If there’s one thing that I get really tired of as a broker, it’s hearing about agents that don’t do their job well. Or at all. Here’s the thing. If you want to get paid the big bucks, you have to do the work.
What am I talking about?
Here are some of the issues we’ve faced recently. Take from it what you will, but if you see yourself even just a little, it’s time for some self-reflection and an adjustment in how you’re running your business.
Meeting deadlines
Those deadlines in the contract aren’t guidelines. They have ramifications for everyone involved, so when your client signs off on an inspection response but you don’t actually send it to the other agent for 24 hours, that’s a problem if the inspection period ended a couple of hours ago. How are you going to explain to a buyer that they are stuck buying a house as-is because you didn’t bother to forward an email?
Make sure keys work
When you list a property, test the keys, please. If the locks are difficult to operate, get a locksmith out there. We had one of our agents standing on a porch for over an hour because a lock wouldn’t work, while the listing agent was on the phone saying “oh yeah, it can be a problem”. If you know it’s a problem, fix it!
Don’t make listings hard to show
I know that occupied homes can present a challenge if the owners have kids and/or pets to get out before it can be shown. Put those requirements in your showing instructions and everyone will be on the same page. BUT. If a house is vacant, make it easy on everyone and put a lockbox on it. Coordinating buyers + showing agents + listing agents = a recipe for frustration. Pssst. Frustrated buyers move on to another house and if it’s because you’re the bottleneck, you’re not doing your sellers any favors.
Don’t be sloppy with contracts
All of those blank lines on your contracts? They are meant to be filled in, even if it’s just with N/A. I tell all of my agents to imagine that a judge will one day review the contract – is it accurate? Is it complete? Is it clear what all parties are agreeing to? Don’t miss those lines for annotating receipt and presentation of offers, either. I see those blank all of the time and brokers need to do a better job of training their agents on this.
Return calls + texts + emails
If there’s a single thing that ticks off every agent around, it’s that agent that never answers the phone and ignores emails and text messages. We are in the communication business and that means you have to….wait for it…COMMUNICATE! Ignoring agents doesn’t make them go away, it just makes them adversarial and that’s not the position anyone wants to be negotiating from.
Need some help redesigning your business? Give Lisa a call at 504-616-6262.
