40 REAL ESTATE OBJECTIONS HANDLED

“You know, I can appreciate that, and I want to be up front with you and say NO, Iwill not cut my commissions, and for one very simple reason”.“As a professional my time has a certain value and I only work with people, likeyou, that realize the value of my service….and before you say anything, thinkabout this…“If an agent is willing to cut his or her commission, just like that, how well do youthink they will hold up when it comes to negotiating the best possible price foryour home?”I want to demonstrate, up front, how tough I am going to be for you…Therefore,cutting my commission is not an option…does that make sense?”

“That’s great, I can appreciate your loyalty and that is a quality that I respect inpeople…so, I’m curious, let me ask you this…“Has there ever been a time when you decided to buy something or do somethingand a friend said, “Hey, no problem when you need help, I can do it” and in theend, because you didn’t check around, you really didn’t get what youwanted…Have you ever been there before?” (YES)“Well, I think you might find that this time is just like that time, and with that inmind, I’m sure you can see the importance of having me over to give you a secondopinion…that wouldn’t hurt anything, would it?”

I’d level shift…”You know what? You’re right! There are only a certain numberof things any agent can do to get a home sold and I think the final decision is notbased on what I do differently…“I think the real issue is how you feel about the agent representing you…So tellme, what qualities are you looking for in an agent?Did you see how I shifted from “What do you do different”, to “What qualities areyou looking for?”Top agent alternative:“My results”!

“It’s kind of confusing isn’t it? I mean, you interview four agents and you get fourdifferent prices ... right”? (Yes, why is that?)“You are probably thinking why did this person come in with such a low price?Doesn’t he or she want to get our listing? Well, my answer is Yes and No.“You see there is a very big difference in the way that I operate and the way thatmost agents operate. Most agents manipulate the computer to show figures thatthey think you want to hear. Why?“Well, most agents don’t do much or get much business. Getting your listingmakes them feel like they are accomplishing something…“Whereas, I, on the other hand, sell homes, non-stop, all day long. Do you want toknow why?” (Sure)“I tell nice people like you, the truth. Did you know that only ___% of the homesthat are listed for sale actually sell?” (No, I didn’t know that)“There’s a very simple reason, do you want to hear it?” (Yes)

“I can appreciate the position that you are in. Many people in our area are in thesame position and you know…I’m curious. Has there ever been a time when youknew you were going to have to make a sacrifice?“I mean, you knew it was going to be tough and in the end, after analyzing all ofyour options, you realized that there was only one thing to do…Put our head down,grit your teeth and go for it…“But you found that in the end, it all worked out. You made it through the toughtimes and life went on, maybe en better than before…“Have you ever been there before?” (Well, yes)“This time is just like that time…as you can see, the competitive market analysisshows that there is no way anyone is going to give you what you need to make thismove…“My question is this. Is it more important to get out from under this house, takethe new job and work through the tough times or are you in a position to keepmaking mortgage payments on this house for a couple of years until propertyvalues go back up?”…Help your prospects to see that they have probably been intough places before and made it through…and this time is no different.

“I can appreciate your frustration with the market place and I was wondering, whatspecifically causes you to believe that you can sell this home yourself, when lessthan ___% of the home listed for sale with Real Estate Agents are selling?” (Idon’t know…but, I can’t afford to sell at that price)Ah-ha! The real objection comes out! Now dig more, find out the true motivationand handle the objection the way I have already taught you.Top Agent Alternative:“No matter what you ask for, the homeowners are trying to save money by sellingtheir homes themselves. I can create more competition through the brokeragecommunity.”Here’s a derivative of the same one…

