I have a story to tell you all. It is not going to be a super happy story in the middle but it will end with a bang!

After a few days at the NextHome Annual Conference, this year in Houston, I received a ton of knowledge, stats, and information about the real estate market right now. But before we get into all that, I wanted to share a story I had hear from a speaker that came to our conference. This story represents why NextHomes’ moto is “Humans over Houses.”

Years ago, there was a college boy out in Utah in his prime. Playing on the football team, getting his degree, and engaged to be married, what could possibly make things better? How about taking that next step into adulthood and purchase their first home on top of it all!

Scared, nervous, and excited, the first-time home buyer went to a local brokerage to find someone who could help him with this crazy and complex process of purchasing their very first home. He was already prequalified with a lender so he was serious and on the right track to getting started.

When he arrived at the brokerage, however, he did not receive the attention he thought he was going to have or desperately needed being to new to the process. The real estate associate helping him out told him that because he didn’t qualify for a whole lot, there was only 6 homes in the area that he could potentially buy. They also said that since she would not make a lot of money off them and that she did not have time to show them the 6 homes in town. She, instead, gave him some codes and sent him on his way to look at the homes himself.

He and his fiancé, nevertheless, did find a home they really liked after looking at the 6 homes alone. They wanted to give it a go! How excited and nerve racking! So, they called the real estate agent and told them the exciting news. She met them at the house to get paperwork signed for the offer. The offer she wrote up for them was a full price offer. He asked, “can we offer lower? Is that allowed?” And the agent responded with a sigh, “Yes, but then I would have to rewrite the paperwork…” Not to mention she would make even less now that they would offer even lower on one of the lowest priced homes in the area. So, needless to say, they did end up offering lower than asking price on the home against real estate agents’ wishes. But they got it accepted!

During the process of escrow, moving title and processing loans, the boy and his fiancé got married and went on a honeymoon. They were to be homeowners when they got back!

When they did get back and closed on the home, they walked into their first ever home together and realized something was very wrong. The oven, refrigerator, and so many other items were not done, were taken, and things busted and broken! How could this happen? They immediately called their agent in a panic and told her what they found when they walked into their home. All she said to her clients was, “this is not my problem, it is yours. I hardly made any money helping you in the first place…”

That college boy today is the National Association of Realtor President as of 2023.

After that horrible experience he went into real estate and is fighting for realtor rights, and most importantly, client rights!

His story at our conference was so significate because it is stories like his that are the reason people become real estate agent with NextHome. We want to put the human before the house, before the price, the paycheck, the effort it will take to help someone. We help people get their first or their nexthome that is perfect for them, and that is our only mission!