Posts Tagged ‘10 mistakes’

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Many of you know that I recently bought a home.

And, for those of you that don’t know that I recently bought a home…I recently bought a home.  Here’s proof.

Although we are very happy with our home we did purchase, during this process, I happened to notice that as we viewed house after house, I kept seeing the same things happen over and over.  And….not good things.  Bad things.  Bad things that were blatantly obvious to me.  Bad things that literally turned me off.  Bad things that were keeping this otherwise fine house I was standing in from selling faster.

So, as we went through the homes, I started keeping track of things that I saw that made the average buyer – ME – want to run away screaming.  Here is my “Top 10 Seller Sins”:

1. Addition Addiction – Ok…exactly what were these people thinking when they added this addtion to their home??  It isnt level.  The door frame isnt square.  And, that simulated wood-grain indoor/outdoor burber carpeting is HIDEOUS!!  Wasn’t this were the garage should be anyway?? I guess that explains the severely sun-faded paint job on the Sport Family Truckster in the driveway and the Christmas decorations piled floor-to-ceiling in the closet in the spare bedroom.  I don’t care what anyone says…Bigger is NOT always better.

2. The “Pet-Owner Moaner” – The over-all assumption that since the seller loves their pets more than chocolate, so does everyone else.  Here are a couple of quotes I heard directly from the sellers mouths: “Awwww, my cat must really like you to nestle into your neck like that.”; “I know he looks big, but he is really just a teddy bear.”; “We were able to clean up everything in the house except the cat room.”; “I cant remember if my son put away the ferrets or not, but feel free to look around downstairs.”
a.  Ok…first and foremost, Im allergic to cats.  I don’t mean that cats make me sneeze.  I mean that I quit breathing and require adrenallin shots to keep from dieing.  That thing is lucky I didn’t toss it out the open window that was next to me.
b. The “teddy bear” they were referring to…Yeah, that was a 158lb Rotweiller with a googlie eye and a broken tooth on the right side.  His chain was tied to a cinder block that he happily drug around and tossed into the air during “playtime”.
c. The “cat room”??? Oh Lord in heaven!!!
d. If you cant figure out if your son left out a pack of rodents in the dark rooms down the creaky stairs without a safety rail and a working light switch, you can be damn sure Im not going to find out for you.

3. Auditory Unawareness – If you cant hear that your refridgerator is making a clicking noise that can be heard from the front yard, Im fairly sure you cant hear the floorboards creaking, the doors squeaking, or the apparent family of raccoons living in the attic.  You also only hear what you want to hear.  Instead of “Your house is priced too high”, you hear “Your house is of a high value”.  Its not the same.  Pay attention!

4. Color Blind – Holy Lord!!  Who decorated this place?? Its like Andy Worhol threw his color pallet into a Cuisinart and hit ‘liquify’.  The fuscia flower print wallpaper needs to go.  And, I don’t carew what you say, it doesn’t do any justice to that wall with the fake woodgrain panelling it joins up to by the sunshine yellow couch.  Worse yet…the white cabinets, white-washed walls, white countertops, and white tile is just a bit much.

5. “Take it or leave it” – Yup.  Heard that come right out of a seller’s own mouth.  We were discussing the possiblity of him making a necessary repair to a sliding glass door that lead out to a deck.  Between the glass panes was about half an inch of standing water.  Obviously, the seals on the window were compromised.  When asked if he would spend the money to get the glass replaced and the seales re-done…or just replace the entire door…that was the response I got.  Guess what…I left it.

6. Price-itis – The fear that your home wont sell for the price you are asking for it.  I put in an offer on a home that was only $5,000 under what was being asked.  The counter came back with a reduction of $1,000, but a clause to pay $4,000 in closing costs.  Now, I may be bad at math…but, isnt that the same damn thing????