“I completely understand your point of view Mr. And Mrs. Seller and it soundslike you haven’t been involved in this kind of transaction in a while…can I tell youwhy?” (Sure!)“Agents work with buyers because it is easy. You show the house, the agent writesan offer and the agent on the listing side handles the next three months of legalpaperwork trying to get the deal closed…Does that make sense?” (Yes)“If you list it for sale yourself, who will follow up with the three months worth oflegal paperwork…you? If so, what agent will want to risk the fact that you havenever done it before?“Let me ask you this…If you were an agent, would you rather show homes thatwere listed with professional agents that worked to get deals closed?“Would you rather show a home and keep your fingers crossed, hoping that youdon’t get sued by the buyers because some legal aspect was overlooked by thehomeowners and the transaction didn’t get done…Which would you rather do?“Do you see my point?” (Yes)“Your idea sounds valid. It just doesn’t fit into today’s “lawsuit-happy”reality…I’m sorry. Are there any other questions I can answer before you sign thelisting agreement?”Top Agent Alternative:“That may sound good, but then nobody is pushing your property. If nobodypushes it, nobody shows it. If nobody shows it, then I guess it won’t sell.”

If a prospect has no reason to sell their house then that is a condition. You can’tovercome conditions.

“Passive marketing is holding open houses, sending out flyers and advertising inthe newspaper…“You see, these methods are passive and you can’t predict if they will work or not.Yet, agents that don’t want to work at getting your home sold will insist that theyhave sold many homes this way…And do you know what?“I agree, you can get a home sold that way…But, you can’t guarantee it. Do youunderstand what I mean by passive, basically sitting around waiting to get yourhome sold?“Active marketing on the other hand is much more aggressive and verypredictable.“I will be on the phone every single day and call 10, 25, and 50 even 100 peopleasking them if they would like to buy your home, if they know someone whowould like to buy your home or if they would like to sell their house…“Do you know why I ask them if they would like me to sell their house?” (Why)“You see, the more signs I have out in the community, the more buyers that willcall on those signs. The more buyer calls I get, the more people I can show yourhouse to…“Now, which way, passive or active do you think gets more homes sold?“Would you like me to spend all my time and effort doing what is proven to getyour home sold or would you like me to sit around with my fingers crossed hopinga buyer happens to call?”Top Agent Alternative:“I advertise to the brokerage community; it has the qualified buyers for which weare looking.” (Passive vs. active etc.)

“I can appreciate that and you probably haven’t had a chance to think about theadvantage I have over my fellow agents in town…“You see, the more listings I have, the more signs I have on the street. The moresigns I have on the street, the more calls I get from buyers…and, of course, most ofthose buyers don’t buy the house they call about and many of them will be veryinterested in our house.“Can you see the advantage of listing with an agent that has 20-30 signs on thestreet working for you?”Top Agent Alternative:“It’s funny you should say that…Benjamin Franklin said, “If you need somethingdone, ask a busy person.”

“I agree, finding your new home is important and the unfortunate thing is…it maytake as long as three months for your home to sell. Then it will take another twomonths to get all of the paper work done and, by that time, any home that youwould have found would already be sold.“Let’s get the listing agreement signed right now and get to work on getting yourhome sold tonight, so you don’t have to wait any longer than is necessary to getmoved into your new home…sound good?”Top Agent Alternative:“I understand your concern about your new home. I’ve brought you a list ofcurrent listings that fit your need. Check these out and we will start looking. Oncethis house goes under contract, we will put a contract on your #1 choice – Closeboth homes the same day – One move for you! You are in good hands. I will takecare of you.”Top Agent Alternative:“Terrific! Have you seen a home or are you ready to make an offer on one?” (No)“Great, let me go ahead and schedule a time with my lender and buyer/showingagent. They can handle that for you. Let’s go ahead and write up the contractnow.”

I’d level shift…“You’re right, I don’t sell a lot of homes in your price range and that’s exactly whyI’m here tonight…“I usually sell homes in lower price ranges and what I find is…after I sell myclient’s homes, a great many of them move up to your price range, therefore, itonly makes sense…that the next logical step for me is to start to sell your pricerange as well, considering I already have a relationship with many of the buyersthat will be interested in your home…does that make sense?”