AITA for asking the couple viewing my house why they wasted our time?

Shirley Stafford Hours
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The sun dipped low, casting a warm glow over a quiet suburban street, where a couple’s meticulously renovated home stood ready for new owners. Inside, fresh carpet and gleaming kitchen tiles whispered of late-night planning and hard-earned upgrades. Yet, for one seller, a routine house viewing spiraled into a backyard showdown, leaving her questioning if she’d crossed a line. When a potential buyer scoffed at the home’s price over a missing garage, tempers flared, and sharp words flew.

This Reddit tale captures the raw tension of selling a home—a rollercoaster of hope, frustration, and unexpected confrontations. The seller’s clash with an overstepping buyer struck a chord online, sparking debates about boundaries and real estate etiquette. Let’s dive into the drama, unpack the emotions, and see what experts and the Reddit crowd have to say about this heated exchange.

‘AITA for asking the couple viewing my house why they wasted our time?’

My husband (33) and I (30f) are selling our house that we purchased 8 years ago. We currently have it listed for 35k more then what we purchased it for due to all the renovations and upgrade we put into it. Everything on the inside is brand new and was done in the last year and a half, with special order carpet, furnace, hot water tank and kitchen backslash going in just 2 months ago.

The only thing we didn't add to the home was a garage (detached) as we chose to have a large backyard instead, although the electrical work is in place as well as the permits should whoever purchases it decide to build one. We do have 2 parking stalls behind our house though on our property (not street parking).

Our realtor messaged us with a viewing request at 530 - 6 which we agreed to, so we packed our kids up, as well as our dog and left. We got back home at 630 only to find them still on our house. I apologized and instantly went back outside while my husband took the kids to the park.

Now we are working with a realtor and not selling independently as we don't want to deal with the people viewing our homes personally. While I was outside waiting for them to finish up, this women and her husband came out to ask me questions, like what the cost for a garage would be.

I told them an approximate price and she starts laughing, asking me how we could list our house so high when they would still have to pay 20k or more for a garage. I told her we made the decision to put that kind of money to upgrade the interior of our house, as a garage was never a need for us.

She then got annoyed and began saying she wouldn't pay more then 320k$ for our house, which was less then what we purchased it for. I told her I would never agree to that, that this conversation was over and that if she had anymore questions then her realtor could reach out to mine.

She began arguing with me again, so I snapped and asked why she was wasting everyone's time as our listing clearly stated there was no garage but that I would gladly put one in, but would be bumping up my listing by another 30k. She freaked out and said that it would put our place out of her price range,

so I told her not to bother looking at places priced above her means and to get off my property. She left crying because of how rude I was to her and her husband called me a b**ch. My husband thinks I could of ended the conversation more eloquently, but I feel she crossed a line but questioning me in the first place. AITA?. Edit: Just want to clear up a couple things.

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1. No my realtor was not on site as it's not common practice where I live to have the sellers realtor there unless they are the ones personally doing the showings. An interested buyers Realtor reaches out to him to request a showing which is arranged upon our approval, and he then provides them with the code to the lock box on our front door.

2. Their Realtor was there initially as I saw him when I had come home, I then left to our back alley with my dog while my Husband took the kids across the street to the park. I'm assuming they had left all together and when their realtor drove off, they came around to the back to start questioning me.

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3. For those of you asking why I came home when I should of looked for their cars in my driveway. I have no driveway, it's all street parking and the cars infront of my house belonged to my neighbors. We came back 30 min after the viewing was supposed to end and my realtor had received no notification that they were there past the appointed time.

Selling a home can feel like baring your soul, only to have strangers nitpick your life’s work. This seller’s fiery exchange highlights the emotional stakes of real estate. The buyer’s blunt critique and lowball offer—$320,000 for a home listed higher—ignited a clash, but was the seller’s sharp retort justified?

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Dr. John Duffy, a clinical psychologist, notes in a Psychology Today article on emotional boundaries, “When personal space is invaded, a defensive response is natural, but delivery matters.” The seller, caught off-guard by the buyer’s confrontational tone, reacted to protect her home’s value. The buyer’s insistence on a garage, despite the listing’s clarity, suggests an attempt to “neg” the seller into a bargain—a tactic that backfired.

This scenario reflects broader issues in real estate dynamics. A 2023 National Association of Realtors report shows 68% of sellers feel stressed by buyer negotiations, often due to unrealistic expectations. The buyer’s overstep, bypassing realtors to confront the seller, breached typical protocol, escalating tensions.

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Dr. Duffy advises, “Clear communication through proper channels prevents emotional escalation.” The seller could’ve deferred to her realtor, but her frustration was valid. For sellers facing similar pushy buyers, setting firm boundaries via professionals is key. This story reminds us: in high-stakes sales, emotions run hot, but cooler heads prevail.

