Real estate now vs. 1987
In Real Estate, some things are always changing, like financing, education, laws, rules and technology. The two that will always remain constant, as long as they are within the law, are following our clients’ directions, and working with their best interests in mind. I’m not sure we always follow through with this, though.
Some of us knowingly take over priced listings. Some of us take listings that are out of our area of expertise. Some of us won’t show short sales or REOs. Some of us won’t show homes with low co-op splits. Some of us don’t have Supra/e-Keys, and miss out on those listings entirely.
Putting our interests first
When these things occur we are putting our own interests first, not our clients’. We may think that by having as many listings as possible is a good thing, that’s what we’re taught after all, isn’t it? It may not matter that some are overpriced, eventually, whether one month or four months down the line, the price will be reduced. It’s just a matter of time and money, for our clients, after all. The same can be said when we take listings outside our area of expertise, just to add on to our inventory. If we don’t know what we’re doing, on a short sale listing, for example, it will only cost our clients a lot of time and money. A lot.
By eliminating certain houses our clients see, that may already fit their criteria, we’re taking away their choices. Distressed sales account for close to 40% of the market. This is probably higher in some local markets. There is no legitimate way to ignore roughly 1/3 of the homes being sold. Co-op fees are often a touchy subject, especially when they are, not “enough.” If everyone utilized a Buyer Broker Agreement that stipulated what their fee was, the issue would take care of itself. Not being able to access listings with the use of Supra/e-Keys is a choice. Choosing not purchase one will mean agents will not be able to access Fannie Mae (and eventually, probably additional Gov REO homes) along with the listings that are already using them.
Our priorities versus theirs
We totally need to get over ourselves already. We are not bigger than our clients. Our priorities are not more important than theirs when it comes to the actual listing and selling of homes.
Recently, my awesome parents dug through a few boxes and rounded up one of my first art projects. About 25 years ago I did the poster featured above about my Mom, and her Real Estate career. It was for an Open House (no pun, honest!!!) for the elementary school where I attended first grade. It was just, what she did according to me way back then. Things are way more complicated now, than when I was six. There’s a heck of a lot more paperwork for one. But the same basic principle still applies.
