Posted by SouthernBelleInUtah

A friend was buying a historic home in New Orleans and I went with him to see it. The 3rd floor attic had a door that led out to a small balcony. The balcony (on the back of the house) had a door with an outside padlock on it that led into a small room, maybe 8x8'. Empty except for a straight-jacket lying on the floor. Clearly, in the early 20th century someone had kept their crazy relative there!

Oh my goodness.

[simbared]

I walked through a house with a mother and young boy present. The boy was riding a "Big Wheel" tricycle and kept slamming into the back of my legs on purpose. I said "I guess he doesn't want to move." The mother did nothing to stop him, so I told the real estate agent I was done looking after the third attack on my ankles.

I saw another house owned by a divorcing couple. They had planned an indoor swimming pool adjacent to the living room & den. Construction had stopped, so there was a huge dirt hole dug inside an otherwise finished house.

[kbrojako]

When our home was for sale in upstate NY it was on the market for 14 months, so there were lots of potential buyers that came through.

One gentleman, who was, according to the buyer's agent, well over 6' tall said he would buy the house if we agreed to pay for the widening of all of the doorways to accommodate his wide shoulders. I relayed a statement back to the buyer's agent asking what we were supposed to do about heating vents or water pipes that may be involved in the walls. We never heard back.

Another potential buyer decided that the back yard needed to be "dug out" so it was level with the home (the house was built half way up a gentle slope). When we relayed that where they wanted the yard "dug out" was a septic leach field and there would be a fairly large wall at the very back of the lot that would need some sort of retaining system they decided not to pursue a purchase. Their agent could not understand why we were being so stubborn. "Just dig it out". Um, where would you like the septic field?

We did eventually get a buyer for the home but I recall this conversation with our agent:

I spoke with our agent on the phone one evening and she was sounding very tired. "What's up?" I asked. "Oh, I showed a property today which the potential buyers said was perfect except there's an old cemetery on the road a few lots up from the house. The buyers said they didn't want dead people in their water".

I know I could never be a real estate agent. I would be too likely to blow a cork.