I was three days from closing on a deal I'd been nursing for five months. Five. Months. The buyers had already scheduled their movers, the sellers had packed half their house, and I was mentally spending my commission on finally fixing my car's AC. Then the buyer's mother came to do a "final walkthrough" with them. This woman had never seen the house before. Never been part of a single showing or conversation. She walked through the kitchen, pointed at the perfectly functional granite countertops, and said "these won't do." Within forty-eight hours, my buyers backed out. Cited "concerns about the layout" even though they'd toured it six times and loved it every single time. The sellers were furious. I had to explain to my broker why a done deal suddenly wasn't done. I later found out the mother didn't like that the house was fifteen minutes farther from her than she'd realized. Couldn't just say that though. Had to blame the countertops. I still twitch when clients mention bringing family members to showings. I've started casually asking "so, who else will be involved in this decision?" on our very first call now.