Another Accurate Prediction
Jul 6, 2021
Potential buyers (erroneously referred to by real estate agents as “clients”1) are now asking for deep discounts and information about the building’s 40-year recertification process, leading one agent to complain that “no one asked about this before.”
Prior to the Champlain Towers South collapse, it was the rare agent who even mentioned this potential and enormous liability to a potential buyer. Now they will have to bone up on the building’s structural status and drop prices. Only a reckless buyer would acquire a unit in a building with less than a decade to go before recertification. There is no limit on the upside cost. I predict that some owners, unable to get loans, insurance for or afford the onerous reconstruction assessments on their units, will simply walk away. The value of South Florida real estate will crash.
To those who wish to sell: good luck finding a buyer.
- While it is possible for a buyer to hire his own agent, real estate agents are typically hired by the seller. That means there is no fiduciary duty to potential buyers, who are hardly ‘clients.’ [return]