One question that we should ask every real estate lead

“You wanna buy what?”

As simple as it sounds we sometimes are caught up in what we want to sell instead of asking and listening to the single most important thing that home buyers want to actually answer. They will tell anyone, their barber, their neighbor, strangers in line at 7-11. They want to answer this question because it is an expression of who they are. It’s like asking someone their favorite band. It provides an opportunity for them to talk about themselves in a positive way without fear of being wrong. The answer to “What do you want to buy?” has about three billion meanings that include but are not limited to:

I value education

I value my community

I am moving up in the world

I have already arrived

My time is important

I have a family I want to make comfortable

You get the idea.

The answers to “What do you want to buy?” are multilayered and really have far greater meaning than the number of bedrooms and baths. The secret is to listen to the answer and ask some probing questions so that you know exactly why they answered the question the way they did.

When a real estate lead says they want to live in a particular school district they are really saying that my children are my number one priority and this will be a leading driver for them. Even if they eventually buy outside of that school district they will justify their change according to the needs of their children. Trying to shift them to another school district is possible but we would need to be prepared with statistics that back up your suggestion. This will give them the permission they need to change their mind. Without statistics we communicate that their number one value doesn’t matter to us. Or worse that their children don’t matter to us. Go ahead and tell someone you don’t care about their kids and see if they invite you to a Bar-B-Q?

We have to value their values and appreciate those values or we are fighting an uphill battle.

Real estate leads are not just real estate leads they are people who, like us, have desires that are not always expressed as exactly as we might like. By understanding them we can better serve our clients and do more business while making friends in the process.

So enjoy the Bar-B-Q.