Walk a Mile in My Shoes

As a licensed real estate professional, I pride myself on the level of knowledge, expertise, and experience I have gained over the years. I consider myself a very skilled and relentless advocate for representing my client's best interests and empowering them to succeed in their real estate adventures.

However, when you've been at this business for any length of time, there can be the tendency to forget what it's like for those who haven't been through the process before. We've become so intimately familiar with every element and nuance of the real estate transaction, there can be times when we fail to see things through our client's eyes.

Case in point:

Found on Facebook

A couple from Kentucky found me on Facebook. They explored my blogs, read my articles, toured my website, and liked what they saw. They contacted me through Facebook and explained that they were in the process of relocating to Kitsap County WA. They were planning on coming out for a house hunting visit and had allotted themselves two weeks to find the perfect home, go under contract, conduct the home inspection, then fly back to Kentucky.

Due to the time constraints, they wanted to make sure that I would be able to devote some concerted time to assist them in achieving their goals. I assured them that I was up for the task and we agreed to work with each other.

The Kentucky Two-Step or 'Off to the Races!'

They arrived over the weekend, and we hooked up first thing Monday morning. Even though they were 1st Time Buyers, they were in their mid-Thirties and were both launching second careers. I could tell right away that the 3 of us were going to click and work well together. This was a good thing because we ended up spending that entire first week from 8am to 6pm each day looking at properties!

After the first day, we were able to narrow our focus a bit more specifically to what they really wanted - waterfront or water view properties, Master on the main, 2500 sq. ft. plus, on acreage, for $400K or less. A bit challenging, but not impossible in our current market.

The 2nd day out, we had actually found several homes that met with their approval. By the end of the week, we had determined 4 or 5 viable candidates for them to choose from. They told me they would spend the weekend relaxing, exploring the area, and reviewing the homes they had seen and start narrowing the decision-making process.

Thank God, It's Friday!

I took this to mean that I could relax over the weekend as well. After a very intense week of showing houses, I was ready for some downtime.

But as Murphy's Law of Feast & Famine Real Estate would have it, my weekend would be anything but downtime.

When It Rains, It Pours!

A part-time agent who was formerly with our office contacted me with a desperate plea to help him out of a bind. He had a client who wanted to go looking at potential investment properties, but he wasn't able to meet with him because his day job was taking him out of the area for a few days. His client had provided a list of about 15 properties he wanted to see over the weekend. I agreed to help him out and scheduled showings for most of the properties on Saturday.

At the same time, a new client I had received on referral from an ActiveRain member was starting to get antsy, and wanted to go out looking at homes that weekend as well.

And if that wasn't enough, some other buyers I had taken out a few leisurely times (friends of mine through the church we used to attend) decided that Sunday would be the perfect day to go house shopping again.

I spent most of the day Saturday showing properties to the investment buyer. We found a couple that penciled out and made sense. I figured that Sunday would only take a couple hours to finish up with him and make a decision, so I scheduled an appointment for Sunday afternoon with my new referral Buyer. Since we only had 4 or 5 homes to look at, I told my church friend buyers we'd go out for a couple hours in the early evening.

I get tired just thinking about it again!

Your Cheatin' Heart

Anyway, it's Saturday and we're about halfway through the investment buyers list of properties when my cell phone rings. It's the Kentucky couple. They've been discussing all the various home choices and they want to meet ASAP to discuss some strategies and possibly write up an offer on one of the homes. I explain my situation to them, and suggest we meet later in the day after I'm done with the investor buyer. The extended sigh on the other end tells me I've pushed the envelope of their patience. Reluctantly, they concede.

As my luck, or lack thereof, would have it, I wasn't able to meet with them until later that evening around 7pm. As I opened the office lobby door to let them in, I could tell by their demeanor that they were upset. When I asked what was up, they both unloaded on me. They felt I had abandoned them. I had agreed to devote a concerted amount of time with them over a two week period and when they needed me, I wasn't available.

Smokin' in the Boy's Room

I was proud of myself for maintaining my composure exceptionally well. As agents, we learn to have fairly thick skin at times. I apologized for not being available to meet with them earlier in the day, and explained my understanding about their plans for the weekend.

A few minutes later, I excused myself to use the restroom. It gave me welcomed time to collect my thoughts and vent some of my own frustrations. I had just spent the last 5 days from sun-up to sundown with these folks, looking at nearly 50 properties, and here they were accusing me of abandoning them! What nerve!

We ended up writing a 'Hail Mary' offer that evening and I was able to work out their concerns over my allegiances.

In hindsight, what I learned (and I always try to learn something new from every transaction), is to never lose sight or empathy for how my clients perceive things. Clear communication is critical, with specific levels of expectation spelled out fully. Clients can be very needy at times, especially stressed out 1st Time Buyers on a short time-line. While I would love nothing more than for my clients to feel as though they are my 'only' clients, that's not always realistic. Additionally, Clients need to understand that good, qualified agents are naturally going to be in demand and busy, to some degree, with other clients.

And They All lived Happily Ever After!

The happy end to my story is that the Kentucky couple is under contract with a home they're both absolutely 'In Love' with and we close the 2nd week of August. They are really awesome people. We share a solid, mutually enjoyable relationship that I know will last for many years to come, and will most likely result in their future referrals.