Читать книгу From Homemaker to Breadwinner - Myra Ph.D Nourmand - Страница 13

As a successful real estate broker, your job is to educate your clients. Not only are you teaching them about the service you provide, but you’re also giving them information that will help them make the best decision.

For example, I had a client who determined that he wanted to spend $6 million on his next home. He wanted to live in the Holmby Hills area of Los Angeles, and he was looking for a big lot with a view of the city. Based on my knowledge of the area, I determined that $6 million would not buy a home that met his specifications.

When I shared this information with him, he became obstinate. “My wife and I refuse to spend a penny more than $6 million,” I recall him telling me. Although I knew this wouldn’t be possible, based on current market conditions where he wanted to buy, I realized that he needed to see this for himself.

I suggested that we spend the afternoon looking at homes in Holmby Hills. We met, and I drove him to several properties that I had sold in the neighborhood. Many of the listings were similar to what he was looking for, but all were valued at more than $6 million. After seeing the properties, I invited him to my home where we could discuss what we had observed that day.

Before I left for work that morning, I prepared a plate of fresh fruit, as I knew that my client and I would de-brief afterwards back at my home. We sat in my living room, and I listened to him discuss the day’s events.

“$6 million was my absolute spending limit, but after you showed me around today, I realize that I need to reconsider,” he told me. He later thanked me for educating him about the neighborhood and providing him with the information he needed to change his plans. In the end, he recognized he would have to either spend more than he had initially planned or rethink the kind of property he wanted to purchase.

This example illustrates that as a broker, your job is to provide your clients with information that will allow them to make the best possible choice. To do this successfully, you have to be sensitive to their needs. This means that you express your opinions in a way that shows that they are your Number 1 priority and that you value their time.

In the case of the client I just described, what convinced him to think twice about his plans was my knowledge of the area where he sought to live. In order for you to earn your clients’ respect, and for them to trust your opinion, you must have extensive knowledge of the community you serve. I’ll explain what this involves in Chapter 3. For now, you must know your inventory, which means that you have done exhaustive research about homes in the area you serve.