Here’s how people reacted to the post:

The Reddit crew didn’t hold back, serving up a spicy mix of support and sass for the seller’s backyard brawl. Picture a virtual barbecue where everyone’s got a hot take and no one’s shy about sharing. Here’s the unfiltered scoop from the crowd:

[Reddit User] − NTA. 'she wouldn't pay more then 320k$ for our house' is the kind of thing you say to your realtor, not the sellers. You didn't say anything untruthful or even rude, honestly. Is it sad that she can't afford your house? eh, not really. She's being ridiculous about it.

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proof-plum − Her husband is an a**hole.. You chose realtor based sale for a reason.. And it was rude to stay passed the allotted time.

adambrashear − NTA: It's a seller market you will be alright, Buyer on the other hand screwed themselves. What possess her to be rude and aggressive to the seller lmao.

7s7z − NTA, also where were your and her realtors?!? There’s no excuse for them to put to you into a situation where you to need to interact with this person. You’re the seller - someone will buy it as is.

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Samsassatron − NTA, I don't know what she expected you to say. She inconvenienced you, basically called you a fool for not building a garage, and implied you don't understand the real estate market. I would have told her to gtfo too.

CakeisaDie − NTA. She tried to naggotiate, you were unwilling entertain. You should have walked away and informed her that all negotiation will take place via the realtor which is why you hired them. but your response was not unwarranted.

darklinghate − NtA. You don't b**ch at the home owners about the price of their house. You either decided I'd you want the home for that amount or you move on. She was harrassing you about your pricing you had the right to tell her she's wasting time with her complaints.

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quarterfast − NTA, she was incredibly rude. On another note, are you certain your realtor hasn't underpriced your house? I don't know your market, but it sounds like you're selling it for about 10% more than you purchased it for, but average housing prices have risen 20% in the last 12 months alone.

You've owned it for *eight years* and said you just put in a bunch of upgrades. You can check out recently sold homes that are similar to yours (bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage) in your area yourself, and see if your realtor isn't just trying to make a quick sale by listing it low. Even smaller markets are on fire right now.

HolyCrappolla123 − NTA. We are selling our house too. Bought it 7 years ago for 300k, selling it for 550k (with 150k in upgrades. 1/2 acre flat lot in city, garage as big as the house, etc.. Using a realtor as well, told our realtor to be upfront with buyers; we have nothing to hide.

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A couple showed up for an open house……wife loved the house (updated, but has a lot of original components left); husband was an ass. Going on and on about how he’d have to spend 100k to redo the garage and make it taller, rip out the few years old custom wall to wall led lighted shop shelves and work benches;

so he could fit his boat in the garage. Moron. They go in to tell our realtor; well the house would be a rental and the garage we’d keep for storage for us. (Yeah sure). They say, “We live in town of Lake Pompous Assface.”. My realtor is like cool, so does my family.. Ah hem, wife says, “we live on the actual Lake Pompous”.

Go blow a freaking balloon lady. It’s a side lake to the main lakes in the area. Anyone that lives on that lake wouldn’t store their “big” boat 30 minutes away in another city. You’d have the money to build a dock or buy a property or vacant lot close to you or pay to store it nearby.. Don’t go blowing smoke up my skirt..

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The kicker…..they only wanted to spend 400k on my property. HAAAA!!!! I’d rather burn it to the ground vs selling it to them. I asked my realtor to write down their names and refuse any offers from them. (We work out asses off, paid the house off early, we could let it sit and rot if we wanted to.)

(We are giving the new owners a good deal they work in construction and could tell what we did to the place.) We put a heck of a lot of work into this property. It’s a solid foundation, move in ready, all appliances stay. You could move in tomorrow and not even have to clean the toilets (it’s that clean).

For the size of lot, triple garage and extras it’s very well priced. You’ll always have some assholes when buying/selling. Just remember their names and faces; so you can troll them if you ever come into contact with them again. I hope a causally run into Lake Pompous again. I don’t look like a millionaire….but I sure as hell can act like one when need to.. Good luck to you! Glad you stood your ground.

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MiaOh − NTA - she was rude and was trying to neg you into a bargain.

These Redditors rallied behind the seller, slamming the buyer’s audacity and realtor no-shows. Some cheered the seller’s clapback, while others suggested a smoother exit line. But do these fiery opinions capture the full picture, or are they just fueling the drama?

This tale of a home sale gone awry shows how quickly a simple viewing can turn into a battle of wills. The seller stood her ground, but at the cost of tears and harsh words. It’s a reminder that selling a home is as much about emotions as it is about dollars. What would you do if a buyer pushed your buttons like this? Share your thoughts and experiences—have you ever faced a real estate showdown that tested your patience?

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