"Who would have been dumb enough to buy a house based on a temporary situation?"

That question was recently posed on Inman Coast to Coast, a public real estate discussion group on Facebook. The answer, of course, is "lots of people." And now that the country is reopening and some companies are calling their employees back to the office, more than a few pandemic-inspired buyers are having a change of heart.

Christopher Paul of Keller Williams Realty in San Diego told the group his team has lost two deals in recent weeks: One buyer dropped out because his employer "abruptly changed" its work-from-home policies, while the other was a seller who was told he needed to be in the office more frequently.

Similarly, Todd Schroth of eXp Realty in Orlando had a buyer cancel a contract because his company suddenly wanted employees back in person. And Maui agent Kinga Mills of Hawaii Life had a cancellation shortly before closing because her buyer's New York employer decided it "wanted everyone back in the office. Totally screwed my client."

This shift in thinking is hardly universal; numerous agents posted that they haven't noticed any recent slowdowns because of employment issues.

Vija Williams of Keller Williams hasn't seen it yet in her Seattle market. Ditto for Joy Triglia of Better Homes and Gardens in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Mortgage specialist Jeff Chalmers of the Mortgage Network in Danvers, Massachusetts, hasn't seen any slowdown on the financing side, either.

While a large-scale "return to the office" movement hasn't materialized, some companies have clearly called their people home.

"If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office," Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman said in June. "If you want to get paid New York rates, you work in New York."

Other outfits -- Amazon, Nationwide and American Express, among others -- are allowing most of their employees to work from home. Still others have settled on a hybrid schedule where people work in the office a few days a week and at home on the other days. And some companies are still trying to figure out what to do.

According to poll last month by trade publication Commercial Property Executive (for which I occasionally write), nearly two-thirds of a collection of realty firms, consultants, building owners and developers said their teams will be offered a hybrid schedule. But 35% said their entire workforces will return to the office full-time.

The Building Owners and Managers Association found similar results when it queried tenants in the spring. Nearly 8 out of 10 "decision-makers" told BOMA that physical offices are vital to their businesses.

Perhaps that's why the buying frenzy in the metro Detroit area is on the wane, offered Brandon Kekich of RE/MAX Dream Properties. "People have changed their minds because of COVID drying up around here, and the Big Three (automakers) letting them know that the flex schedule will not last forever," he posted to the Inman discussion group.

The employment factor was in play in a recent Fannie Mae survey, in which nearly two-thirds of respondents believe now is a bad time to buy and more than three-quarters said it's a good time to sell. And concern about job security was elevated, even though more people expressed "greater confidence about their household income and job situation compared to this time last year," said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan.

In Northern California, Tim Freeman of Vanguard Properties in Petaluma is working with a buyer who was searching for his "forever home" -- one where he could live out his years. But the client recently changed his mind, and is now looking instead for a weekend retreat in wine country. Why? Because of "a change in work-related attendance," said Freeman in the discussion group.

In Southern California, Angelique Kenney of Jason Mitchell Real Estate said she's see "lots" of canceled deals. "The market is correcting itself," she said. "It's gonna be happening more."

Matt Rillera, who works for the EntreTec consulting firm, said two of his family members recently canceled deals. One was in Louisiana and the other was in Sacramento, but both were tied to abrupt changes in the relatives' work-from-home options, he said.

In Hawaii, Julie Chancerelle Ziemelis of MoveToHawaii365.com said, "People here are hoping that folks who bought homes (in the islands) during the pandemic, in the hopes of working from home for the foreseeable future, will be called back so we have more inventory!"

Sometimes, though, one person's change of heart is another's good fortune. In Dallas, Nicole Arenas of Keller Williams lucked out -- or rather, her client did -- when a buyer had to terminate an offer. The original buyer's company was returning to the office three days a week, and he would no longer be allowed to work remotely.

The location no longer worked for that buyer, but it did for Arenas' buyer, who went under contract and closed on the deal.

