Is there a polite way to say "I get paid to sell houses, not show houses"? Here lately I've had more than a few clients looking at really low end properties that seem to just drain my time. The scenario is: they call about a specific house, I show them, they really like it....and then they find the ezmls and it goes from the one house to about 20. I understand its part of my job, but at what point to do you use "firm but gentle pressure"?

Talk to your broker for guidance.

YOUR FAILURE IS YOU HAVE NOT SET PROPER EXPECTATIONS WITH YOUR BUYERS AND DEFINED THE KIND OF RELATIONSHIP YOU WANT FOR YOU BUSINESS.

Did you have a pre-meeting with them to find out if they are qualified,what sales price range they can afford,what there motivation for buying is,have they signed an eba with another buyers agent/broker,do they have any other outstanding offers on other properties currently.

I say generally to buyers you look at 5 properties and you put in an offer on one.If it goes to more properties you have a coming to jesus where you sit them down and go over again what they are looking for and clarifying issues before looking at more properties.

Even if they are qualified in a certain price range if you know there is very little inventory in that range you are wasting your time as a broker/agent.

For example in my market you might have a buyer looking for a 3/2 ranch for 110k,most in the market are 175k and up.So I know out of thousands of homes available only maybe a handful in a year will fall in that range and they will be under contract in 24 hours.

So do I want to work with a buyer that what they can afford hardly exists in the marketplace?NO

The reality is there are thousands of other qualfied buyers looking for the same thing but it's not there.

Now if you know a buyer is looking for a 4/2 on a split level in the 250k range I know I will have hundreds of properties to choose from for the buyer to show them and we have a good chance of closing on something.

If you ever get someone saying I want to see all properties and they want to look at more and more explain to them that houses go under contract every week and no house is perfect.If we look at 20 houses or more a good portion of those will be unavailable for purchase later and that's just how the market works.Avoid cosmetic issues with buyers focus on asking them if the layout works for them.Paint,cosmetics can be easily change and at little expense.If the layout doesn't work and you have to move walls and uncover problems then it gets expensive.

You need to learn your market by looking at your mls and know when working a lead if what they can afford is out there or not.

Buyers are Liars. It should be tatoo'd on every Realtor's arm or something.

Buyers seem really twitchy right now, and who could blame them. What do YOU say when they ask this:

"Mr. Rush, in your professional opinion, what will the economy and real estate market do in the next 5 years? Is is possible that this home will be worth a lot less in a year or two?"

Uh... what CAN you tell them? Yes, that's possible. Maybe even probably.

Sellers right now, in my area at least (which is level but still in the black or barely in the red) are asking buyers to cash them out at peak o' the boom prices. Buyers are leary of doing that. I would be too!

-jeff

Buyers seem really twitchy right now, and who could blame them. What do YOU say when they ask this:

"Mr. Rush, in your professional opinion, what will the economy and real estate market do in the next 5 years? Is is possible that this home will be worth a lot less in a year or two?"


When I get questions like that I alway laugh and say "Do you what the lottery #'s are for today and will I win?" They usually realize that that is a question I just can not answer. If they are renting, I usually say "what I would really hate, if I were you, would be to still be paying someone else's mortgarge in 5 years!" That normally will get them thinking and seems to calm them down too. That is if they really do want to buy and are not just kicking tires

If they buy a house after looking at 20 properties I don't see a problem. Welcome to the world of normal real estate.

Have you ever shopped for a home before? Don't you want to see all your options? Don't you change your mind mid-stream and want to look at something different from what you originally thought?

No, you don't get paid to show up at a house after a sign call and write an offer. You get paid to take care of your clients which sometimes means spending more time than you'd like. Sometimes deals do fall in your lap, but frankly - sometimes those are the toughest of all! I hate it when I show one property and the buyer wants to buy it without seeing anything else. Can you say BUYERS REMORSE?

TIP:If your buyers insist on seeing tons of properties do this.Ask them to first drive around and preview from the outside then the ones they want to go inside and see schedule an appointment.Often times agents take decieving pictures of there listings.When the buyer gets out there they see the house is on a steep decline,or an incline,the house looks rundown compare dot the picture and it has been photshopped,they don't like what the house is facing or next to,they don't like the area the house is in,etc.

You will find that it's beeter for you,them,and the sellers for the buyer to see the outside first.They will disqualify alot that way and it will save everyone time.It would be stupid to set up showings of houses only to get out there and see it's not even worth going inside.

If someone wants to go all over god's creation and show 50 houses to make a sale-great.That will NEVER be my business model or the clients I choose to work with.I don't think it makes you more or less of an agent on who you work with.I beleive it's just defining what type of business you want and within what time frames.

I guess it all goes back to the bpo syndrome.Everybody is willing to work for a certain amount.The markets only paying 2 percent I would just stick to my investing if that was the case.

Super, I agree with a lot of what you've written. In fact, I have started to implement it more forcefully of late. I sent a list of homes to a couple of buyers that were under contract with me after we'd already seen about eight to ten houses each. That was on a Friday. Suddenly, I became very busy on Saturday and Sunday (playing with my daughters as I had promised them I would do), so they went out on their own and eliminated several of them from the list, utlimately deciding on one that we'd already seen.

Sure, I show more houses than I would prefer to a single buyer. But I also think that this is a way to better manage the process.

Super, I would love to do that, however in my area most are second home buyers and there is just not the urgency. I love that "come to Jesus" moment, though, LOL.

I understand the world of normal real estate, and I don't mind showing 20 houses if that's what it takes; but after I show a client what is in their words "exactly what we're looking for" and then they get on the MLS and call me to see about 20 more houses that aren't even close to what they originally wanted....that's time draining and profit draining, especially when its on the low end of properties. Maybe I need to switch to abnormal real estate.

I am not married and have no kids etc. So NO TIME is wasted in Real Estate for me.

Abnormal Real Estate? Such As...
http://www.w-e-agency.com

???

I agree it can make you want to pull your hair out or better yet theirs, but it's just part of the business. I use to get very frustrated at buyers that wanted to see everything, just in case they might miss something better. But all getting upset did was make me unhappy and I am sure it came across to my clients. Then I thought how can I change my attitude so I can deal with this? I came up with every home I show makes me a more informed agent. That home might not work for this client, but there could be someone I talk to later that it would work for. I think potential clients are very impressed if you have a vast knowledge about the interior of mutiple homes. That was the turning point for me.

Good point. I understand it is part of the business and it probably happens more often than not; the day I started this post I was just having "one of those days". Don't want you to think I don't appreciate each client, but it helps to be able to come on here and spout off to someone who feels your pain. Thanks!

I didn't think that at all. It does help to blow off steam and beleive you me I have days when I feel the same way. Then I have to take a deep breath and adjust the attitude.

You can start asking some pointed questions, such as, "What did you say was your time frame for buying a house?" or "Maybe we need to re-evaluate what your needs are." I do think at some point you realize they just aren't gonna buy!