Lyon Real Estate keeps its awards secret until its annual Awards Banquet. That is why I did not know which awards I would win until yesterday. Apart from being the Number 1 real estate company in Sacramento, Lyon Real Estate has more than 900 agents. To rank in the top 1% means an agent would have to have sold more than at least 891 other agents. It means an agent sells enough to be ranked with the top 9 agents in the company.
Yesterday, I received that honor. It's the first time that has ever happened to me. I know I did well last year because my bank account shows it and my numbers of closed sales reflect it. But I did not know that I earned the 2011 #5 position in the entire company. I am the #1 Agent in the Lyon Real Estate Downtown office for 2011, which is actually located in Midtown Sacramento. My peers assume my success happened because I specialize in short sales. As a Sacramento short sale agent, I surely do sell my fair share of short sales in town. That's no secret. But that's not necessarily why my production is so high.
My production is high because I do not deviate from the norm. I am focused. I am organized. I know how to close real estate, and I focus on closing. I've been in the business since the 1970s. If something works well for me, I do not change it. Because to change a method that works well would mean I have Twinkies for a brain, and let me assure you that I do not have Twinkies for a brain.
I analyze what works and what does not work. I discard the things that do not work. I use the things that do work. There, you have it.
Sometimes agents get ticked off. They expect me to make an exception. They might say, "I know this client and therefore yada yada." You know what? That doesn't work with me. I don't know you, most likely, and I certainly don't know your client. I have shared with you precisely what you need to do to get your short sale offer accepted. I spell it out in MLS. If you choose not to do it, you should look in the mirror because it holds the answer as to why your offer was rejected.
A buyer's agent yesterday lost out on a short sale because the agent did not submit the buyer's lender's paperwork as requested. While the agent waited for the buyer's mortgage broker to get around to it, another offer arrived. An identical offer with all of the requested documents. Guess which offer the seller signed?
Another buyer's agent submitted an offer with a $500 earnest money deposit. The buyer had previously been informed that $500 was too low. When countered to deposit more, the buyer decided she would not release any money at all until the bank formally approved the already preapproved short sale. This reminds me of that scene in the street from Bridesmaids. Experience has shown that buyers who do not want to deposit funds or who try to deposit pennies are not committed. Non-committed buyers are those who are unlikely to close. No short sale for you. Sorry.
I represent the seller. I never lose sight of that. I truly believe that closing the short sale for the seller is in the seller's best interest. That's my goal every single day. To get closer to closing for my sellers . . . and to eventually close. If buyer's agents and their buyers don't wanna get on that train, they can hop off. Preferably before the train leaves the station.
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