"It ain't over till it's over." -- Yogi Berra, baseball philosopher

In real estate, a house isn't sold until the Fat Lady sings at the closing. Until then, the seller should keep their options open by accepting backup contracts. Likewise, a buyer whose bid for the property fell short should consider asking the seller to accept their offer as a backup.

Simply put, a backup contract is one that moves into the primary position if the first buyer does not close. Some agents disdain them, but others love them.

Years ago, California agent Janine Nielsen's client wasn't just a backup -- he was in 10th position on a short sale, and his offer was $50,000 below the accepted one. But a year later, the sale still hadn't closed, everyone else had dropped out and Nielsen's buyer won the day.

For a variety of reasons, roughly 20% of all sales fall through. Maybe the place doesn't appraise at the hoped-for value, and the buyer can't or won't make up the difference. Perhaps the inspection reveals daunting flaws, or maybe financing falls through.

Or perhaps the buyer realizes they acted too hastily in an overheated market. Denver broker Joan Cox, who always encourages her agents to write backup offers, says that in a seller's market, emotions often run high and decisions are made too quickly. After a day or two, hasty would-be buyers recognize they acted with their hearts, not their brains.

While sellers cannot accept other contracts while one is still active, they can continue to market the property and accept offers, as long as those buyers are told they are in a secondary position.

Having standby buyers puts sellers in a stronger position. It places additional pressure on the first buyer to keep the original contract terms in place, and it saves sellers from having to put their homes back on the market.

For buyers, the odds aren't terrific; a 20% chance of the first deal collapsing can seem like a long shot. But if you absolutely, positively want the house and are willing to wait, a backup offer makes sense.

To protect yourself, backup offers should be worded properly. Some states have standard backup addendums to cover these situations, but it may be a good idea to call in an experienced real estate attorney.

What follows is not intended as legal advice, especially since laws differ across the country. Rather, it is derived from what I've learned from numerous agents:

-- Get it in writing. Too many sellers and agents play it too loose. A vague agreement to "hold" your offer as a backup holds no legal standing. "A backup offer is only a true backup if signed by the other party," advises Phoenix agent Lynn Behlendorf.

"Whatever good intentions the listing agent and seller have towards giving you a verbal agreement," adds Maui agent Ralph Gorgoglione, "I guarantee there will most likely be another buyer willing to trump your verbally accepted offer."

-- Be careful not to be locked in, at least not entirely. The idea behind a backup is that the terms and conditions are already agreed upon, and your offer will proceed to escrow without any further negotiation. But try to give yourself an out.

While you're never totally tied into a deal, give yourself some time to cancel. The seller will (rightfully) want to limit your wiggle room, so 48-72 hours should be enough time to make up your mind. Sellers, on the other hand, should ask for a stipulated waiting period that, if exceeded, voids the offer.

Buyers also need to be careful they don't tie themselves into numerous backup contracts on different properties. Otherwise, they could find themselves being forced to go to closing on more than one.

-- Cancel in writing. If you do decide to move on, notify the seller and their agent in writing and demand a signed response that lets you out of the transaction. Ditto if you resolve to proceed: Make sure the first offer is canceled -- again, in writing, signed by both parties.

-- If the house didn't appraise for the first buyer, it probably won't for you, either. So you can try to renegotiate as best you can. Perhaps the seller will agree to lower the price.

The same goes for the home inspection: Once problems have been uncovered, you must be informed of them. If the first buyers had an inspection, the seller must inform you of the findings if they were made aware of them. Consequently, the seller might be convinced to bargain based on the necessary repairs.

At the same time, in a market where prices are rising almost constantly, the seller may demand that you up your offer. But most will be satisfied there's another contract waiting and that they can move on with their lives.

Indeed, if the seller already has a new home and needs to move forward, they're more likely to bargain than to play hardball.

Sellers who jump on offers from buyers waiving the opportunity to hire an independent home inspector may rue the day they did so.