7. Fried Food Funk – You know what Im talking about here.  If you can smell it, you won’t sell it. Bottom line here is that fried food smells, kitty litter, a back yard filled with dog crap, a nursery reaking of dirty diapers, etc…all add up to one thing – a very short showing.  (Well, it also leads to gagging, shortness of breath, tears streaming down your face, and everyone skrunching up their nose and making that internationally known face that says, “Do you SMELL that???”)

8. Photog Fog – Everyone should take pride in their family photographs.  I do.  But, Im not trying to sell my house!  I went into one home where, I kid you not, the entire living walls…every square inch…was covered in frame pics of family.  There must have been 100 pictures in that room.  Frames mounted together like a patchwork quilt of memories and bad matting jobs.  Love the sentiment…love the family pride.  But, I was COMPLETELY distracted from seeing the actual house.

9. “I collect them” – No kidding, really??? Nothing would have made me realize you collect dolls were it not for the fact that Im now suddenly very aware of the fact that 226 eyes are now following me through your house like Chucky with an ax to grind.  Yeah, I couldn’t tell that you collect Vegas casino ash trays since they are on every flat surface in your entire house including 4 separate 6-ft tall bookshelves, your coffee table, the top of your TV, the end-tables,  and the extra two shelves that you put up encircling the entire living room.  But, worse than that, you have them on your toilet tank, your dresser…and in an amazing twist, you have drilled holes in them and replaced half of the doorknobs in your house with them.  In case your agent hasn’t told you this….PACK THIS CRAP UP!

10. Livin in the past – I don’t care what you think, the pea soup green shag carpeting is not coming back in style.  And, regardless of how many memories are associated with it, the nine-foot long, hunter orange, faux-leather couch on the wooden legs with the sleigh-style arms on the each end is FREAKING UGLY!! Regardless of whether or not they still work, the matching avocado green stove, fridge, and counter tops are ugly…and they are ugly 24/7/365.  If you want to move this house…replace this ferocious eyesore.  Better yet…HIRE A HOME STAGER!

Yeah, selling a house is hard.  Selling a house in the market is harder.  Selling one of THESE houses with a seller that sins like this…nearly impossible.  Sellers, if you are reading this…listen to your agents.  Agents, if you are reading this…make sure your sellers understand that buyers – like me – will look at these like neither of you know what you are doing and act accordingly.  Probably by running away quick.

If you would like more information about Real Estate Client Referrals and how we can send you more clients to work with, please contact Clint Miller at 800-977-7058.  Or, follow me on twitter www.twitter.com/TheRealClint.

Being in the industry that I am, I deal with agents all day long in just about every state in the union.  Some of the agents I work with are as solid as they can get…others, not so much.  But, the one thing that I do know is that all of them WANT to be successful.  It’s just that some of them have the ability to ensure that it happens to them.

You can WANT to be successful with all your heart – The fact of the matter is that you will only be successful if you work hard, work smart, and avoid the pitfalls that the majority of agents hit at some point in their career…usually within the first 2 years.  According to recent statistics, as many as 50% of new agents are no longer active within one year.  And 75% of them are done within the first 2 years. 

My question is – Why? 

Is it because they don’t know how it works?  Is it because they think this is easy?  Perhaps it’s because they are “visionary” and plan on breaking new ground wherever their butt lands…

News Flash — New agents don’t come into the business to fail.  No one takes on a new career with the specific purpose of being the low man on the totem pole.  But, few realize that this job is just that…a job.  It’s work, people!  In fact, it’s hard work.  And by being such, you must have certain skills and apply some effort to make sure that you succeed. 

Now, with today’s market, there are certain factors that are working against new agents. 

• There is an ever-widening space between what the consumer wants and the performance level of certain agents.  Agents require better training, coaching, and communication skills (online or offline) than ever before.
• The market (in most areas) has become more challenging then ever before.  Agents can’t just jump in and get “easy sales” to get their feet wet.
• Committed, long-term oriented agents (seasoned veterans) are taking a much larger share of the market leaving less for new agents.

