Those days are long behind us. Today we have written contracts in order to provide a clear legal record of an agreement. These contracts are essential to make an agreement enforceable, prevent misunderstandings and provide minimize ambiguity. A written contract is more difficult to dispute as well. I even implemented them in my admittedly flawed parenting with my own kids. “Mom,” my middle daughter complained, “I’m not one of your clients. You can’t make me sign a contract. Why can’t you just trust me?”

“History, my little tumpkin,” was my reply. “Your history of convenient and very situational memory loss.” The retention level of a vowed proclamation from a 15-year-old is surprisingly very short when a promised obligation is at hand. A signed contract is a great memory jogger. And for the record, I had to pull out the signed contract on more than one occasion for each of my “little tumpkins.”

Contracts are common and frequent in my world. All expectations, communications, deadlines, timelines, ramifications and consents should always be in writing. It protects all of us. Real estate deals are made through a series of compromises and strategic negotiations. No two parties could possibly have the kind of memory required to see a real estate transaction all the way through to the end without written contracts. There are far too many moving parts throughout the process. Having some verification, in writing, acknowledged by both parties can serve as proof if things get complicated. This is true not just for real estate, but in many other areas of life as well.

Over the years I have worked with many elderly clients who are preparing to embark on their journey to the final resting place (refer to last week’s article). In doing so, I have encouraged, cajoled, advised, prompted, urged and highly recommended that they get all their final wishes down in writing. Too many times, I have been told that their children never fight or disagree, and they will figure it all out just fine without direction. Unfortunately, before the funeral potatoes could cool, these same sweet, loving, kind, well-adjusted children pull the gloves off. These perfectly parented kids, who previously bonded over holiday chaos and passive-aggressive group texts, were now locked in a full-blown tug-of-war over furniture, finances and feelings. It was less “mourning period” and more “family edition of Survivor,” complete with alliances, betrayals and dramatic exits. Bless their hearts.

More recently, I received a phone call asking me about the value of a specific property. It was an older home with a few issues resulting from some delayed maintenance. However, the home sat on a beautiful 4-acre lot and was in a highly desirable area. According to one of the siblings, just before the father, the last surviving parent, passed away, he had told this son that he could purchase the home for $250,000. Market value was closer to $625,000 with a likely bidding war to drive the price up even further. Sadly, no one else was privy to the conversation between the father and his son, nor did this dad change his will. His will stated that all the assets were to be divided evenly between each of the five siblings. This son even threatened to never talk to any of the other siblings again if they didn’t honor his father’s unwritten wishes. The siblings were all delighted to hear such news and continued to divide the assets as had been written.

Fortunately, most communication these days is done through e-mail, texts or instant messaging so much of our casual ramblings are recorded for history. I wonder what General George Washington would think about that.

Jen Fischer is an associate broker and Realtor. She can be reached at 801-645-2134 or jen@jen-fischer.com.