do you like me? And can you quantify that in dollar terms?

Putting offers in on homes is far more nerve-wracking than I ever expected it to be. I guess my main misconception was that things moved along fairly quickly. That if you put an offer in you would hear pretty soon: yea, nay or how about this? In truth, it's not quite like that. We've put some offers in and the response is, "Uhhhhhh, yah. Let me see here. Please hold for like 36 hours." 36 hours elapse. "Hmmm, Peter, yahhh. I'm going to have to go ahead and ask you if this is your best offer?" Ok, um, no, I guess my best offer is a little better. "Ok. I'll go ahead and say I'll get back to you by end-of-business today, but in reality, I'll drag this out as long as possible while your fears and regrets rip at your very soul." Oh, sure, super.

And really, I have no problem with lacksadaisical sellers/real estate agents. The sellers want as much as possible as does the agent - dude wants to maximize his 3%. That's great; that's capitalism and that's what I believe in. But don't tell me end-of-day today, tomorrow and the next day. Tell me you're going to wait 3 to 6 years for more offers. I can handle it. Telling me I'll know by the end-of-day, every day, makes me anxious. And if it makes me anxious it makes theMonica sleepless. And if it makes theMonica sleepless it makes me even more anxious because she's cranky when she's tired. See, this is no good for anyone. And if there are 3 offers in on the same house and we're, you know, not in the conversation, it wouldn't kill you to give us a heads-up.

In many ways, the process is similar to trying to figure out if someone likes you or not. Every second after an unanswered phone call feels like hours and you wait for them to (not) call back. You feel like an imposition even though what you want to know is a pretty basic thing. If you do not like me, I will be fine. You are not so great. And so it goes with homes. Many are nice; many are afforable. Not-so-many are nice and affordable, but if we fail to bid highest, it will not strike me dead to know we've failed. There will be other homes, like so many lonely hearts.