Buyer’s “Love Letters” – Should You Read Them When Selling Your Home?

Selling a home can be an emotional experience. As the seller, you want to
make sure that the buyer loves the home as much as you do and will take
care of it. In other words, you’re looking for the perfect buyer with the
perfect offer. Home buyers understand this, and in the recent seller’s
market, some buyers have written heartfelt letters to the sellers about how
much they love the home, hoping it will tip the scales in their direction. But
as a seller, making decisions based on these “love letters” could cause
problems, leaving us with the question, “should you read them?”
Buyer love letters can provide valuable information to the seller. With
properties receiving multiple offers, it can be difficult to choose the best
one. By reading these love letters, you get a sense of the buyer and their
connection to the home. A well written letter can ease the concern that a
buyer will change their mind and can occasionally overcome a slightly
lower offer.
However, simply reading the letter can introduce bias into the
decision-making process and cause serious issues. The Fair Housing Act
prohibits discrimination based on factors such as race, religion, or family
status. If a love letter reveals personal information that falls into any of
these categories, just knowing the information may open up the seller to
potential issues.
It’s natural to want your home to go to a “nice family” who will love the
property as much as you do. It’s just as natural to want to ensure the new
owner will fit into the neighborhood. Yet, it’s just this goal that might also
cause headaches. So, if you do choose to read the letters, focus on the
practical and financial aspects of the story and make the best choice for
you and your goals.