If a buyer suspects something was wrong with the property and the seller knew about it, but failed to disclose it, a lawsuit could be possible. Even if the seller had no inkling something was amiss, it's possible a suit could contend that he or she should have known.

In other words, caveat emptor -- "let the buyer beware" -- could turn out into caveat venditor -- "let the seller beware."

In a recent column, real estate author and speaker Bernice Ross described a situation that happened to a friend: After the deal closed, the buyer stripped off wallpaper to discover one-inch cracks up and down both sides of a fireplace. They also found that two beds the seller left behind were bolted to a wall, hiding a one-inch gap between the wall and the foundation.

The seller was a sweet old lady who had the buyer over for tea and crumpets. But after these discoveries, the buyer was incensed -- so much so that he sued not only the seller, but her agent.

Most states require sellers to disclose known defects in their homes to would-be buyers. But former realty broker Christian Adams says the most common lawsuits against sellers in his home state of Texas now stem from incorrect disclosures.

In today's hyper-hot market, where houses are selling within days (if not hours), buyers are sometimes encouraged by their agents to forgo an inspection to make their offers more attractive.

But Adams, who now is chief executive officer of Repair Pricer, an AI-powered home repair estimation platform, says that advice "could place (agents) in a very compromising position." It might even come back to haunt the agent who advised the seller to accept an offer sans inspection.

Not everyone believes agents and their brokers could be in jeopardy. Though a "strong proponent" of home inspections, Joey Sheehan of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Fox Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, doesn't think listing agents or sellers will be particularly vulnerable to anything other than frivolous lawsuits.

Even if a seller purposely failed to disclose a known defect, a buyer who passed on an inspection would find it difficult to prove the seller had deliberately hidden the truth, Sheehan told me in an email. Theoretically, the seller could claim they really were clueless, she points out, adding, "How could the angry new owner establish there was fraud when the buyer conducted no inspection of his own?"

Nevertheless, Sheehan's firm, like many others, now has its buyer-clients sign an advisory if they skip the inspection. "We want it on the record that we strongly urged them to conduct inspections, and that it was they who declined to do so," she says.

On the other hand, Adams believes those agents who recommend that buyers waive the inspection contingency, and those who advise sellers to accept these offers, are in violation of the National Association of Realtors' Code of Ethics -- particularly Article 13, which says members should not engage in the unauthorized practice of law.

As he sees it, it could be argued that it is not in a client's best interest to waive the inspection contingency or to accept such a contract. Therefore, agents who encourage these choices could be exposing their clients to undue risk, and the clients should seek legal counsel prior to proceeding.

Of course, not every hidden defect will spark a lawsuit. "Not every house has something wrong with it that is sue-worthy," Adams says.

According to Repair Pricer, a deep dive into some 50,000 inspection reports nationwide found that the most frequent issue -- missing or loose electrical outlets or outlet covers -- cost $109 to correct. The most expensive repair of the 10 most frequent issues -- damaged or missing siding -- was $478.

But anything that involves an active water leak is likely to set a buyer scurrying to court, especially if it appears the seller tried to hide it. Signs of moisture stains and water penetration were found in 39% of the inspections and cost $462, on average, to remedy.

Adams tells the frightening tale of a client who woke up one morning shortly after he moved in to find water dripping from an upstairs shower through the ceiling below. When a plumber took down the soaked drywall, he found a leaking pipe with a tag on it from a previous plumber who had noted the problem.

"This," Adams contends, "was a preexisting condition that was both known and covered up by the seller. The seller was 100% aware of the problem but chose to cover it up."

In today's hot market, many buyers figure that if they don't waive the inspection contingency, someone else will. But just because you waive the contingency doesn't mean you can't obtain an inspection; it just means you can't use the findings to renegotiate the deal or cancel it altogether.

Obtaining an inspection will give you a pretty good idea of what you are getting into. And if you find the results troubling, you can always find another way to get out of the contract.

"You have the right to get an inspection, and you should," says Adams. "And you should be getting one every year. If you don't catch a problem early, it will lead to a more expensive problem down the line."