The Runaway Seller

The closing nobody clapped for and the lesson every homeowner should hear

Author

Mike Ugarte
September 11, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

You Know That Scene In a Rom-Com…

The one where the bride’s halfway down the aisle, everyone’s smiling, the music swells and then, suddenly, she stops.

Looks around.

And bolts for the back of the church.

It’s messy, dramatic, and makes for great TV.

But in real estate?

That moment costs real money, real relationships, and in this case, real regret.

This Week’s Highlights

The Setup

This sale had all the right ingredients:

  • Motivated seller

  • Clean, staged home

  • Solid marketing and steady showings

  • A good offer with a smooth contract

  • Cooperative buyers

It was textbook.

Until it wasn’t.

Two Weeks Before Closing…

My client called me with a sentence no agent wants to hear:

❝

“I changed my mind. I’m not selling.”

At that point, the inspections were done.

Financing approved.

Title work underway.

This wasn’t a listing anymore, it was a legal commitment.

I explained it as calmly and clearly as I could:

“This isn’t like backing out of brunch plans. You signed a contract. We’re in the final stretch. If you don’t close, the buyer has legal recourse and you could be liable.”

She didn’t like that answer.

Enter: Attorneys. Kinda.

The buyer immediately hired a sharp real estate attorney.

The seller hired… her friend.

Who was technically an attorney. But not a real estate one.

Contracts were interpreted creatively, timelines were missed, emails got tense, and what should have been a straight shot to closing turned into three weeks of slow rolling chaos.

Nobody won.

The buyer was angry.

The seller felt backed into a corner.

And for the first time in my career, I sat at a closing table where no one smiled.

What’s the Lesson?

Selling a home is not just an emotional decision, it’s a binding legal agreement.

Once you’re under contract, you don’t get to back out just because it doesn’t feel right anymore.

Here’s what this experience made painfully clear:

  • If you’re going to bring in legal help, make sure it’s someone who knows real estate. Not “someone who passed the bar once,” someone who knows how contracts, timelines, title, and enforcement actually work.

  • Don’t wait until the 11th hour to get cold feet. If you're unsure, don’t sign. But once you do, you need to be ready to follow through or face the consequences.

  • Real estate is emotional, but the contract is not. You need advisors who can honor your feelings without letting them make decisions for you.

Final Thought

Buyers aren’t the only ones who get warned about commitment.

Sellers, this one’s for you: Once you say “yes,” there’s no running in the other direction without a price.

Real estate is serious business.

And in this business, a “bad breakup” doesn’t end with heartbreak, it ends with lawsuits.

So before you list, ask yourself:

Am I really ready to let go?

Because once that offer is accepted, the wedding is on and the aisle is short.

Stay Safe,

Mike