The Interest Rate on Shortcuts

The most common shortcut in a property sale is leaving out of the written offer something everyone agreed out loud. The double door fridge can stay, the seller mentions at a viewing, and the garden furniture too. Everyone nods. The offer is drafted in a hurry and neither item is written into it. A morning is saved.

The repayment falls due on moving day, with interest. The fridge is gone and the patio is empty, and the written agreement sides with the seller, because loose items that are not fixed to the house generally leave with the seller unless the agreement says otherwise. Now there are letters between attorneys, a buyer who feels cheated before unpacking a box, and a dispute that can outlive the transfer by months. A skipped inspection works the same way, and so does a title deed nobody read. The few minutes saved are paid back many times over, often by people who were not in the room when the shortcut was taken, and most of them file the bill under bad luck.