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When is a Real Estate Client Not a Client Anymore?
A one-time real estate client does not always remain a client.
Among the many homes I sell, this particular home in East Sacramento, I sold many years ago to a charming couple as a second home where they someday hope to retire. Every so often these real estate clients will call me for help because they appeared to be very happy with my services, and they respect the fact I’ve got a ton of experience on which they can rely. It’s not unusual for clients to call and ask for my expert advice. They know I’m not going anywhere and I’ll be in real estate until the day I croak. They can always find me, and I answer my phone.
The call I received a few days ago was a bit odd. It wasn’t the first time this type of situation has happened with this person. What I’m talking about is a client who, for whatever peculiar reason, decides to buy a home through whichever agent seems handy at the moment, and then turns to their trusted agent for advice. This couple bought a home in Land Park a few years ago on the courthouse steps. By the time they thought to call me, they were already in escrow with the bank and overpaying for the property. They did not know that the location of this particular home demanded much less than homes on the other side of the street, so they got suckered.
Sometimes buyers are confused and think they have to hire a listing agent to get an offer accepted, but that is way off base and a myth. Sure, there are greedy and unethical agents who will kick their seller under the bus to double-end a deal, but most Sacramento Realtors are not like that. I’m not like that. I don’t care who represents the buyer as long as my seller’s needs are met. My fiduciary responsibility is to the seller when I’m the listing agent.
This time the couple called to say they had bought yet another home, and they wanted a referral to a specific type of contractor. When I explained that the type of person they need is difficult to find, and I wasn’t sure off the top of my head if I had such a person in my contact list, they asked if I could call my office, check around with some of my associates. Didn’t they have an agent who represented them on the purchase of this home? Why, yes, they did. So, why didn’t they call me to represent them? You bet I asked that question.
The reason? The purchase was a spur of the moment decision.
What? Really? The decision was made so quickly they had no time to consider calling their reliable and dedicated Realtor?
When I suggested they call the agent who represented them and get advice from that person, they balked. They insisted I would know the answer or I could find the answer. Well, yes, I could and I would if they were my real estate client but it doesn’t seem like they are my clients. Because my real estate clients call me before they buy a home on the spur of the moment through another agent.
How Do You Know if the Sacramento Home Buyer is in Love?
Because it ain’t over ’til the fat lady sings in Sacramento real estate — meaning home buyers basically make a zero commitment during the first several weeks of escrow — it’s not unusual for a seller to worry about the buyer’s intentions. Is the buyer serious? Is the home buyer in love with your home? An offer means little, believe it or not. The offers I receive from buyer’s agents on behalf of my sellers generally provide very little insight. I’m lucky if the agent manages to tell me anything tangible about the buyer. It’s not unusual for an agent to scan the offer to my email without so much as an introduction or greeting.
You remember the components of a letter, right? Well, if you’re of a certain age and dig way back in your attic, you’ll recall the salutation, body and closing. Nobody bothers with that formality today. In fact, I’m grateful if an agent says, “Hey, here is my buyer’s offer.” Or, maybe they send a link so I can retrieve the offer myself from ZIPforms or Dropbox.
There is no interaction. No discussion, usually, unless I generate it. The bulk of emails with offers attached that share any insight whatsoever about the buyer will commonly note: The buyer is in love with the home. They better be in love with the home; I don’t know any buyer who isn’t in love with the home — except the buyers who swear on their grandmother’s grave they are so in love with the home and then won’t pony up an extra thousand or two to meet the seller’s counter offer.
They’re in love to a point. Don’t tell us how much a buyer is in love with the home, show us. Put your money where the agent’s fingertips have traveled on that keyboard: present that huge honkin’ earnest money deposit and make a few concessions.
A seller asked this morning how we can tell if a buyer is serious. That’s a tough one because we are forced to rely on the documents before us and veteran agents with a few decades behind our big fat butts, well, we partly rely on intuition. Gut instincts is a collective intangible asset developed over years. Listing agents like me will draw attention to any item that could cause a problem in the purchase offer as a reason to disqualify a buyer when helping the seller to choose between two or more buyers. Anything that makes a buyer appear less qualified or uncommitted, pffft, out of the running.
Choosing between offers can result in assigning negative points to certain things such as type of financing, credits, length of escrow, repair demands, mortgage lender, agent experience, inspection periods, among other aspects of the purchase contract. Too many negative points and your offer won’t get accepted. In this market, sometimes one negative point is enough to make a buyer lose a home.
Tip: If you’re a buyer who is trying to buy a home in Sacramento, figure that you have competition for every home you want and ask your agent to perform accordingly. Agents, take a few minutes to share the strong points of your offer / buyer qualifications with the seller. Don’t just email an offer and skidaddle off to your lake house for the weekend. Tell us why the seller should take your buyer’s offer over another.
