Love Letter or Liability

Love Letters are letters written from a prospective buyer to the seller of a property, and they’re known for having the power to swing a seller’s decision.  In short, and without the positive spin that their name implies, they’re manipulative letters meant to sway a seller into choosing one offer over another. They sound fun, but they’re problematic.  

There’s no way to guarantee that a buyer will follow through with promises stated in their love letter.  They may claim that the home will be their forever home and turn around to rent it out immediately after closing.  Their letter may gush over the seller’s perfectly planned garden beds that end up demolished as soon as the new owners takes possession. 

Love letters are often full of personal details, photos, and information that can place buyers within or without classes protected by Fair Housing, and that can turn a seemingly sweet letter into a hard and fast liability.  By choosing an offer based on information from a love letter, sellers are putting themselves into a risky situation that could result in a Fair Housing claim even if the seller had no intent to discriminate.  Sellers are wize to choose an offer based on terms and sound business reasoning.  

Oregon became the first state to ban the use of Buyer Love Letters in home purchase transactions, and it’s a step in the right direction for home equality.  The law was recently struck down, and there will be more challenges and victories before things are finalized. However, the use of love letters is bad for sellers and bad for buyers, so let’s move away from them.