So many agents are not feelin' the love right now. “I've talked and talked 'til I'm blue in the face but they won't reduce their price!” “I've told them over and over that there are 60 other homes just like theirs on the market but they WON'T listen!” Maybe, just maybe, it's because they heard you the first time.
Remember the first time you met with them? You listened and made notes about all the great upgrades in their home and you nodded and smiled in full appreciation of all the things they feel are truly unique and special about it and you said things like “Buyers will love that.” Then you told them you had done some homework and you pulled out long lists of “comps” for their property and “actives” on the market to help them “price” the property.
You told them the “comps” show an average selling price of $xxx,xxx and that the ones that were “priced right” sold in an average of xx days. You pointed out that there is “competition” in the market. That there are 60 “actives” on the market with whom they are “comparable” and that they will need to take that into consideration when “pricing” their home for sale. You mentioned that the North Carolina Triangle real estate market is one of the lucky ones: while prices are down year over year, we still have a vibrant community in Chapel Hill / Durham and Raleigh and homes are still selling!
They listened attentively and asked what you would suggest they do to make their home sell quickly. They did it all and when it came time to choose a “list price” you were only mildly surprised that they wanted to just try it at a bit higher price than your recommendation. That's ok, you thought...30 days and we'll get it down. After all, they were really listening to you when you explained the numbers.
They were listening all right, and this is what they heard:
“You have a beautiful and unique home and, if you do the things we discussed, I can certainly imagine buyers will be tripping over each other to get a chance at it. Your home will sell for $xxx,xxx in xx days if you price it near the average (a dollar above is just as “near” as a dollar below.) We will get lots of buyers looking at your home because there are 60 other homes, just like yours, that have lots of buyers ACTIVELY looking at them in this vibrant market! This is gonna be great! You can price it comparably and take your pick of all those buyers out there who are competing for a great home.”
What might have happened if you had chosen your words more carefully? What if on the first meeting you had validated their choices in home remodeling by saying “You made a smart choice there. Buyers in this price range expect to see these amenities.” or “These kinds of renovations add greatly to saleability but don't necessarily produce a dollar for dollar return so it was smart of you to get your money's worth by doing them while you could still enjoy them.”
What if you had used more accurate and descriptive language? You could have shown them the “unsold homes” on the market, of which there are 60, with amenities buyers expect, just like yours. Those homes, you could have explained, were “competing” with the ones which actually sold, for buyers who have a lot of choices these days. “And here, Mr. Seller, are the full listings for each of those properties which sold and those which are still competing for a buyer. Let's go over each one of these, noting the number of choices the buyer has and compare them to what you have to offer. Let's discuss where each of the sold properties was “positioned” when it began marketing and at what price it was finally sold.”
You could mention that while we are lucky not to be in one of the worst hit parts of the country, buyers in the Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill market are getting some of the best home buys that our market has seen in many years! “Mr. Seller, if you make a smart decision about “positioning” your home for sale, you too, can join the ranks of buyers everywhere who are taking advantage of opportunities which may never be available again. I would love to use my market knowledge and experience to help you position yourself to do just that!”
Choose your words carefully. Our job is to use our market knowledge and marketing skills to get the home sold, not just get it listed!
There is every possibility that your sellers really did listen to you...maybe, just maybe, you didn't really say what you thought you said!
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