A Lack of Transparency and Cooperation Can Lead to No Offer (and a very annoyed buyer!)

I am working with a lovely couple and as is the case with many of my clients they have a very impressive back story and accomplishments. They have been active buyers and we have submitted at least 3 offers on their behalf; strong offers, just no luck yet. They recently sent me a listing they visited and were considering submitting an offer. I had actually completed my thoughts on the property, however before submitting they wanted a look at the financials. I can assure you that these two know their way around a set of co-op financial statements and understand the nuances involved with "interpreting"them.

I sent a request for this information to the listing agent and to my surprise he said no. He essentially stated he only send them out after an accepted offer and then only to the buyers attorney. Ten years ago that was sort of par for the course and was the mantra of many a listing agent. With the advent of sites like StreetEasy and a spirit of more transparency in the market as a whole, agents generally want to accommodate buyers wishes. Quite frankly when you deny information to a person it immediately makes one a bit suspicious. One would think that having a peak at the buildings financials would be prudent when purchasing a 2 Million dollar home and instrumental in shaping your offer. Look not everyone feels the need to do this and are happy to let their attorney peruse the financials after the fact. However if the buyers wants a look I feel like it's prudent to at least acquiesce.

In this case the buyers had a reason to want to have a look. The tax deduction on the maintenance was high (usually indicates a high underlying mortgage). Also there was some disparaging information posted on the StreetEasy forum about the building.

Long story short; my clients decided not submit an offer. Sharing pertinent information should come natural and reasonable request should be accommodated.