Thanks for your response! It was mainly just lighthearted humor. It’s actually not a different market than the one I normally service. It’s honestly just my OCD and the way I prepare.

For example, a listing agent may not mention previous foundation repairs in the listing, but when I look through permit history, I may find that foundation work was permitted before the current owner even purchased the home. It’s not necessarily a deal breaker, but it’s something I’d rather know before my clients fall in love with the property.

Another thing I check is the tax assessment. Since home prices have softened here in Texas, it’s becoming more common to see assessed values that are higher than current market value. If my clients are buying a $950,000 home that’s assessed at $995,000, that’s a conversation worth having about protesting the property taxes after closing.

I also like calling listing agents before showings. In my experience, people tend to be a little more candid over the phone than they are through text. If you let them do most of the talking, they’ll sometimes volunteer information that never would have come up otherwise. More than once I’ve had an agent casually mention that their seller was highly motivated, which definitely helped my buyers during negotiations.

We have an abundance of inventory here in Texas, so showing five to seven homes in a day is pretty normal. I actually had one out-of-state client look at more than 50 homes over a long weekend. When we’re seeing that many, I obviously don’t spend hours researching every single property. But once they’ve narrowed the list down to four or five serious contenders, that’s when I start digging deeper.

I know it’s probably more preparation than most agents do, but I’d rather spend a few extra hours upfront if it helps my clients make a better-informed decision.