So, with those factors in mind, this list of 10 mistakes that new agents make regularly should help you stay on track…and make it past the first 24 months of your career. 

• Don’t think that there are multiple ways to start.  There aren’t.  Despite everything that I have said about this being a “numbers” game in the past, it is sales.  And sales is a numbers game.  
• Don’t try to “do it differently”.  Fast food joints and cell phone kiosks are full of people that thought that they had a better way to go about getting prospects.  If you are not out there talking to as many people as humanly possible about real estate and trying to turn business your way, you will fail.  Lead generation is quite possibly the most work a new agent faces, but one that will lead to the greatest reward in the long run.
• Don’t rely on others for business.  Your manager isn’t going to give you clients.  The other agents in your office aren’t going to give you clients.  If that were the case, your commissions would be much smaller.  If you want business…go out and get it.
• Don’t fall into the technology spiral.  This job isn’t about tasks and technological advantages (although, those help!).  It is about people relationships.  And if you are not out there helping people and talking with people and letting people know what you can do for them, you will be flipping burgers in no time!
• Don’t think that a deal is ever “done”.  I had a manager once tell me that the sale isn’t over until you are eating the steak that you bought with the money that you got from the bank after the check cleared.  And, my immediate response was, “But, if I want to eat that steak again, shouldn’t I keep in contact with that person?”  In this business, the sale is almost never over…because you can sell that person again.  Or get a referral from that person in the future.  Maintain your relationships with your clients and they will monetize in the long run.
• Don’t start off “part-time” without a clear strategy to go “full-time”.  That’s right.  If you have to start this business part-time, you MUST have a full-time mentality.  This job requires at least 50hrs per week.  If you can not commit to that right away, make sure you have a plan in place that allows for a move to full-time within a specific time frame.  “Part-time” is a disservice to your clients and to your officemates.  Also, Managers – Do not hire someone that is going to go part-time without a firm commitment of a full-time placement.  You are wasting your time, effort, and money without it.
• Get coaching often and make sure your broker is on the same page that you are on.  If your manager cant commit to helping you be more successful, maybe you are in the wrong office.  (Managers – You’re goal should be to ensure that you commit 100% to the success of a new agent.  They need you.  Without you showing them the way, the likelihood of them falling on their faces is 75% in 2 years.  As a manager, a 25% success rate should be infuriating!)
• Don’t base your office choice by the commission structure of the office!  Don’t base your decision to work for one office or another on the payment structure of the office.  You need to sell real estate.  In fact, you need to sell LOTS of real estate.  So, choose an office that will allow that to happen.  The money will come as you sell more. 
• Invest in your business!!  Many agents decide that they cant invest in their business until they “get successful”.  When is that going to happen?  How will you compete against all of those other agents that are doing what you are not?  How will anyone find you to work with you?  Why would someone want to work with you if you don’t at least appear to be successful?
• Don’t do this if you are “seeing if its right for you”.  The last stat I read was that 50% of new agents got into this business to see if it was a good fit for them.  If you are not 100% committed to being a success at this business, you are wasting your time, your manager’s time, your broker’s time, your client’s time, and everyone’s money.  As a very wise Jedi Master once said…”Do.  Or do not.  There is no ‘try’”.

I realize that some of these words might be a bit harsh…be a bit difficult for some of you to read.  But, they are true.  Your success or failure rides directly on your shoulders.  So, make sure you choose and environment that will help you get where you want to be.  Pick a manager that is committed to your success.  Find people that will tell you the truth – even when you don’t want to hear it.  And, develop a plan of attack that requires you, your manager, and your broker to be committed to your success.  If you do that, you might make it beyond that 24 month time frame and have a long, successful career. 

If you would like more information on www.recr.com and how we can help you get more clients to work with, contact Clint Miller at 800-977-7058.  Or, follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/recr.