SYNOPSIS: Buyers
and sellers are given too much credit for knowing more than they
actually do. There is a great deal more to know about buying
and selling real estate than they typically know. Think of the
classed you attended to learn what you have; where your buyers
and sellers there, too?
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WHO
ARE THEY KIDDING?
It is a mistake to give homebuyers and sellers too much credit
for knowing how the process of buying and selling works. We do
this for a living; they don't.
The public often gets credit for being so much more sophisticated
than it was ten years ago. Are they? Possibly. Then again, maybe
not. A widely discussed news article this year reported that
53% of American adults don't know how long it takes the earth
to go once around the sun (does the phrase "one year"
mean anything to you?); even that 27% of us got it backward,
believing it's the sun which revolves around the earth. Where's
Gallileo when you need him? Recently I stayed in a classy hotel
with a large yellow decal in the shower: Please put curtain inside
tub before taking a shower. Whimsy? Or did the management finally
come to the conclusion, "I guess we've to come right out
and give them instructions."
If the public hasn't figured out something as simple as a shower
curtain, what are the odds they understand net equity based on
hard values determined by recent sales of comparable property?
What are the odds they've got a firm grasp on competitive market
values recognizing what their house is worth on the open market
as opposed to what they would like it to be worth? We can sympathize
with homeowners getting an inflated vision of their own home's
value and a deflated view of the what they buy next (which, of
course, appreciates wildly within 24 hours of the closing - if
only in their minds). Even trained, objective, dispassionate
Realtors® make honest mistakes in pricing property too high.
What chance does the homeowner have of doing it right? Or even
of knowing what to do?
DARWIN
AWARDS
Some friends of mine and I trade email that we call Darwin Award
Nominations. Remember survival of the fittest? The other side
of that coin is the demise of the un-fit. A few of us believe
we should remove all the traffic signs and warning labels just
to see who survives. Here's a short sampler:
· Asked of national park rangers at the Carlsbad Caverns:
"How much of this cave is underground?" "What's
in the unexplored section?" (Ok, that's my favorite.)
· Asked of park rangers in Yellowstone: "Who turns
off the geysers at night?" "We found the entrances
to the park; where are the exits?"
· Asked of park rangers at Yosemite National Park: "Where
are all the rides?" "What did they do with the other
half of Half Dome?"
Frankly, some people are too stupid to be left at home without
a sitter. So why should an astute, professional Realtor®
presume everyone knows what he's talking about? All of us are
ignorant on different subjects. Twenty percent of the people
reading this article had to take the real estate exam more than
once in order to pass. If we professionals have a head start,
think of the ones who never took the test. Real estate has to
be on someone's ignorant list!
LOOK
CLOSER
A licensee will complete pre-license training; pass an exam designed
to test your knowledge on real estate laws and customs; get licensed
by the state's licensing agency; convince an experienced broker
to say "we want you!" Then, become an associate member
of the local, state national professional Realtor® associations;
graduate from the company's sales training program; and actually
sell two or three houses.
Ask that agent: "On a scale of 1-10, how confident are you?"
Answer: "Maybe a 4."
Then ask the same question of a FSBO who's never, ever sold a
house and who knows nothing about disclosures or the competition.
Answer: "On a 10 scale? 11!"
That is front porch bravado. But behind closed doors, deep in
his heart cloaked in fear and fantasy, the For Sale By Owner
knows he's kidding himself. He needs a pro and he knows it. The
question is whether you can demonstrate that you are the pro
he needs.
WHAT
TO DO
Don't get stuck on what they say. Talk to the need that lies
inside. Let them talk about what they can do on their own; but
talk to them about their reasons for selling, the time limits
they have, what it will mean if the sale doesn't happen on time.
Answering those questions will keep them centered on the real
issues - realities that are not addressed when people are saying,
"We'd like to do this; I'm sure we can do this; Oh yeah,
we can make this happen ourselves!" Merely wanting is not
the same as delivering results. No kidding, it takes a pro, not
an amateur.
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