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                20 MAR

                What Makes a Good Client?

                We have a sellers guide, closing cost guide, buying process information , Buyers FAQ , Florida contract info but not much is written on being a good client.

                There are 2 parts to this, and this is a long article. However, it’s important, as being a good client yourself will determine if you have great experience, get a good deal, and is just as critical as choosing a good real estate agent.

                So, what makes a good client?

                A. Recognition

                Recognizing that you buying or selling in an industry with lots of dollars at stake that can appear much easier than it is. Really understanding that you must be open to learn what you need to do as a purchaser or seller is important. Complex contracts with lots of variables, addendums, aesthetics, personalities, emotion inspections, contingencies, etc…

                B. Trust

                Once you pick your Realtor, let them quarterback you.  It’s like going to a doctor. If the doctor tells you to stop smoking, then stop smoking. If a Realtor tells you to get a pre-inspection or preapproval than do it if it makes sense.

                C. Ability to Listen

                Ask questions and listen to your Realtor. See above. 

                 

                D. Implementation

                Put together a game plan. A master bedroom closet for example needs to look neat and somewhat sparse.  Having clothes color-coordinated with one specific colored hanger is brought up to all my clients but it’s hard to implement it. It is a pain in the a** to organize a closet and it takes hours to do. Plus, it’s emotional to get rid of your clothes. I push my clients to do these little things for their benefit but it often needs a game plan for implementation.

                E. Adaptability

                Things change during the process. Feedback such as needing to do something about the old dials on your oven might mean you have to do some staging. In a sellers’ market insisting on a contingency of the sale of your home might not be possible.  Markets are always a moving target and adapting to changes can mean the difference of not losing out on a deal.

                F. Consequences for Cutting Corners

                If you don’t do a pre-inspection for example, the odds of having a more robust inspection report with higher dollar fix demands or cancellation goes up.

                 

                G. Do not be a wise guy.

                Clients can create problems. Just this morning I got a call from an agent in a situation where the closing company missed an addendum of a $5,000 credit. Payouts were made. If the Seller sees that as a mistaken windfall then that can cause lots of needless calls and getting attorneys involved. At the end of the day it isn’t a windfall. But if that client didn’t return the money, they would cause needless grief for everyone. My answer to our agent was hopefully the Seller will return the money – as stated by the closing company disclaimer if an error occurs.

                H. Sugar

                Treat your Real Estate agent well. It’s a stressful 24/7 job.  All of our agents are most motivated by doing a good job for their clients. It’s why they got into the business. A compliment and thank you goes a long way.

                 

                The Answer is always “YES” to any Reasonable Request.

                It’s an odd slogan for an appliance and electronics store. When I saw it I was 22 and picking out a BIG flat tube TV some friends of my parents got me for graduating Syracuse University.  The Abt’s were in my parents’ folks circle and went to their store to pick up my gift on which I watched hours of the Chicago Bears losing and Seinfeld. Back to the sign though. I always heard that the customer is King!  But here is Bob Abt putting a disclaimer on it.

                My Grandfather had a saying as well in his textile business.  “You Can’t do a Good Deal with a Bad Guy”.

                I use both slogans throughout both my life and business career. As the President of our company, I only hire people who I personally think have good character. If their character and empathy for others is not there, then it’s a pass.  Skill set, drive, adaptability, and knowledge need to be there, but people of good character tend to have drive to please others and are adaptable because of their positive outlook.  Product knowledge can be taught with drive. Skillset is only teachable to an extent.

                But back to what makes a good client. The first is if they are a “good guy” like my Grandpa Gerald said.  A good client can be demanding and want you to work hard but if they are going to hide that the house has a mold problem or constantly demean you, than it’s a pass.  And I think that was what Bob Abt was saying with his sign.  The answer is always “Yes” to any Reasonable Request.  We have helped move furniture in a house, arranged for disposal after a sale, and much more.

                …

                Real Estate is a funny thing because people buy and sell on average once every 13 years, which is up 3 years since 2008 according to NAR .  It’s less so in Florida since we are a heavier second state destination spot.

                That lack of muscle memory causes the following issues:

                A. Once a Decade

                When you are moving once a decade on average it creates a client who does not have knowledge of what to do. You fill up your gas tank at least once a week so you get what to do. Not so much in Real Estate. And things change. If you last sold a home in 2002, the newspaper was super important. Today the physical paper is more of relic compared to digital advertising, but a client often puts more weight into what happened last – even though it might not be relevant now.

                B. Last Experience Memory

                It creates situations where the client may only remember the last time they sold when market conditions were vastly different, or the time of their life was different. A seller who was doing well financially and sold high with a home on the market for 3 weeks in 2005 is going to have a wildly different memory than a poor chap who lost their job, put the house on the market and sold a year later for a loss after 317 days, 2 price reductions, staging, and 88 showings.

                C. Lack of Experience

                Inexperience to different situations in Real Estate negotiation. A one-time Real Estate negotiation is quite different than a negotiation with a long-time vendor in a different field.

                D. Endless Situations

                The number of personalities and motivations of Buyers and Sellers runs the gamut. I have sold over 1,000 homes in my career. I have typically seen it all but every so often a new situation occurs.  A person buying and selling cannot possibly know what to do in all these situations.

                E. Putting Yourself In Someone Else’s Shoes

                Difficulty in understanding things. Someone who does not value style wants the same price for their home as someone who has renovated it with a stylish eye. Getting them to understand that, and suggesting that you will purchase them a bucket of paint can be a challenge. That’s where listening and learning what you need to do to stage a property for example instead of poo-pooing the Realtor, will make for a better client experience.

                Jeff Lichtenstein is owner and broker of Echo Fine Properties, a luxury real estate brokerage selling real estate in Jupiter  and homes in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. He has 20 years of real estate experience, has closed over a 1,000 transactions, and manages over 50 agents in a non-traditional model of real estate that mimics a traditional business model.  Some publications he has been quoted in.

                Feel free to ask him a question directly at [email protected].

                View past blogs.

                Posted in Jeff's Journal, Resources on March 20, 2021 at 12:29 pm.

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