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Buyer Tips ~ Shop for Homes on Rainy Days

by Karen Goodman on December 24, 2009

I’m a big believer that buyers should not let the weather stop them from looking at homes. I’ve scheduled appointments for buyers to see homes in every type of weather.

A few years ago I even showed 17 homes in a single day to a couple with an infant during an ice storm because they were relocating to St. Louis and only had one weekend to find a home.

And yes, they did find a house. The next morning while everyone else was playing in the snow with their kids, we drove back out to the house that they liked best for a second look before making an offer. The street hadn’t been plowed and must have had 8 inches of snow. Since the driveway was also covered in snow, I actually parked my car in the middle of the street and hoped that none of the neighbors would need to leave while we were inside. You should have seen me trying to slowly back out of the curvy cul de sac street because there was no way to turn around without getting stuck!

Rainy Weather and Home Buyers:

A couple of nights ago it stormed all night. Thunderstorms in December are very odd in St. Louis, but actually the timing couldn’t have been better.

One of my clients got a purchase offer on her condo a few days ago. After 2 days of negotiating the contract terms, we came to an agreement that is a win-win for everyone. With the condo all but sold, our focus has now turned to finding her a home to buy.

Listening to the rain all night, I could have dreaded the start of the new day. Some agents might have even tried to reschedule. But I knew that the rain would give us an opportunity.

Since almost all St. Louis homes have basements, the rain would give us a chance to find out if the homes had leaky basements.

I put together a quick video to talk about why looking at homes in the rain can help you avoid buying a home with a wet basement.