Is Bad Behavior “Stickier” Than Good?
First, a caveat: good real estate outcomes — especially in the land of “Minnesota Nice” — are by far the rule.
But, that doesn’t mean there aren’t any deals that end badly — or don’t end at all. See, “Get Me Out of the Deal!”: Statutory Cancellation for Beginners.”
In general, there are two possibilities:
One. There’s a dispute between the Buyer and Seller.
Two. There’s a dispute between the client and their agent.
Much less common — but not unheard of — is scenario #3: there’s a dispute between the Buyer’s agent and the listing agent (representing the Seller), which the clients may or may not be aware of.
In all of the above situations, what’s most striking to me as an observer (thankfully) is how “sticky” bad behavior can be.
Biggest Expense: Opportunity Cost
So, instead of figuring out how to disentangle from one another and move on, the parties to the dispute seemingly go to war, spending all their time and energy attacking one another.
That’s a mistake, for about 36 different reasons.
But, the most compelling one is that it’s not rational behavior.
The end result typically isn’t redress and satisfaction, but exhaustion, financial and otherwise.
As with real-life divorces, the only “winners” are often times the attorneys (bonus question: guess which professional group tends to be the most litigation-averse? Answer: former attorneys).
Pyrrhic Victories
Ironically, just like the headlines are full of bad news not good (“if it bleeds, it leads”), the routine good behavior people exhibit and witness every day is seldom remarked.
And certainly not sufficiently appreciated.
At least in my opinion (sorry, IMHO), the hallmark of maturity — or at least one of them — is consciously cultivating an appreciation for the latter behavior, and an aversion to the former.
And then acting on it.
