Getting a Picky and Difficult Buyer to "Pull the Trigger" and Write a Contract!

I have been working with an older couple for several weeks as we are preparing their home for sale and simultaneously looking for a new place for them.  They want to leave their neighborhood of 37 years and move out of the city a little bit.  Frankly, they feel a little unsafe in their current home, so the decision to move was not a difficult one.  As with many older neighborhoods, theirs is one that has gone downhill lately, and they want to leave.  I also mentioned their circumstances in this previous post of mine: Everything Old is New Again

At any rate, as I have been working with them, the wife has produced a virtual avalanche of questions, partially from fear of moving after so long.  As I have patiently answered every question, I have been thinking in the back of my mind, "Will they ever commit to a home?"  It seemed unlikely for awhile, because their needs/wants seemed to be difficult to find for their desired price range.  Then one day in Georgetown, we seemingly struck gold.  Even though we found what appeared to be the perfect property, they needed to see it again, then see it once again with their kids and grandkids, then think about it for several days. 

Obviously, I was very pleased when I got a call from the husband to come over one evening and prepare an offer.  I happily obliged, arriving at the appointed time (actually, I was a few minutes late because of the traffic).  His wife was just getting home when I showed up, and she greeted me and we began to chat a little bit.  She suddenly asked me, "So, what are we doing tonight?"  Apparently, he hadn't bothered to tell her that I was there to write an offer.  Talk about a little awkwardness to start the contract process. 

They talked about it at length in front of me, and then she began again with her typical litany of questions:

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  What happens if we don't sell our current home?
  
  
  
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  What do you think they will accept as a sales price?
  
  
  
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  What happens during the inspection if they find something wrong?
  
  
  
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  Why is the HOA fee so high?
  
  
  
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  How tall are you?
  
  
  
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  What is your blood type?
  
  
  
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  Where did you go to school?
  
  
  
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  What is your favorite color?
  
  
  

Okay, I was kidding. Two of those questions didn't arise during our time together.

Well, thankfully, I had read a post by Joey Aszterbaum (or perhaps it was comments that he made somewhere else).  Either way, I found the information today in an older post by Joey from July: How to Help Your Client Say YES - TeleClass Notes .  The post itself was not particularly flashy, but it contained a solid, easy-to-use sales script.  Since I realized that I did not comment on that post until today, this may be info that Joey shared with me elsewhere. Regardless, I know that it came from him. 

But I digress....

As I was sitting there, absorbing her questions and explaining the process in great detail, I remembered what Joey had written, and so I said,

"I know that this is an important decision for you.  Is there anything else that you need from me before we get started?"

Joey called this the "Important Decision" close in his post.  As we probably all know, part of any good closing question is SILENCE.  In other words, it is best to keep your mouth closed and simply wait for a response.  If you start speaking too quickly, it can defuse the power of the moment.

She sat thinking for what seemed like a minute or more (which is a long time to sit quietly), then she simply said, "I guess not.  Let's write it up."

WOW!  Joey just became my new hero!  I only wish I had thought to say this sooner.  We wrote up the offer and got it submitted because of a simple technique that I learned from my Active Rain buddy. 

During my two and a half months here at Active Rain, I have had one sale from a client who found my AR blog directly, and three referrals from my friends here.  This is a vibrant and exciting community that offers a brilliant opportunity to those who "grab the ring".  Read, read, read, and learn, learn, learn.  You will be head and shoulders above your competition if you take this seriously.  By serious, I don't mean dour, just focused. 

Thanks to Joey, I was able to get my client off the fence and get things moving solidly in the right direction (forward).  Having a client paralyzed by inertia is not fun for anyone. 

My client was relieved and so was I, frankly.  There is so much information to absorb here that it can seem overwhelming at times, but there are also rays of brilliance that come through and I have already added several techniques to my sales arsenal. 

Thanks for reading!

Copyright 2007   Austin Real Estate   Jason Crouch    All rights reserved