I think that the song I am referring to was probably written about another profession, maybe the oldest profession,certainly not real estate.
Today in our real estate industry we listing agents are all balancing ( juggling) a lot of balls and trying not to make a bloody mess of things. The balls we are balancing are not the usual ones that come to mind when you think about real estate. The ones I am referring to are more centered around the idea that we have to defend the right principles with our clients in concert with some measurable or at least predicable result.
Our industy's nemesis, the press, have a story to tell (sell). They tend to want to get ahead of the news and announce market forecasts as fate d'comple. With the zeal that they do this and so expertly I might add, instead of just news, it becomes more like the self fulfilling of a prophecy.
Sales figures in a vacuum are just that. Couple that with market projections and the relentless headlines for economic and housing news with every imaginable spin and I think you get my point. I am sure I am now preaching to the choir.
Back to balancing( juggling) the balls.....
In order for us to be successful with our seller's ( getting the house sold), we practically have to sound like the dooms day prognosticators we so much want to distance our selves from. Balance (juggle) ball one. To get the Sellers' property into the proper market positioning for sale, we have to hammer like a blacksmith and still keep the ball in the air. Then we have must get another ball in the air (you know, the one that represents the Buyers and the Buyer's agent who reads the same news and councils the Buyers that they may be able to get the sellers to agree to the best Buyers deal of the century). Keeping that second ball high enough to convince them and the Buyer that the world of home values is not falling down like a truck load of bowling balls on our heads and that this home is priced correctly is really tough. If we get those two balls in the air, we then have to get a third one up there. This one represents that the Buyer will use some amount of reason when the property inspection is done and will want all new white light switches, all the potted plants and the proverbial first born if they are to go through with the sale. The listing agent has to be pretty good not to include the first born in the compromise :-) . Then the 4th ball has to go up when we get the sellers to understand that it is all going to be OK, the white switch plates won't cost that much, the plants have to go with this house, and the first born gets to stay with them. 4 balls ( in some cases many more balls have to lofted and balanced) in a balancing (juggling) act that totally defies gravity.
In some ways, we in the real estate industry must look a lot like the entertainer that juggles things to make his living. The real difference is he is probably smiling at his feat of keeping all the all the balls in the air (juggling) and we are just darting around like a cat whose tail got stepped on. By any other name this balancing ( juggling) act would be an art form.
Yes, "we work hard for our money" .
Comments(5)