If You Found
$1,500 During A Walk-Through Inspection,
What Would You Do?
You are about to conclude a nightmarish
transaction with your buyer client and a
For Sale By Owner who has made every
step of the transaction difficult and
painful. The sellers' outrageous demands
and their tendency to aggravate everyone
from appraisers to lenders makes you
glad you are heading to settlement this
afternoon.
The sellers have moved, the house is
vacant, and you and your buyers are
there for the walk through inspection.
As you enter the den you observe that
the sellers have removed some wall
mounted light fixtures they should have
left and you see a bookcase door off its
hinges. The buyer while inspecting the
unhinged door, finds an envelope taped
under one of the shelves. It contains
not markings, not notes just 15 crisp
$100 bills. There is no indication as to
whose money it is.
The buyers are ecstatic at their find
and clearly intend to keep the money.
They say this will make up for some of
the grief the sellers have caused during
the transaction including new wall
lighting fixtures. What would you do?
About Ethical Dilemmas
One of the interesting things we've
noticed at past Polley Associates'
Mandatory Continuing Education sessions
on Ethics, is how fair, honest and
ethical we can be in the classroom. The
challenge is.... can we carry that to
the marketplace where there are the
pressures of conflict, competition and
compensation? It's not that easy.
Mark Twain said it long ago... The
weakest of all things is a virtue that
has not been tested in the fire.
Here are some responses from our
students ...
"It's clearly the sellers'
money. I would insist the sellers be
contacted and the money returned to
them" Ann Ventura, New Castle
"The money belongs to the
seller. If returned, I'd expect the
sellers to address the missing light
fixtures and the broken door." Dee
John, Uniontown
"My integrity is worth more than
$1500. Inform the seller. They would
likely question the loss
eventually." Frank Buda, Ellwood
City
"Nothing good comes from ill
gotten money. I would encourage my
buyers to make every effort to find the
owners of the money - even if it's the
sellers." Carole Rabold,
Fredonia
"The buyers can't keep the money
but I would surely suggest that my
buyers refuse to close until the
property is made right. We know the
seller can afford it." Daniel
Obriot, Spring Church
"Nightmare or not... the money
has to be returned. Until closing, the
house and its contents belong to the
seller." Lauren Turkowski, Irwin
"I would try to convince the
buyers to return the money. If they
refused, I would feel obligated to tell
the sellers. Honesty is still the best
policy." Sonja Noullet,
Greensburg
"The money isn't ours. It's my
moral obligation to notify the
authorities and the sellers to find a
proper solution." Ed Karlovic,
Sharon
"I would disclose the finding of
the money, but would suggest that I be
entrusted with the money in effort to
negotiate a settlement with the
sellers." Jim Estep, Ebensburg
"This is an ethics and ownership
issue. I'd take the money to closing and
escrow it until the fixtures are
replaced and the hinge fixed." Jean
Case, Ligonier
Your Buyer REALLY Wants to Keep
the $1,500
Do you agree with the responses given
by the people whose remarks appear on
this page? Even if you do, be aware that
it is easier to be ethical in theory
than in real life. You say that you
would tell the seller that the $1,500
was found and insist that the buyer
return the money. But would you
considering the following?
What if....
- Your buyer client said they would
deny ever finding the money and
would keep the money even if you did
tell the seller. What would you do
then?
- You think your buyer client was
forced to make unwarranted
concessions to this seller. You feel
bad that you were helpless to
protect them. You know the buyers
deserve a monetary concession from
the sellers. $1,500 would be the
right amount. Would you still return
the money?
- You haven't had a closing in three
months; this buyer client is paying
a smaller than normal fee; you have
to pay a referral fee to the
out-of-state firm that referred the
buyer client to you; and the buyer
client says, "Look I'll split
the $1,500 with you. In two hours
this house and everything left in it
will be mine anyway. What do you
say?"
The
"Finders Keepers, Losers
Weepers" problem
When others are involved, we would all
struggle with what action to take.
Money Bag Falls Off Truck
And it happens. Recently in South
Florida, an armored car lost $100,000
when a money bag fell off on to a road
way.
Many people scrambled to the scene.
Some scooped up all they could get and
proudly announced, even to new
reporters, that they were entitled to
and were keeping the money. Others
gathered up the cash and turned it in to
the proper owner. Many who turned in the
money were ridiculed as being
"saps" and "stupid"
to give up such an opportunity.
Where Did I Hide My Jewelry?
Even more recently, here in western
Pennsylvania, someone received cans of
soup from a food bank only to find one
of the cans was fake. The fake soup can
was identical to the real thing except
it was designed to serve as a hiding
place for valuables. Whoever donated the
can to the food bank forgot that they
had stashed over $7,000 worth of jewelry
in the can. The recipient of the can
immediately contacted the food bank who
found the can's former owner so the
valuables could be returned. The
appreciative owner rewarded the honest
recipient with a check for $1,000.
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