So when you are interviewing for the opportunity to 1) spend money on a listing, 2) see prospects through the door at open houses, 3) manage somewhat unreasonable expectations on the part of a seller, add this to all the other buyers and sellers in your pipeline, you have a real challenge ahead of you. There are only 1440 minutes in a day and if one client consumes most of those minutes, you really have a fun job.
So my experience this week was with a client who was referred to me by another Realtor in my office. She needed help to get this listing sold and as it happens, the other Realtor is dating the owner of the property. Warning Signs should bounce off you when that happens. NEVER mix Business with Pleasure. Emotions are too powerful when discussing money.
So we meet with the owner and discuss what his options are, 1) the only homes selling now are those that are foreclosures in your neighborhood, 2) your house is old and needs updating, 3) are you ready for a lot of people to come though and see your house. Well, the owner did not like hearing that "HIS" decorations were old and tired, or that he would not get top dollar as compared to other bank-owned properties selling at a lower price, and during the last few months, the owner was short and curt with people walking through the property.
What do you do? You suck it up for the listing period and you do what you can, all the while the little light goes off in you head saying "I told you so, I told you so, I told you so". When you have been selling Real Estate for as long as I have, almost 10 years, you know who are going to be your good prospects and your SUSPECTS. Owners do not understand that marketing the house for sale takes Time and Money, and unless it is the best thing someone sees, it will probably sit for 90-120 days, as evidenced by the Days on Market in our area averages.
So the buyer comes back at the end of the listing term and says he is 1) unhappy that the home has not sold, 2) he plans to send direct mail postcards to people with condos where he would like to live with the "hope" they want to swap out their oceanfront condo for a house in a subdivision, 3) he would like to take over negotiations with the people who have expressed interest in the house, and cut me out of any commissions, 4) work with a Realtor who knows his area "better".
Since his property was a million dollar plus listing, we spent thousands of dollars marketing the property to people who subscribe to luxury magazines in far away places like the Northeast, where they are known to have 2nd homes in Florida. We also spend money on local TV listings and featured open houses as well as travelled back and forth to the property to be onsite with prospects since the owner wanted someone there to trust. In the end, the owner is unrealistic in their expectation. There are still rows and rows of unsold homes in the subdivision, his house is overpriced, we never received an offer, because he would not reduce it to more of a market price.
One of a Realtor's questions to the homeowner during the period of interviewing should be "Are you prepared to lower your house price, if we do not receive an offer within the first 30 days, 60 days, 90 days?" this gives you an idea of how much a person needs to sell the house. How motivated they are to move elsewhere. You need to know before spending $$$ whether the owner is a prospect or a suspect. Do NOT allow this to keep you up at nights thinking about the money you are throwing down the Money Hole!
Good luck everyone, there are so many good people out there who will listen to YOU, the Realtor, the professional. But there will always be others who think they know more than you.
#LizBobeck
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