The Unmotivated Unrealistic Buyer, Circa 2017, or, “Waiting for Godot, Home Buyer Version” In a housing market characterized by an ongoing, acute shortage of inventory, it’s an all too familiar lament: frustrated Buyers (and Buyers’ agents) who bemoan that they “just can’t find what they’re looking for.” I’m certainly sympathetic — to a point. However,...Read More
Realtor-Speak, Translated I don’t know about other listing agents (representing Sellers), but I have to suppress an eye roll when, following a showing, the Buyer’s agent contacts me and asks to be “kept in the loop” if something happens. That “something,” of course, is another offer. Sometimes, Buyers need a day or two to put...Read More
Qualifying Buyers #101 In the course of holding hundreds (thousands?) of Sunday open houses over the years, I can usually tell relatively quickly whether a given prospect is serious or not. See if you can tell which of the comments below indicate serious Buyer interest: A. “I LOVE this house. Why is it so cheap?!?” B. “What...Read More
“Actions > Words Dept.” How do you know, as a listing agent (representing the Seller), that a Buyer has serious interest? A. They gushed about how much they loved the home at the Sunday open house. B. They asked the listing agent to find out how quickly the Seller can close. C. The showing feedback...Read More
Quality > Quantity Buyers (at Least Until After Labor Day) The Holidays . . . the post-Holidays . . . any stretch in Winter when it’s well below zero. And mid-to-late August. What do all of those periods have in common? They’re all predictably slow for housing transactions in the Twin Cities. Late Summer Slow-Down...Read More
Determining Whether Buyers are “RWA” (“Ready, Willing and Able”) I don’t know about other listing agents, but when prospects come through my Sunday open’s, I quiz them (gently) to see whether they’re “ready, willing, and able.” Here’s what I mean by that: “Ready“: The prospect wants (needs) to buy now — not six months (or two...Read More
