My buyer backed out, now what?

I recently had a listing where the buyer backed out after an inspection.  The buyer wanted the seller to spend about $4500 to make the home immaculate, and the seller just wasn't willing to spend additional money since they had already invested significantly into the property.  So now what?

As an agent, if my client does not invest additional money into the property after there is an accepted offer, then I (personally) do not give the buyer or the buyer's agent a hard time about returning earnest money.  At that point, my seller's only loss is about two weeks of time on the market and just being discouraged that the sale did not move forward.  From an agent standpoint, it is better to have friends in real estate than to make enemies, as you never know when you will cross paths again or if you might need something from them in the future.

I empathized with my clients for having to start over in open houses and showings, and then I talked with them about what is next.  They had an offer on a property as well, so I talked with them about extending the close date for the property they wanted.  It is important to know what the game plan is, so I jumped into action and began advertising on social media to let people know the property was available again.  I emailed agents who had clients that I knew were interested to see if their client was still interested.  I also talked with my office to see if I could get help with an open house for the following weekend.  Within the two days of the property being back on the market, we had three showings and are waiting on an offer.

The big thing is to not get discouraged as a seller or as an agent.  It does add a little stress, but you just keep moving forward.  If something does come up in the inspection that you need to disclose, you amend the condition report and move forward.  As an agent, it's a courtesy to share the inspection report with other agents, especially if the report came back pretty clean.  Disclose why it is back on the market, because people are going to ask anyway.  Ultimately, know that there is a buyer out there that will want your property and will do whatever they can to make sure they make it their new home.