"I Hate to Be the Bearer of Bad News, But...." - Delivering the Truth to Our Seller Clients

Over the course of my career, I have been the bearer of tough news for my listing clients many times.  I don't ever relish the thought of sharing bad news with anyone, but I must admit that my skills in this area have improved dramatically with experience.

I have a few tips to share that might help you if you are faced with delivering undesirable news to your own clients.

1. Just say it.  Sometimes, it's best to just spit it out, then deal with the explanation.  If you're at a listing appointment, and you know that the home is worth substantially less than they were hoping for, you don't have anything to gain by beating around the bush.  Get it out on the table.  In fact, it might just save you some time if they are unwilling to listen to the facts, because you can make a quicker exit.

2. You might consider prefacing your statement with, "I fully realize that this is not what you were hoping to hear", or something similar.  It may or may not soften the blow very much, but at least you tried, right?

3. If they question your valuation of their home, tell them that you are forced to look at things as an appraiser would.  I have said things like this, "I think your home shows really well, and you have a ton of nice upgrades.  I think we could actually find a buyer that will pay the price you want, but I really don't think it will appraise, then you have a new set of issues to deal with."

4. Another good quote (feel free to steal it from me): "You might get an agent to agree to list the home for that price, but it won't change the market value.  Don't ever choose an agent based exclusively on the price."

I hope that this is helpful for you.  I am known with my past clients as being direct and honest, without being blunt.  There is a fine art to communicating effectively.  Hopefully, these tips will give you a leg up on your competition.

Thanks for reading!

Image courtesy of B?n on Flickr.com.